---
product_id: 100290039
title: "Women of the Pleasure Quarters: The Secret History of the Geisha"
brand: "lesley downer"
price: "€ 35.76"
currency: EUR
in_stock: true
reviews_count: 11
url: https://www.desertcart.pt/products/100290039-women-of-the-pleasure-quarters-the-secret-history-of-geisha
store_origin: PT
region: Portugal
---

# Women of the Pleasure Quarters: The Secret History of the Geisha

**Brand:** lesley downer
**Price:** € 35.76
**Availability:** ✅ In Stock

## Quick Answers

- **What is this?** Women of the Pleasure Quarters: The Secret History of the Geisha by lesley downer
- **How much does it cost?** € 35.76 with free shipping
- **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship
- **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.pt](https://www.desertcart.pt/products/100290039-women-of-the-pleasure-quarters-the-secret-history-of-geisha)

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- lesley downer enthusiasts

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## Description

Women of the Pleasure Quarters: The Secret History of the Geisha

## Images

![Women of the Pleasure Quarters: The Secret History of the Geisha - Image 1](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41gQYT9tw+L.jpg)

## Customer Reviews

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 







  
  
    More history than other geisha books I have read
  

*by L***. on Reviewed in the United States on November 25, 2019*

This book, Women of the Pleasure Quarters, is considerably less of a personal story than either Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden or Geisha by Liza Dalby, although it does detail the author’s interactions with the geisha and the people who worked with them as she attempted to discover what it was like to be a geisha. She was apparently a little old to train as a geisha herself, or perhaps just didn’t want to go that route, but she did manage to befriend several geisha and other people who knew about their lifestyle. All in all, it makes for interesting reading.This book has much more of the history of the geisha and of the prostitutes who were both their source and their main rivals in the early years than either of the other two. There are also numerous stories of famous historical or fictional geisha. In addition to Gion in Kyoto, where most of Memoirs of a Geisha took place, and Pontocho, also in Kyoto, where Liza Dalby trained as a geisha, the author visited the other geisha quarters in Kyoto and also talked to some of the modern geisha, wannabe geisha, and people similar to but not the same as geisha in Tokyo and other parts of Japan. There are discussions of how the geisha related to wives and other people, and of how the number of geisha appears to be steadily declining. Where Liza Dalby met many middle-aged geisha, Lesley Downer appears to have encountered primarily aged geisha in their sixties and seventies.

### ⭐⭐⭐ 







  
  
    Interesting...but seems to focus on non-geisha
  

*by S***E on Reviewed in the United States on February 10, 2010*

I found this an interesting read, but it seems to focus alot on non-geisha or psuedo-geisha. It does talk quite a bit about prostitution, which does not really factor into high-class geisha, and never has.I think that it focuses on the author a bit too much as well, and her problems getting into this closed world. While at points it reads as a narritive, at others it gets very dry...the author can not seem to pick a "voice" to stick with.An interesting read, but I do not think that it should be taken a holy grail of Geisha books.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 







  
  
    loved it
  

*by M***A on Reviewed in the United States on June 6, 2019*

I read this book before leaving for Japan and it was such a great summer read. More of a detailed account than a history. Liza Dalby would be more for something super detailed in history.

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*Product available on Desertcart Portugal*
*Store origin: PT*
*Last updated: 2026-01-24*