In this classic best seller, Liza Dalby, the first non-Japanese ever to have trained as a geisha, offers an insider's look at the exclusive world of female companions to the Japanese male elite. A new preface examines how geisha have been profoundly affected by the changes of the past quarter century yet—especially in Kyoto—have managed to take advantage of modern developments to maintain their social position with flair.

Liza Dalby is the author of East Wind Melts the Ice: A Memoir through the Seasons (UC Press), The Tale of Murasaki: A Novel, and Kimono: Fashioning Culture.

“Provides an important window on the arts practiced by geisha, a history of their profession, and their reception in modern Japan through the mid-1970s.”—Southeast Review of Asian Stds

"Extremely interesting . . . . Written with delicate observation and subtle common sense."—New York Times Book Review

"A loving, beautifully designed tribute to one of Japan's most tantalizing traditions."—Newsweek

"Elegantly balanced . . . . Invigorating and refreshing."—Washington Post Book World

"A meticulously researched piece of scholarship . . . and a delightfully personal account."—Times Literary Supplement

"Dalby knows more about the subject than I'll ever know, and she writes about it with grace and eloquence."—Arthur Golden, author of Memoirs of a Geisha