The Tale of Genji

A"Superbly written and genuinely engaging . . . one of those works that can be read and reread throughout oneA's life.A" A-Liza Dalby, Los Angeles Times Book Review

Written in the eleventh century, this exquisite portrait of courtly life in medieval Japan is widely celebrated as the worldA's first novelA-and is certainly one of its finest. Genji, the Shining Prince, son of an emperor, is a passionate character whose tempestuous nature, family circumstances, love affairs, alliances, and shifting political fortunes form the core of this magnificent epic. Royall TylerA's superb translation is detailed, poetic, and true to the Japanese original while allowing the English reader to appreciate its timeless beauty. In this deftly abridged edition, Tyler focuses on the early chapters, which vividly evoke Genji as a young man and leave him at his first moment of triumph.

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The first translation of the Japanese masterpiece in a generation introduces modern readers to this brilliant account of courtly life in medieval Japan, in an edition that also features line drawings, notes, glossaries, maps, character lists, and chronologies. Reprint.

Murasaki Shikibu was a lady in the Heian court of eleventh-century Japan.
Royall Tyler, an American, taught Japanese language and literature for many years at Australia National University.