The best books about pre-modern Japan

Book cover of The Lone Samurai: The Life of Miyamoto Musashi Book cover of The Nobility of Failure: Tragic Heroes in the History of Japan Book cover of The Tale of the Heike Book cover of The Tale of Murasaki Book cover of The Tale of Genji

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Book cover of The Tale of Genji Book cover of The Tale of the Heike Book cover of The Nobility of Failure: Tragic Heroes in the History of Japan Book cover of The Lone Samurai: The Life of Miyamoto Musashi Book cover of Geisha of Gion: The True Story of Japan's Foremost Geisha (Memoir of Mineko Iwasaki) Book cover of The Oxford Book of Japanese Short Stories

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Interested in Japan, geisha, and the Heian period?

Japan 530 books
Geisha 11 books
The Heian Period 9 books