Opinion: Memoirs of a Geisha (novel)

I must say, this book was extraordinary. So good, in fact, that it earned a spot on my favorites list - which is the best praise I can offer. The movie did a fairly decent job following the novel, but the book added onto the film and made the storyline far richer. Instead of being an onlooker, the audience stood in the shoes of Sayuri, saw what she saw, thought what she thought, and felt what she felt. The memoirs were a woman's, while the novel was written by a man. However, Sayuri was as womanly as could be, and some scenes got me wondering whether the author is actually a woman.
The storyline did not always flow smoothly but had numerous surprises and twists. It was somewhat on the long side, but it did not linger or drag on, which highly impressed me. We all know those books where the characters sit in misery for months on end and the author painstakingly describes each day. Thankfully, Memoirs of a Geisha was not one of these.
The voice which read the story out to me remained a calm one, but changed throughout the book - from a young girl to a woman, and then, gradually, to an elder. I've never experienced anything like this from a novel, and it was really something. The pain she suffered was well-depicted to the point where I approved many of her indecent and sometimes cruel actions.
The descriptions were just vivid enough and the scenes easy to imagine. I recommend watching the movie beforehand, as I did, as it will give some ground as to what the author intends for you to imagine. Watching the film does not spoil the book, as it is a masterpiece on its own. There were many settings in the novel which were similar to each other, so the easier thing to do is to see the film for each individual one.
Now, we come to the part where I criticize the characters. Each was certainly well-developed and had a distinct personality that did not blend with anyone else's. The reader was emerged in the world of a geisha and lived Sayuri's entire life with her. Many secondary characters were developed as well, something not many authors bother to do. I got attached to some of them and was rather upset when they suffered. As expected, the central characters such as the main antagonist, Hatsumomo, were developed much deeper than in the movie, and the reader was given time to grow whatever emotion they wanted toward each.
I'm glad the story did not meet a Hollywood ending where everyone rides off into the sunset together holding hands. Instead, Golden created a provocative and bitter-sweet story of life and love.