The tale of Genji The Arthur Waley translation of Lady Murasaki's masterpiece

This tenth-century Japanese novel is indisputably one of the great achievements of world literature. Waley's translation, published in six parts between 1921 and 1933, is the first complete and literate version in any Western language. A noted sinologist, Waley also published influential translations of the Chinese classics Journey to the West and Dream of the Red Chamber. His influence on the Western reception of Tale cannot be overstated, stimulating all subsequent translations, including the English versions of Edward Seidensticker (1976) and Royall Tyler (2001). While Tyler's version, which attempts to capture the social and political nuance of Murasaki's language, is the best choice for scholars, Waley's remains the most attractive and accessible for the general reader, removing much of the poetry cited in the original and couching Tale in the tone of the fairy tale, even if not entirely true to the spirit of the original. The first part of Waley's translation remains available in an abridged version, but Tuttle performs a valuable service by providing a complete version of all six parts in one volume. Verdict Waley's translation is a good, reliable entrance into the world of the "shining prince" and deserves a place in a range of libraries and literary collections.-T.L. Cooksey, Armstrong Atlantic State Univ., Savannah (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.