The Tale of Genji
Japanese novelist, 970–1100.
The Tale of Genji is a novel from c. 1008 by Murasaki Shikibu, translated from Japanese.
On 2 of the 10 lists it was eligible for.
The Novel Index earns a small commission if you buy through our links, at no extra cost to you. It never affects our rankings. More about how we earn.
At a glance
- Author
- Murasaki Shikibu
- First published
- C. 1008
- Length
- 1216 pages (UK paperback)
- Original language
- Translated from Japanese
- Genre
- Historical fiction, Love story, Class and society, Religion and faith
Is The Tale of Genji worth reading?
2 of the 10 best-of lists it could have made include it: 100 novels everyone should read (The Telegraph) and Bokklubben World Library (Norwegian Book Clubs).
| List | Place | Original |
|---|---|---|
| 100 novels everyone should read (The Telegraph, 2009) | No. 91 | See the list |
| Bokklubben World Library (Norwegian Book Clubs, 2002) | Listed | See the list |
Best edition of The Tale of Genji
The edition we link to is the Penguin Classics paperback (2003), 1216 pages, translated by Royall Tyler.
- Publisher
- Penguin Classics (paperback, 2003)
- Pages
- 1216
- Translator
- Royall Tyler
- ISBN
- 9780142437148
How critics and readers rate The Tale of Genji
Critics rate it most highly: it earned 42% of the points available on critics' lists, against 0% on readers' and booksellers' lists.
Share of the available points it earned on each kind of list it was eligible for. How the scores work