The first book I generally recommend is Mineko Iwasaki's biography due to her involvement with the creation of Memoirs of a Geisha and the lawsuit that followed. It is an interesting look into the life of one of the most famous geisha to emerge from Gion.

Yes I have. I first read Memoirs of a Geisha shortly after it was first published and released in Australia in 1998 and have read it a few other times over the past years.

However, I do give credit to the novel with helping open many eyes to the world of geisha that may never have known otherwise. Whilst Mr. Golden did researching and interviewing to remain as accurate and as true to the geisha world, it is important that one must remember that it is essentially a fictional novel written by a Western man.

Whilst Memoirs of a Geisha is a fictional story, Arthur Golden did interview two ex-geisha during his researching phase. The first geisha he spoke with was Kiharu Nakamura, whom he spent an evening speaking with. Kiharu-san has her own biography out about her life as a Shimbashi Geisha. The second geisha he spoke with, and whom he gives a lot of credit to in helping him understand the geisha world is Mineko Iwasaki, who was a very famous maiko and geiko in Gion, Kyoto.

Sayuri, Mameha, Pumpkin and Hatsumomo are all fictional character created by Arthur Golden. Because of this, you will not find any further information about them nor will you find photographs or travel posters as none of them never truly existed.

Yes I did enjoy reading Memoirs of a Geisha the first time, despite the fact there are numerous inaccuracies (which will be addressed in the near future). It was an entertaining story but I did feel that it was a rather Western approach to a Japanese "love" story. I believe Lesley Downer described it the best as a "Cinderella" story in Japanese guise.

We highly recommend His Life and Complete Graphic Work and Visions of Symmetry. The latter book includes all of his tessellations and the former is the complete catalogue of his graphic work, including biography.

Yes. These articles are highly recommended. Some are technical, some are in Adobe Acrobat format (pdf), but all have great information. Car Seat Safety

The word Geisha literally translates to "arts person" or "one trained in arts" (gei = art, sha = person). It is also sometimes described as "women of arts, which is exactly what a Geisha is - a woman trained in the traditional arts of Japan such as dance, music, singing to name a few.

Light on Yoga, the complete reference book by Mr. Iyengar; Light on Pranayama, Mr. Iyengar's book on yogic breathing practice; Yoga the Iyengar Way, by Silva, Mira & Shyam Mehta, a terrific book for beginners; How To Use Yoga, by Mira Mehta, a newly published book that includes some of the most recent teachings of Iyengar yoga. (links are to Amazon.com book summaries)

The world changes on Internet time, so many texts seem outdated by the time they're printed. The best thing to do is read the trade press (Business 2.0, Wired, and the major business magazines) - it is always much more current than most business books. That said, one of my favorite books that combines business & technology is: Although some of the examples may be a bit outdated, the concepts in the book are sound and the principles outlined, enduring.

We always recommend Sugden's The Complete History of Jack the Ripper as the single best book yet written on the case. It is, however, quite sizeable, and someone looking for a "lighter" read might do well with either Rumbelow's The Complete Jack the Ripper or Paul Begg's Jack the Ripper: The Uncensored Facts. For a more complete listing of Ripper-related books, see our Book Reviews section. I'm doing a school report on Jack the Ripper, please send me everything you have on him.

We highly recommend "Panic Attacks Workbook" by Dr. David Carbonell. This book is available on Amazon.com for about $12. This Workbook is designed to be used with a CBT therapist, but it can also be used for self-help. It was developed by Dr. David Barlow and Dr. Michelle Craske ? two of the world's leading experts in the field ? and is used by many therapists around the world. You can order the Workbook from the publisher, Oxford University Press, through their website: http://www.us.

It's notoriously difficult to find any books on bioinformatics itself that cater well for all of those coming from computing, from mathematics and from biology backgrounds. The few textbooks available in the field tend to be eyewateringly expensive as well. I've divided suggested reading into books of general interest, those best suited to people coming from a computational/mathematical background and books for biologists interested in bioinformatics.

Our four age categories are All Ages, Younger Readers, Older Readers and Advanced Readers. Books rated All Ages are suitable for everybody. Younger Readers refers to readers who are under thirteen years old. Older Readers are readers over thirteen years old. Advanced Readers are 15 and up. We have made it easy to tell at a glance who the book is suitable for. As you scroll through a page of reviews, you will notice icons on the right-hand side of the screen.

It is not necessary to do any reading to prepare for a Reiki class, but many people are curious about Reiki and want to learn as much as they can before and after training. I am in the process of compiling a basic list of Reiki books, which will grow as time permits.