The Tale of Genji
1021 · 1182 pages
Murasaki Shikibu, a lady at the Japanese imperial court, wrote a thousand pages about a prince, his loves, and his decline, reaching a psychological depth Europe would not manage for six hundred years.
★ 9.3
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11th century
1001 – 1100
Showing 3 books from the 11th century
The Arabian Nights
Author unknown
1100 · 464 pages
Scheherazade marries a king who executes each new wife at dawn and stays alive by telling stories that break off before the end. Sinbad, Aladdin, and Ali Baba reached the world through her.
★ 7.5
The Pillow Book
1002 · 364 pages
A thousand years ago in the Japanese court, a lady-in-waiting kept lists of things that make the heart beat faster and things she found hateful. Her snobbery is part of the pleasure.
★ 7.4