Annoted Cover 2010-full-correct spine.indd - Penguin Group

Multatuli
1820 – 1887, Dutch
Max Havelaar
Or, The Coffee Auctions of the
Dutch Trading Company
Translated with Notes by Roy Edwards and
an Introduction by R. P. Meijer
Based on the author’s actual experiences,
Max Havelaar is one of the most forceful
indictments of colonialism ever written.
Its portrayal of colonial cruelty in
Indonesia is rendered in prose that ranges
from colloquial informality to cadences of
biblical resonance, and the sophistication
of its satire led D. H. Lawrence to compare
it to the works of Swift, Gogol, and Twain.
352 pp. 978-0-14-044516-9 $16.00
Murasaki shikibu
c. 973 – 1025, Japanese
The Diary of Lady Murasaki
Translated with an Introduction and Notes
by Richard Bowring
Witty portraits of ladies-in-waiting and
courtiers, delightful anecdotes about
intrigues both political and romantic, and
intimate musings are interwoven with
detailed accounts of official court events
in Lady Murasaki’s magnificent record of
her life as a member of Empress Akiko’s
entourage during the years 1005 to 1010.
160 pp. 978-0-14-043576-4 $15.00
174 Penguin ClassiCs
The Tale of Genji
Translated with an Introduction and Notes
by Royall Tyler
This exquisite portrait of courtly life in
medieval Japan is widely celebrated as the
world’s first novel. This deluxe edition of
Royall Tyler’s majestic translation—the
first into English since 1976—captures
Genji’s passionate nature as well as
the family circumstances, love affairs,
alliances, and shifting political fortunes
that form the core of this ancient epic.
1,216 pp. 978-0-14-243714-8 $30.00
Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition
The Tale of Genji
Edited, Translated, and Abridged by
Royall Tyler
The adventures of Genji, son of an
emperor, form the core of this magnificent
epic. Royall Tyler’s superb abridged
translation is true to the original while
allowing the English reader to appreciate
its timeless beauty.
400 pp. 978-0-14-303949-5 $15.00
“superbly written and genuinely engaging
. . . one of those works that can be read
and reread throughout one’s life.”
—liza dalby, l o s angeles t i m e s b o o k review
Murasaki shikibu
Murasaki Shikibu was born in Japan c. 973, during the Heian period (794–1192),
when the head of the major faction of the Fujiwara clan, Michinaga, held sway
over the imperial court. Apart from what she reveals in her diary, we know little
of her life. She married around the turn of the century, had one daughter, and was
widowed soon after. During the next four or five years Murasaki seems to have
begun writing The Tale of Genji, the astonishingly complex and sophisticated
work of fiction that was to bring her fame and eventually be recognized as one
of the masterpieces of Japanese literature. It is probable that chapters were read
at court and came to the notice of Michinaga, who decided that she would be an
excellent addition to the entourage of his daughter Sh - oshi (or Akiko), the young
emperor’s young consort. Murasaki entered the service of Sh - oshi in 1006 and
probably died sometime between 1014 and 1025.