The Tale of Genji
The first novel ever written: a court lady's account of the shining prince Genji, his loves, his exiles, and the generation that inherits his absences. Written at the Heian court around 1010, it invented psychological fiction from nothing, with no model to follow. A thousand years of novels descend from this book, and its melancholy sense that beauty and loss arrive together has never been improved on.
It is very long, the court etiquette is a maze, and no character keeps one name for more than a chapter. Genji's conduct toward women ranges from tender to indefensible, and the narration declines to judge him. Readers wanting plot will find weather, poetry exchanges, and the slow rotation of seasons. Choosing a translation is itself a research project, and each one is a different book.
The case for it and the rest of the canon open with Pro.
