Customer Reviews

The Classic Tradition of Haiku: An Anthology (Dover Thrift Editions)

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Most of us will remember reading a few selected haiku poems in grade school, but this anthology offers over 200 poems from a 400-year period. Faubion Bowers did a superb job of introducing, selecting, and annotating the poems, and the translations are accompanied by their transliterated Japanese originals, a feature that helps English readers to see the economy of haiku, as well as the alliteration often lost in translation. Works of this caliber seldom cost so little.

Haiku (roughly translated as "unusual verse") is a highly compact form of Japanese poetry. Its origins are in popular literature, and it was somewhat of a superficial fad until Basho and other writers raised it to an art form. One of the key characteristics of haiku is its evocative, reflective nature--it can offer complex ideas in a distilled form. To take one example, from an anonymous writer:

I regret picking
and not picking
violets

At first glance, this seems to be a contradictory and perhaps pointless statement. Why would one regret and not regret picking violets at the same time? On further reflection, however, the answer emerges: picking violets is a pleasurable activity but it kills the violet. Hence, one can both regret picking violets (i.e. killing a thing of beauty) and not picking violets (i.e. missing a pleasant pastime). An interesting parallel would be the opening line of Dickens' *A Tale of Two Cities*: "It was the best of times; it was the worst of times." Haiku revels in this kind of elliptical thinking, challenging its readers to reflect beyond the literal meaning of a statement.

Even for non-poetry readers, this volume is a delightful bargain. So make some green tea, sit in a quiet garden, and enjoy this book.

Bill Ramey

Despite a misleading definition of haiku on the back of this book (continued in the introduction), and despite the tendency of Dover Thrift Editions to use the worst possible translations for other books they have published, this is an authoritative and valuable collection which offers translations of quite a few works otherwise difficult to find. One of the most valuable elements of the book is its printing of multiple translations of one poem -- while some of the translations (particularly from the early part of the 20th century) are execrable, it is fascinating and instructive to see how various poems have been approached.

This book is a great addition to any library, but don't let it be your only haiku book -- be sure to read William Higginson's "Haiku Handbook" as well as "The Essential Haiku" edited by Robert Hass and "The Haiku Anthology" edited by Cor van den Heuvel.

This book is not only the best haiku bargain for the buck, but a valuable snapshot of the trials and tribulations any literature is likely to go through in the translation process. Bowers has given the reader a semester's worth of translation styles and problems to consider. Anyone interested in the problems of translation, or in taking on the translation of haiku, can learn from this book. Also, anyone attempting to review the literature on haiku in English should probably start here, for it gives sample translation from virtually every serious book on the subject in or out of print at the time of compilation (1996). Bowers knows his stuff, and his Japanese, and contributes some very fine translations occasionally himself.

You couldn't go wrong on this for a first book of haiku!

You're unlikely to find a better bargain this year on a book. My favorite thing about this book is that the editor often presents multiple English translations of single poems. This illustrates as dramatically as I can imagine how complex the problem of translation is. The format is a bit awkward and the paper isn't of the best quality, but I'm glad to have added this to my collection.

Anyone looking for an inexpensive book of haiku could do no better than "The Classic Tradition of Haiku : An Anthology." Packed inside this affordable little book are 200 poems from 72 authors, including masters such as Basho and Issa, as well as novelist Saikaku Ihara and a horde of others.

The haiku are presented in a straight-forward chronological fashion, stretching over about 400 years. A few rengas are included early on, to demonstrate the origins of the poetic form. There is little critical analysis or information on the haiku format, apart from a simple 3-page introduction that offers a bare-bones explanation and some footnotes regarding untranslatable words and author's histories. (ie: Who is a student of who, etc...)

An additional bonus of this book is that, not only can you see the evolution of the haiku, but you can also see styles and trends in English translation of haiku, as the anthology provides the work of 45 different translators, including dignitaries such as Allan Ginsberg, Alex Kerr and Lafcadio Hearn. Several of the most important poems are given multiple English translations, so you can see how the interpretation of the translator affects the final product.

A weakness is that many of these translations, especially the early ones, are of dubious quality, with author's attempting to define the meaning of the poem for English-speakers, and eliminating essential functions of haiku such as the non-sequitur "twist" ending that juxtaposes the imagery, or sets it's final scenery. Often, the important final line is first in the English translation, removing some of the power. Of course, the Japanese original is always given as well, so you are welcome to make your own judgment

Weaknesses aside, at the price of a Dover Thrift Edition, there is no reason for someone interested in haiku not to have this book in their collection.

This volume has several characteristics to recommend it: (1) it provides a transliteration of the Japanese to give the reader a sense of the sound of haiku (2) several times it provides multiple translations of a haiku, giving the reader a sense of the different approaches to translation (3) it provides a collection that is a cross-section of haiku throughout its Japanese history rather than concentrating on the best known.

It has some negatives - too many footnotes that could have been handled in a less intrusive manner such as who is the student of whom or what is the best known haiku of the author. The willingness to use footnotes allows the editor to direct the reader's response in a positive way.

If you have any interest in haiku, you will want this volume in your collection.

I really enjoyed reading this book because I love the beauty and simplicity of haiku poetry. Although this is a relatively thin book, it contains very resourceful and detailed information about the haiku poets and thier inspirations. I really appreciate the author's acknowlegement of the female haiku poets, in which most became buddist nuns, proving that women were just as an important part of the haiku scene as the men. In conclusion, this book is a pleasure for the senses and a must for anyone's library.

I am a fan of uta/waka, however I am also a fan of hokku/haiku. "Traditional Japanese Poetry an Anthology" is a great compilation of uta/waka, but it does not contain as many haiku.

This is the best collection of haiku that I have found, though I dont like all of the translations. There are more than one translation for some of the haiku, which is wonderfull.

My only cavet with this book is that it contains only roomaji and the English translations and is lacking kana and kanji, but the roomaji helps.

This, in my opinion, is the best Japanese haiku compilation I have yet to find and the price is unbeatable. The price is amazing!

In my opinion, this is a great book to add to any fan of Japanese poetry's collection.

I also recomend "Traditional Japanese Poetry an Anthology."

A collection of four centuries of haiku by two hundred haijin, the anthology provides a wonderful introduction to the genre at an unbeatable price.
The real value of the volume lies in the Japanese transliterations as well as multiple translations - some lovely, some lousy - both demonstrating the depth and breadth of haiku.
Definitely should not be the sole book on the shelf - hopefully The Classic Tradition of Haiku will provide the encouragement and inspiration to pursue haiku studies further.

This small book has a brief general intro to Haiku, then more specific footnotes accompanying many of the poems. Because I know little about Haiku and it's masters, the footnotes really helped, placing these poems in the context of each poet's life and circumstances Enticing rather than overwheming.
Another plus is that some of the poems are listed with several translations. I was amazed at how different they could sound and feel. Here's a brief example of a famous haiku by Basho (2 of the 5 translations in the book).

Old pond-frogs jumped in-sound of water.
(Lafcadio Hearn 1900)


A lonely pond in age-old stillness sleeps...
Apart, unstirred by sound or motion...til
Suddenly into it a lithe frog leaps.
(Curtis Hidden Page 1923)

A friendly accessible little book, and easy to tote.