Customer Reviews

Japanese Art of Miniature Trees and Landscapes

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This book, beyond a doubt, has all of the information the serious bonsai artist needs to know. A friend gave me this book when I first expressed an interest in bonsai, and it succeeded in intimidating me. The authors provide very thorough details about creating bonsai, and take it to the level of science rather than art. However, it is because of this high degree of detail that I was struck with how serious the art really can be. I find it unfortunate that it is currently out of print, since it does cover bonsai in such detail. I would tend to recommend Japanese Art of Miniature Trees and Landscapes to the person who is quite dedicated to pursuing the art, and would not recommend it to a person with a more casual interest.

This is one of the best bonsai books. It should be in every seriuos hobbyst's library. It contains all the information needed to get started on bonsai. It has an apendix for tools, equipment and soil, and another one very helpfull, with plant names in Chinese-Japanese Characters. Yoshimora is a truly great Bonsai master. The disvantages are that the B&w photos are not of very good quality and the text can be a little tedious to read

I have owned a copy of this book for decades, and it is still the book to which I turn most often for both how-to information and inspiration. The technical detail is excellent, as noted in other reviews, and the photographs, both color and black-and-white, give abundant examples of truly beautiful trees in every conceivable style. The sections on proper wiring technique alone are worth the price of the book.

YUJI YOSHIMURA
"The Father of Popular Bonsai in the Non-Oriental World"
In the summer of 1971 Yoshimura led a bonsai tour of Japan.
During this year, Yoshimura delivered a lecture in which he spoke of the "dream of American bonsaists for a place where they could give or will their treasures, knowing that the trees would be cared for and viewed by visitors for years to come." Newly appointed Director of the U.S. National Arboretum Dr. John L. Creech was in attendance. (He had been a frequent visitor to Yoshimura's Tokyo garden in the early 1950s and was actually the one who had recommended the bonsai authority to Dr. Avery of the BBG.) Impressed by his old friend's thoughts and the fledgling Potomac Bonsai Association's first show at the National Arboretum, Dr. Creech then approached his departmental heads with the suggestion that acquiring a major bonsai collection might play a roll in the Department of Agriculture's bicentennial plans. Receiving encouragement, Dr. Creech sought the help of longtime friends in the world of Japanese horticulture.
In August 1972 the first English edition of the Japan Bonsai Society's Nippon Bonsai Taikan was published with a rendering of most of the text.
That year Yoshimura sold his Tarrytown nursery for development. He re-located his nursery and the Yoshimura School of Bonsai about five miles to the northeast in Briarcliff Manor, NY.
The first Australian National Bonsai Convention and Show was held between October 31 and November 2, 1975. The Guests of Honor were John Naka and Yuji Yoshimura.
Between September 1975 and December 1976, Yuji Yoshimura conducted a series of six one afternoon constructive critique sessions for members of the Yama Ki Bonsai Society at the Bartlett Arboretum in Stamford, CT. There was a single topic for each of the days.
On July 17 and 18, 1976, a special exhibition honoring twenty-five years of instruction by Yuji Yoshimura was held at his School of Bonsai.
In 1982 Yoshimura conducted a teaching tour for the bonsai clubs in India.

Yoshimura assisted his student William N. Valavanis, a teacher in his own right, in launching the premier issue in the Spring of 1979 of the quarterly International Bonsai. The elder sensei also translated its first article -- "Creation of Small Size Satsuki Azalea Bonsai" -- from the Japanese magazine source.
At the joint BCI-ABS Convention from July 4 to 8 in New York City, Yuji Yoshimura, John Naka, and Frank Okamura were the guest artists. Okamura had been the Brooklyn Botanic Garden's curator and teacher of bonsai for nearly thirty years.
In 1982 Yoshimura conducted a teaching tour for the bonsai clubs in India.

In early March 1995, Yuji Yoshimura suffered a mild stroke while on lecture tour to North Carolina. Improving after a short hospital stay and discharged to his daughter's care near Boston, near month end he suffered a major stroke. On April 3, he successfully underwent neurosurgery to clean out a 95% blocked main artery. The following week he had surgery on the other artery which was 85% blocked. By May 6 he was well enough to attend a demonstration at the New England Bonsai Garden.
On Christmas Eve, 1997, bonsai master Yuji Yoshimura passed away.

I was more than pleased with this book. It was almost pristine. I was giving it as a gift to someone who was longing for a copy of it and was hopeful that it wasn't in too bad of shape for a used book. Instead, I was sent a lovely copy of a wonderful book. I would most definitely purchase from this book vendor again with no hesitation. Thank you so very, very much!