This celebration of what is perhaps the most influential of all poetic forms takes haiku back to its Japanese roots, beginning with poems by the seventeenth- and eighteenth-century masters Basho, Busson, and Issa, and going all the way up to the late twentieth century to provide a survey of haiku through the centuries, in all its minimalist glory. The translators have balanced faithfulness to the Japanese with an appreciation of the unique spirit of each poem to create English versions that evoke the joy and wonder of the originals with the same astonishing economy of language. An introduction by the translators and short biographies of the poets are included. Reproductions of woodblock prints and paintings accompany the poems.
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(@ShambhalaPubs, 13 October 2019, ebook, 208 pages, borrowed from @natpoetrylib via @OverDriveLibs)
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I'm a big fan of haiku's and other short Japanese forms such as the tanka or choka. The poems in this anthology fall into the category of traditional Haiku in that they deal with nature and the natural world. I prefer more modern Haiku which deal with a wider range of subjects and are a bit more contemporary in their style and subject. Alan Spence has written some fantastic Haiku. I enjoyed the poems in this anthology, they were beautifully written and perfect examples of traditional haiku. I just hoped for a bit more variety in subject matter.
