Haiku: Classic Japanese Short Poems

By Hart Larrabee

Haiku is an ancient form of Japanese poetry. Its structure has become popular in other languages and today it is probably the best know form of poetry worldwide.
There are few rules to haiku, but they are strict: 17 phonetic sounds, a sense of cutting images or ideas, and a reference to a season. From those restrictions, poets have written about many things, from the year’s first blossom to aging, from mosquitoes humming to insects singing, from catching one’s shadow to crossing a stream in the summer.
Haiku features 90 classic poems from four poets: Matsuo Bashō, Yosa Buson, Kobayashi Issa and Masaoka Shiki which range across more than 200 years of Japanese poetry.
In Haiku, each poem is presented in Japanese script, along with romanized Japanese (romaji) and an English translation. Beautifully produced in traditional Chinese binding and with a timeless design, Haiku is an expert introduction and celebration of one of the most beautiful and accessible forms of poetry in the world.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Amber Books Ltd
• Release date: Sep 14, 2016
• ISBN: 9781782744207

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Reviews for Haiku

[lenka_lesoleil · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

lovely collection of transparent and piercing poems

[thothj · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A wonderful collection of this genre of poetry. Though it mostly includes ancient Japanese poems, there is a small selection of Haikues written by by western authors (both contemporary and earlier).