The Book of Ikebana by Kawase Toshirou

The Book of Ikebana
Kawase Toshirou
(Kodansha International, Tokyo: 2000)

READ: December 2006

This is partly a how-to book and partly a why-to book. Ikebana is the Japanese art of arranging flowers. Allow me to quote from the book's Foreword - he says it better than I could:

[T]his book discusses flowers in detail from a variety of perspectives as they have been passed down through the generations in the hearts of the Japanese. And to make flower arrangement more enjoyable, it provides easy-to-understand explanations - in both Japanese and English - from the basics of handling flowers to fairly advanced professional techniques, all richly illustrated.

I'm slightly hopeless at arranging flowers. But I've gotten some neat ideas from this book. I also like reading about the culture of flower arranging in Japan.

This book is part of a series of books on Japanese life and culture that are published in bilingual editions by Kodansha International. I plan on picking up a few more before leaving Japan, as I think they're well-written and interesting.

Lost Japan by Alex Kerr

Lost Japan
Alex Kerr
(Lonely Planet Publications, Australia: 1996)

First published in Japanese in 1993 as Utsukushiki Nippon no Zanzo (Shincho-sha, Tokyo). Translated by the author Alex Kerr in 1996 for the Lonely Planet Journeys series.

READ: November 2006

Along with Alan Booth's books, Lost Japan is lauded pretty much everywhere as one of the best books ever written about Japan.

I agree. I couldn't put it down.

My recommendation: Read this book.

There's really not much more I can say. It's just a wonderful book. Even for those who are not Japanophiles, this book can be appreciated on many levels. Yes, it is about Japan and the Japanese, and was written by a man who has lived most of his adult life in Japan. A memoir of sorts, it is a story about looking for beauty, a beauty whichi happens to exist in Japan but is rapidly disappearing as Japan continues stumbling blindly forward to the future.

As a side-note, this book was originally written in Japanese, and Alex Kerr was the first foreigner to win the prestigious Shincho Gakugei Literary Prize of Japan in 1994 for it.

The World's Greatest Art: Asian Art by Michael Kerrigan

The World's Greatest Art: Asian Art
Michael Kerrigan
(Konecky & Konecky: 2005)

READ: May-July 2006 (intermittent)

Another great "throne" book. This small but thick volume has a few hundred pictures of some of the greatest Asian art with descriptions and some history. Much of the art (includes paintings, sculptures, pottery, etc.) is from China and Japan, but there is also a decent selection from other Southeast Asian countries: Cambodia, Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, and so on. It's a nice overview of some of the most beautiful art there is.

The Art of Japanese Prints by Nigel Cawthorne

The Art of Japanese Prints
Nigel Cawthorne
(Advantage Publishers Group: 2000)

READ: May-June 2006

Another Chapters bargain-book find, I kept seeing it and refusing to buy it on the premise that I was moving to Japan soon and the last thing I needed to acquire was another book. Then I convinced myself that since I was moving to Japan soon, I needed to acquire this particular book, that I owed it to myself as a soon-to-be-Japanite and a lover of ukiyo-e, the specific focus of this book. So I bought it.

It was a great purchase and one I will not regret anytime soon. Though a slim volume, it provides an excellent overview of the development of ukiyo-e and a look at some of the masters of ukiyo-e. There are nice illustrations, interesting details, and well-written explanations. A lovely book.