The following list represents books that may be useful to those with an interest in Japanese literature, or poetry in general. Books are listed in no particular order, and reflect the tastes and interests of the editors of this site. It is by no means comprehensive. If there are relevant books you would like to recommend, please do so on the forum page. We will consider posting these submissions, but please bear in mind that we cannot possibly introduce all the works in English on Japanese literature; there are– thankfully– too many available due in no small part to post-war pioneers of the field, some of whose works are listed below.

Japanese Court Poetry

Robert H. Brower and Earl Miner

Stanford University Press, 1961

Scholars and readers of Japanese poetry generally consider this an indispensable guide to classical Japanese poetry. Although somewhat dated, it remains the most thorough study of several hundred years of Japanese poetry, with extensive commentary and dozens of translations. It is a monument to scholarship and Japanese poetry alike.

Seeds in the Heart: Japanese literature from the earliest times to the late sixteenth century

Donald Keene

Columbia University Press, 1999

The doyen of Japanese scholarship and translation in English, Donald Keene surveys pre-modern Japanese literature in this lengthy but highly readable volume. It covers nine centuries, from Japan’s oldest extant texts to the late medieval period, and helps elucidate classic works with which every student of Japanese literature should be familiar.

Dawn to the West

Donald Keene

Columbia University Press, 1998

Keene’s companion volume to Seeds in the Heart, this work surveys modern literature from the late 1800s to the post-war period. More recent scholarship has questioned the emphasis on certain authors and lack of attention given to others, but it is still the most encyclopedic work in English on modern Japanese literature.

The Essential Haiku: Versions of Basho, Buson and Issa

Robert Hass

Ecco, 1995

This compilation features translations of haiku and prose commentary by the old Japanese masters of the form: Matsuo Bashô, Kobayashi Issa and Yosa Buson. Robert Hass, former poet laureate of the U.S. and winner of several major writing awards, including the National Book Critics Circle Award, has rendered his poems in American colloquial English. Scholars and purists may cringe at some of his translations, but the poems are highly accessible and the volume breathes new life into classic haiku.

The Poetics of Japanese Verse: imagery, structure, meter

Kawamoto Kôji

University of Tokyo Press, 1999

Recently translated into English, Kawamoto’s book is one of the few extended studies of Japanese poetic structure and technique in English. Translations frequently do not, or cannot, convey the structural accomplishments of poetry, but this book reveals some of that underlying beauty through close readings and analysis of haiku and other forms. Scholars may find his research particularly useful.

Modernism in Practice: an introduction to postwar Japanese poetry

Leith Morton

University of Hawaii Press, 2004

There are few works available in English that tackle the complexities of postwar Japanese poetry. Although some readers may find its prose rather dense, this study treats its subject matter with sophistication and excellent scholarship. It is a valuable addition to the field, and will hopefully enhance further studies of modern Japanese poetry.

The Journal of Sôchô

Translated and annotated by H. Mack Horton

Stanford University Press, 2001

Saiokuken Sôchô (1448-1532) was one of the greatest renga (linked verse) poets of his day. Composed between 1522 and 1527, the poetry and prose of his journal brings to life four journeys in an age of upheaval, several shorter tours, and stays at a number of hermitages. Horton’s excellent translation includes meticulous notes and was a winner of the Friendship Commission Prize for the translation of Japanese Literature in 1994.

Readers may also be interested in the companion volume, Song in an Age of Discord.

Fault Lines: Cultural Memory and Japanese Surrealism

Miryam Sas

Stanford University Press, 2001

This lucid volume of criticism analyzes the experimental work of Japanese Surrealists. Besides close readings of the poetry and writings of notables like Takiguchi Shuzo, Nishiwaki Junzaburo, and Kitasono Katsue, Sas’ book also covers other modes of Surrealist expression, mainly performance. Important questions about cultural transmission propel the arguments, forcing us to consider how artistic movements like Surrealism transform, and are transformed by, different cultures.