This is a good collection of art and poetry. It does a good job of showing how to 'read' haikus as more than just words on a page.

I really enjoyed reading Haiku Illustrated. Not only does the book contain the original Japanese texts (I would guess it is at least, as I'm no way fluent in the Japanese alphabet), in addition to the Japanese version in the latin alphabet and a translation into English. The book also has some really beautiful illustrations and photos. This is a perfect book for those who love haiku poetry.

I remeber this
The counting on my fingers
And making haiku

But all joking aside this is a well done book. I got this as an advanced reading copy from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review so my lone issue may not even be an issue with the final product.

Just like I was taught from Dead Poets Society, I don't critique poetry. But what I can do is tell you that I did love the Haiku and thought they were quite beautiful. Are they good? Well I liked them.

There was artwork in this book as well and it ranged from beautiful Japanese woodblocks to a photo of a tree. The pictures were my only issue. The woodblocks were nice and topical but the random other pictures or small drawings felt out of place and it messed with the flow of the theme. Hopefully in the final product they'll change it.

But a few of the pictures being less than topical was truly my only issue. This was a great book and perfect for a coffee table conversation piece or as a thoughtful gift.

Although I already knew many of them them, in this new version with Japanese text on the front and relative illustration, these Haiku are, if possible, even more beautiful.

Anche se molti li conoscevo, in questa nuova versione con testo giapponese a fronte e illustrazione relativa, questi Haiku sono, se possibile, ancora piú belli.

THANKS NETGALLEY FOR THE PREVIEW!

Thank you Netgalley for letting me read this book in return for an honest review.

Haiku Illustrated is a book featuring Haikus (a Japanese poem of seventeen syllables, in three lines of five, seven, and five) with beautiful illustrations. The book collects Haikus from several poets which means that the reader, if new to Haikus, can experience different voices. Each Haiku has the English translation as well as the Kanji. Now, I am not a translator so I don't know if they are 100% accurate but the Haikus overall was beautiful. As it is an anthology, there are some better than others but again, overall, it was beautiful and such a pleasant read, especially with the illustrations alongside them

Rating
4⭐

Would I read it again:

Yes as it is the type of book you can keep going back to whether you want to read all of it or just parts of it

Would I recommend it:

Yes!

Very beautiful book. I liked that the book gave an introduction to the history of haiku as well as the poets that were most instrumental in this style of poetry. I liked that each page had the Japanese writing, the Japanese translation using the English alphabet and the English translation. Even though I don't understand Japanese, I read all of the poems in Japanese to get a sense of the original beauty. My favorite poet was Issa since he had a sense of humor in some of his poems. It is amazing that three lines can evoke such vivid images. The woodcuts and drawings used in the book were very beautiful. There were a few photographs but these seemed to be just stock images. The did not bring forth any emotion that the poems did. I can image that the print version of this book would be a nice gift.

Basho, Buson, Issa and Shiki, four masters of Haiku.

This book has it all - basic facts about Haiku, beautiful illustrations, Haikus in english and japanese language and above everything - we can still relate to their poetry.

Wonderful book.

My nephew is learning Japanese and I foolishly said I would too. To my great astonishment I found I could read these Haiku.
Although I could not recognise the meaning of all the words I could easily read them out loud. There is also an english and Japanese translation so I am learning new words too.
I knew of Haiku but didn’t realise how beautiful they are. I shall be learning many of these by heart in Japanese and English.
As the title says each Haiku is accompanied by an illustration which perfectly matches the feeling and theme of the words.
A pure gem of a book.

Haiku Illustrated by Hart Larrabee [tr] is a beautiful collection of haiku by four of Japan's most recognized and respected masters of the form. The ability to invoke such complete and detailed images in a brief seventeen syllables has always impressed upon me the beauty and accessibility of the haiku, a Japanese tradition of storytelling that has been shared for generations. The gorgeous illustrations that accompany each poem are a lovely addition to an already stunning collection. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in broadening their knowledge of the mysterious and beautiful Japanese culture.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Amber Books Ltd for the opportunity to read this impressive collection.

Basho, Buson, Issa, Shiki – no, not scoring moves in combat sports, but four of the most famous writers of pithy little word pictures called haiku. This book gives roughly the equal attention to all four, as it pictorially presents a selection of the verses. Each time we get the Japanese, both in westernised script and in calligraphy vertically down the right of the page, as the natives would read it, and of course the plain, unformatted translation – never is the syllable structure of the haiku deliberately met, for it turns out there is always a token word or two in the Japanese for reasons that remained a little vague that would be left out if the sense of the poem was what was sought, as was the case here. At their best they're snapshots of vivid life, with snowy homesteads, multiple insects on multiple temple bells, and more frogs than you might think to find. One of the authors goes for what is a much more quippy style, making his pieces certainly a lot more amusing than Basho's classical ones.

These publishers cannot let a book slip by without a sterling work in the picture research, and while a couple of the artworks we also get – a full-page image for every three-lined poem – are not quite appropriate, and while a few are a little too literal, they are generally well-deserving of their place here. This then acts as a fine primer for the grand masters of haiku, and acts as a colourful gift book for anyone interested in verse forms – or, of course, Japan.