misscoffeereads's review against another edition

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adventurous reflective relaxing slow-paced

3.5

dragonlilly's review against another edition

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4.0

Only read "The Narrow Road to the Deep North" specifically.
A lovely journey and beautiful and at times funny poetry.

My favorite poem about a country and castle overgrown with grass:

"summer grass—
all that remains
of warriors’ dreams"

krng's review against another edition

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4.0

Beautiful description of ancient japan in the form of prose and haikus.

edward979797's review against another edition

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adventurous reflective relaxing

3.75

keithh's review against another edition

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inspiring reflective relaxing slow-paced

3.5

ostrava's review against another edition

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2.0

I'm afraid I didn't find most of the haikus moving or substantial, and I'll even go as far as to claim that they're a bit lifeless for my taste. But I'm also certain that it has to have something to do with the way it's translated.

My brutal takeaway here is that it's worthless to read these sorts of literature if it's not in the original language, unless they're accompanied by some sort of fiction or more grounded philosophy. It's all flushed away in translation.

epicpinkfluffyunicorn's review against another edition

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adventurous reflective relaxing fast-paced

4.0

blueskygreentreesyellowsun's review against another edition

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4.0

I read a page or two at night before falling asleep, which was very soothing. I'll probably start the book over and keep up this bedtime routine.

foggy_rosamund's review against another edition

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5.0

A wonderful little book. Nobuyuki Yuasa's translation feels fresh and lively and is easy to read. He provides a very helpful introduction giving the new reader useful background and insight into haiku. I found Basho's poetry and prose forced me to slow down -- to read and reread and think about each scene. If I had rushed, I think the meaning would have been lost, because the imagery and beauty of the words needs reflection, not speed.

A haiku I particularly enjoyed --

A branch of wild azalea
Thrown into a bucket,
Behind, a woman tearing
The meat of a dried codfish.

oninka's review against another edition

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adventurous hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.5