Tag: Japan

Marshmallow reviews Wabi-Sabi for Artists, Designers, Poets & Philosophers by Leonard Koren

Today Marshmallow is reviewing Wabi-Sabi for Artists, Designers, Poets & Philosophers by Leonard Koren. Originally published in 1994, this book is widely viewed as the first publication that introduced Western audiences to the Japanese wabi-sabi aesthetic. Marshmallow read the revised 2008 edition.

Marshmallow reviews Wabi-Sabi for Artists, Designers, Poets & Philosophers by Leonard Koren.
Marshmallow reviews Wabi-Sabi for Artists, Designers, Poets & Philosophers by Leonard Koren.

Marshmallow’s Quick Take: If you like books about Japanese culture, Zen philosophy, or art in general, then this is the book for you! 

Marshmallow’s Summary (without Spoilers): This book serves as Koren’s definition for the wabi-sabi aesthetic, something he believes should never be defined. For context, he even says this explicitly at the start of the book. He states that the aesthetic has an intentional “History of Obfuscation” because of its Zen Buddhism roots, the iemoto system of Japanese trade, and aesthetic obscurantism (which is the practice of obscuring the full details of something to hide its nature). These big words make sense to the reader eventually though as he provides a paragraph of explanation for each cause. Overall, these three factors have long left wabi-sabi as a nebulous feeling, a set of aesthetic ideals that Japanese people have struggled to put to words or have purposefully not done so. Koren argues that this is for the best or it was in the past. However, wabi-sabi is an endangered way that he believes now requires a more rigid definition. After all, if people – artists, designers, poets, philosophers, and even ordinary people in general – cannot identify what makes something wabi-sabi, it is surely doomed to be lost.

Koren traces the history of the aesthetic back to the sacred ceremonies of the famed and wise tea master Rikyu. He allegedly began using homely, imperfect pieces in his tea-making process, something that was an oddity at the time. In the pre-Rikyu period, the ceremonies were filled with elaborate, ornate pieces of the Chinese aesthetic. In contrast, Rikyu created a uniquely Japanese style that focused on “the rustic, the simple, the artless, the unsophisticated.” Eventually, though, these pieces became viewed as even more valuable. But, as Koren explains, they then lost their wabi-sabi qualities.

This exemplifies what the wabi-sabi aesthetic really values. It is the “most conspicuous and characteristic feature of what we think of as traditional Japanese beauty” despite being very focused on “the idea of not being conspicuous at all.”

Tracing the origins and meanings of the words ‘wabi’ and ‘sabi,’ Koren defines wabi-sabi to be the aesthetic that focuses on three fundamental truths: nothing lasts, nothing is complete, and nothing is perfect. In some way, this also means that everything is in a state between the creation and destruction of something or, in another way of reasoning, everything is in the process of becoming something or becoming nothing. Nothing in itself is viewed as an opportunity for something and something is an opportunity for nothing.

It is all very complicated sounding, but Koren does a good job of spelling it out for all readers. With some quiet time and contemplation, this book offers us a way to prevent “the extinction of a beauty” that Koren’s work seeks to preserve. 

Marshmallow is reading Wabi-Sabi for Artists, Designers, Poets & Philosophers by Leonard Koren.
Marshmallow is reading Wabi-Sabi for Artists, Designers, Poets & Philosophers by Leonard Koren.

Marshmallow’s Review: I found Wabi-Sabi for Artists, Designers, Poets & Philosophers to be a fascinating analysis of this Japanese aesthetic. Wabi-sabi became somewhat of a trend online a little while ago and this book is a really good way to embrace and deepen one’s understanding of what wabi-sabi actually means. The internet trend associated with it is adorable and really meaningful! This book is a perfect way to explore the cultural significance it holds in Japan though. Koren analyzes the historical origins, how it developed over time, and how it is still somewhat present today.

I think reading Wabi-Sabi for Artists, Designers, Poets & Philosophers not only gave me an understanding of the aesthetic itself. It also showed me more about what the ideals and beliefs behind much of Japanese and Zen culture are. This is a really good experience to have for all bunnies because it really gives you good time to think about the thoughts of the tea masters from millennia ago and provides a moment of peace where you can think about quieter, natural philosophies that are so distant and distinct from much of the media we consume today. Finding that moment of calm in this book was a really valuable time and I would highly recommend reading this book – if not to learn about the aesthetic – to take some time to think about philosophy, life, and nature deeper.

Images are placed throughout the pages in black and white stills that hint at what wabi-sabi looks like. They are rather ordinary yet strange looking things but they give you a sense of the aesthetics meaning. I found that the book’s brevity and its accompanying images do a really good job of leaving you with a feeling of calm and a greater appreciation for the wabi-sabi things in life. While I’m not going to change my entire aesthetic, I think it is worth thinking about imperfections and the sometimes boringly simple as beautiful. In such a complicated world, books like this one give us time to return to another world when tea ceremonies and wabi-sabi were new, reopening our imaginations to see a whole new perspective. 

Marshmallow’s Rating: 100%.

Marshmallow rates Wabi-Sabi for Artists, Designers, Poets & Philosophers by Leonard Koren 100%.
Marshmallow rates Wabi-Sabi for Artists, Designers, Poets & Philosophers by Leonard Koren 100%.

Marshmallow reviews Water of the Sky: A Dictionary of 2,000 Japanese Rain Words by Miya Ando with Joan Halifax

Today Marshmallow reviews Water of the Sky: A Dictionary of 2,000 Japanese Rain Words, a unique book by artist Miya Ando, published in 2025.

Marshmallow reviews Water of the Sky: A Dictionary of 2,000 Japanese Rain Words by Miya Ando with Joan Halifax.
Marshmallow reviews Water of the Sky: A Dictionary of 2,000 Japanese Rain Words by Miya Ando with Joan Halifax.

Marshmallow’s Quick Take: If you like nature and taking time to think about things on a deeper level, then this is the book for you!

Marshmallow’s Summary: Miya Ando is a Japanese American artist whose grandfather was a Buddhist monk. Her mother and grandmother practiced tea ceremonies, and this upbringing gave her a deep understanding and appreciation of Japanese culture, poetry, and admiration for nature. This book reflects exactly that.

First off, I should note that pages 104-240 of the book contain the 2o00 words referred to in the book title. These pages list each of the 2000 words in Japanese script (first kanji, basically how the word is actually written, then the hiragana script to tell the Japanese reader how the word is pronounced, I think), and an English pronunciation of the word as well as a poetic translation of the meaning of the word.

There is not much text in Water of the Sky: A Dictionary of 2,000 Japanese Rain Words. except for the Foreword “A Constellation of Frozen Moments: The Language of Rain” by Hollis Goodall, Curator of Japanese Art at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Preface by Miya Ando herself; and a short introductory essay “Perceiving Rain” by Joan Halifax, an American Zen Buddhist teacher. These are each a couple pages long and explain the author’s perspective, methods, and some of the Japanese words that relate to the book. Goodall, Ando, and Halifax all mention words like wabi, sabi, ichigo ichie, “thusness,” and mono no aware. These are not part of the 2,000 Japanese rain words, but are ideas that relate to rain. They are all very meaningful and nuanced and are very difficult to describe. There is no direct translation for the meaning behind those words. For example, wabi is the sad beauty of poverty which forces you to drink tea but to also experience it more gratefully. Sabi is the beauty of loneliness which cultivates beautiful haikus and ink paintings. I find it remarkable how these ideas can conjure soft images in my mind and have such a simple meaning yet leave a profound feeling of wonder and appreciation for life. This is something that continues throughout the book. It is, after all, a book with 2,000 Japanese words that are used for rain.

Shockingly, Japan has that many words (if not more) to describe all the different types of rain. I also learned that Japan, traditionally, has 72 micro-seasons which affect the way one is supposed to dress and conduct tea ceremonies.

The first part of the book has 100 drawings by Miya Ando that represent some of these Japanese words. The drawings are all blue but they are all astoundingly unique. You would figure that there are only so many ways you can represent rain on a canvas. Yet, Japanese culture seems to have infinite ways to characterize rain and—in doing so—appreciate nature, its impermanence, and its existence (its “thusness”) in a way that so many of us today have perhaps never done once in our lives. This book presents this way of thinking to the reader and offers a sense of fulfillment just by being and a sense of wonder at how beautiful our world is.

If you are interested in seeing some of Ando’s work that appears in this book, you can check out: https://www.miyaando.com/rain

Marshmallow is reading Water of the Sky: A Dictionary of 2,000 Japanese Rain Words by Miya Ando with Joan Halifax.

Marshmallow’s Review: I was a bit stressed when I started reading Water of the Sky: A Dictionary of 2,000 Japanese Rain Words; reading it has made me feel so much better. The Japanese ideas of wabi, sabi, “thusness,” and others described in the book are reminiscent of a peaceful past that takes you out of the present and into a state of mind that is more ready to appreciate the world and the nature that silently surrounds us.

I will say that the writers are very verbose and some of their word choice feels overly esoteric. I had to look up a couple of words every paragraph or so. This, for me, was a worthwhile and fulfilling experience and I liked learning and trying to understand the meaning behind the complex sentence structures and SAT-level words. Yet, I do think this might be discouraging to younger bunnies or someone who is not a huge fan of hard words. I would recommend sticking to it though because the sense of calm and comprehension you get at the end is worth it.

Reading Water of the Sky: A Dictionary of 2,000 Japanese Rain Words and looking at Miya Ando’s art truly did make me feel as though I was in a completely different state of mind. Sometimes, I felt as if I was living back in ancient Japan and it was raining outside. This was a very interesting experience. Just like how the best haikus put a brief, impermanent image in your mind, this book does too. The authors discuss how rain is impermanent and how appreciating rain is appreciating nature and how things fades away and change and are created. Thinking about these sorts of things puts you on another level of thinking, a deeper yet higher level of understanding that does make you forget about daily stress for a moment.

Looking at Ando’s art is itself an amazing experience. It is amazing how there are so many different iterations of rain. Every moment truly is unique and never repeated. Japan is probably the first country to catalogue every beautiful, individual rainfall (the only comparable thing I can think of is that unproven claim that there are one hundred words for snow in Inuit).

I really appreciated reading Water of the Sky: A Dictionary of 2,000 Japanese Rain Words and all the hard work that went into making it! I would highly recommend it to anyone who has the time and is willing to push through the harder, more difficult reading at the beginning. The ideas are fascinating and beautiful and the paintings and the definitions themselves are beautiful as well. Or if you like, you can simply peruse Ando’s art work in bits and pieces. But taking your time with the book is the best way to appreciate it I think. Reading Water of the Sky: A Dictionary of 2,000 Japanese Rain Words really gives you the opportunity and duty to appreciate the beauty around you in the simple things of nature and everything in the world. We should all try to be a little more like that every day!

Marshmallow’s Rating: 100%.

Marshmallow rates Water of the Sky: A Dictionary of 2,000 Japanese Rain Words by Miya Ando with Joan Halifax 100%.
Marshmallow rates Water of the Sky: A Dictionary of 2,000 Japanese Rain Words by Miya Ando with Joan Halifax 100%.

Caramel reviews Mysterious Tales of Japan by Rafe Martin

Today Caramel is talking to Sprinkles about Mysterious Tales of Japan, written by Rafe Martin and illustrated by Tatsuro Kiuchi, originally published in 1996.

Caramel reviews Mysterious Tales of Japan, written by Rafe Martin and illustrated by Tatsuro Kiuchi.
Caramel reviews Mysterious Tales of Japan, written by Rafe Martin and illustrated by Tatsuro Kiuchi.

Sprinkles: So Caramel, today we are talking about Mysterious Tales of Japan, another one of those books you read for that Asian Myths and Legends summer course you took a while back. 

Caramel: Yeah, it is, I think, the last one? I already reviewed the other ones: Japanese Myths, Legends, and Folktales, Tamamo the Fox Maiden and Other Asian Stories, Chinese Myths and Legends: The Monkey King and Other Adventures, Vietnamese Children’s Favorite Stories, and Favorite Children’s Stories from China and Tibet. 

S: Yes, I think you are completing the set today. But this one is a bit different from the others, right? The stories are a bit spooky, I am guessing. 

C: Spooky? No, they’re not that spooky. But yes, there are ghosts and spirits and such. 

S: I see. Then please tell me a bit more about the book. 

C: It has some stories shared with some of the others, like “Ho-Ichi the Earless” and “Urashimmo Taro”, which I had already read in Tamamo the Fox Maiden and Other Asian Stories. Besides these, there are eight other stories, and I had not read those before; they were all new to me.

S: That’s cool Caramel. So ten stories and eight of them were totally new for you. Tell me a bit about the new stories. 

C: The other eight stories are “Green Willow”, “The Snow Woman”, “Kogi”, “The Crane Maiden”, “The Pine of Akoya”, “A Frog’s Gift”,  “The Boy Who Drew Cats”, and “Black Hair”. They are all about five pages or so.

Caramel is reading Mysterious Tales of Japan, written by Rafe Martin and illustrated by Tatsuro Kiuchi.
Caramel is reading Mysterious Tales of Japan, written by Rafe Martin and illustrated by Tatsuro Kiuchi.

S: Okay, so tell me a bit about these stories. Any one that surprised you? 

C: No, not really; most of the stories are sort of similar to others that I read before.

S: Okay, so I guess you are getting used to Japanese folk tales and their general feel. Then, maybe tell me which was the most interesting? Or the spookiest? 

C: I think that “Ho-ichi the Earless” is the spookiest. 

S: I remember that story from the other book. It was quite weird and spooky, I agree. But that book was basically a graphic novel adaptation, so it was very visual. Left not much to your imagination. 

C: This book has pictures, too, but only one or two for each story. So you have a lot more to imagine. 

S: That can sometimes be scarier. 

C: True. Sometimes the imagining is the part where I like real books over picture books. Let me think about what I want the main character to look like. Let me think about how the house the author is describing actually looks like. And so on. And the pictures in this book are not all very detailed. They give you a feel for the story, but you still have a lot more to imagine on your own. 

S: Yes, the pictures are beautiful and evocative, but you are right, they are not very detailed. They leave much room to create in your own imagination. So for example, the two stories you had already read before in that other book: when you were reading them here, did you have some new imagery in your mind to go along with the story line? 

C: Yeah, sometimes the space not drawn is the spookiest. It definitely was like that for me for “Ho-ichi the Earless”. 

S: Cool, thanks for all this Caramel. I think we have enough for a post, so maybe this is a good time to wrap things up. 

C: Sure, why not?

S: Great! What would you like to say to our readers as your closing words? 

C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!

Caramel appreciated reading Mysterious Tales of Japan, written by Rafe Martin and illustrated by Tatsuro Kiuchi, and recommends it to all other young bunnies, but maybe they should think about reading it with a grownup bunny so they don't get too scared.
Caramel appreciated reading Mysterious Tales of Japan, written by Rafe Martin and illustrated by Tatsuro Kiuchi, and recommends it to all other young bunnies, but maybe they should think about reading it with a grownup bunny so they don’t get too scared.

Marshmallow reviews Soseki Natsume’s I Am A Cat: The Manga Edition

Today Marshmallow reviews Soseki Natsume’s I Am A Cat: The Manga Edition, the graphic novelization of the Japanese classic I Am A Cat, originally written by Soeki Natsume in 1905-1906. This “manga edition” was retold and illustrated by Chiroru Kobato, translated into English by Zack Davisson, and published in 2021. Sprinkles is taking notes and asking questions.

[In this post, we mention suicide as it relates to the content of the book, so if this is a sensitive topic for you, please consider not reading further.]

Marshmallow reviews Soseki Natsume's I Am A Cat: The Manga Edition, retold and illustrated by Chiroru Kobato, and translated into English by Zack Davisson.
Marshmallow reviews Soseki Natsume’s I Am A Cat: The Manga Edition, retold and illustrated by Chiroru Kobato, and translated into English by Zack Davisson.

Sprinkles: I am so excited we are finally talking about this book! I am very curious about it. So let us start with your standard overview. 

Marshmallow: Sure! If you like thought-provoking and eye-opening books from other cultures and other time periods, then this is the book for you!

S: That is a great start. Okay, now please do tell us a bit about what this book is about.. Since the title is “I am a cat”, I am guessing it is probably about a cat.

M: Yes, actually the main character is a cat who narrates the whole story (which takes place in early twentieth century Japan). He was separated from his family at a young age and was taken in—reluctantly—by the family of an English teacher named Sensei Kushami. He describes his life with them and the silly human occurrences / things they experience. 

S: So what kinds of things does he talk about? 

M: Early on, he describes his near-death experience with mochi. He also watches the humans gossip a lot about a rich woman named Ms. Kaneda and her nose (which I thought was very insensitive). The woman, whom the cat calls Lady Nose, has a very ungrateful yet beautiful daughter who may marry one of Sensei Kushami’s friends. There is a lot of confusion that surrounds this affair though and a lot of false rumors and accusations get thrown around. 

S: So the cat witnesses and talks about a whole lot of silly, trivial, petty things humans worry about. 

M: Yes. In the original version of the book, according to this neat recap we found online, this makes him feel pretty superior. In this manga version, he also seems a little amused by their behavior; however, he seems a little less judgemental.

S: In that recap and also on the Wikipedia article for the book, we also learn that the Japanese version of the title “I Am A Cat” also has sort of this formal feel to it because it uses a particular version of the first person pronoun “I” that is “a very high-register phrasing more appropriate to a nobleman, conveying grandiloquence and self-importance”. I am guessing that also makes the book funny to begin with, the cat is kind of pretty full of himself. 

M: I presume it does in Japanese, but of course, I didn’t quite catch that joke myself in English. 

Marshmallow is reading Soseki Natsume's I Am A Cat: The Manga Edition, retold and illustrated by Chiroru Kobato, and translated into English by Zack Davisson.
Marshmallow is reading Soseki Natsume’s I Am A Cat: The Manga Edition, retold and illustrated by Chiroru Kobato, and translated into English by Zack Davisson.

S: English has a single first-person pronoun which makes it a lot easier to learn or speak it, but you also lose a lot of nuance in this way, I suppose. Anyways, so this cat is observing his humans, kind of like Garfield. Garfield is kind of self-important in a way, but maybe a bit less interested in the humans.

M: Yes. I felt like the main character here did seem to care about his human family, but they did not really seem to always care about him too much (Sensei Kushani originally did not want him in the house at all). 

S: Hmm, that is interesting. So I know that when you first read this book, you were a bit disturbed by it. Can you tell us a bit about that? 

M: I felt that the book made too many references to suicide too lightly. Several characters consider hanging themselves on a pine called the Hanging Tree. None of the main characters ends up killing themselves, but it felt like it was mentioned too many times in the course of such a short book. 

S: I can see how that made the feel of the book kind of dark and uncomfortable for you. I am sorry about that. I had thought that this book is supposed to be satirical and philosophical, so I suggested that you read it. 

M: It’s okay! It was a little dark and unexpected, but the rest of the book was amusing to read. I can see why people find it both satirical and philosophical. It is pretty amusing to read a cat pontificating about the silly ways of humans. Like we bunnies do sometimes. People-watching is one of my favorite hobbies. 

S: I know, right? People-watching is fun! Okay, so tell us a bit about the satire or the philosophy then. 

M: Okay, the philosophy part was also pretty dark and depressing though. Sensei Kushani and his friends in academia and one in business discuss the integration of Western ideals into traditional Japanese culture. They also say some very sexist things about women to their friend who just got engaged. Meanwhile, the cat narrating the book ponders about life and whether it is worth it. At some point, he reaches the conclusion (which I disagree with) that life is only suffering and that death is the only peace. 

S: Okay, I can see that maybe these ideas are a bit too heavy for a “manga edition”. Maybe the original book deals with them with more nuance. So maybe let us now talk about the manga nature of the book. I know both you and Caramel have read a lot of graphic novels. But is this your very first manga?

M: I think so. I have never read a book that was meant to be read backwards which was a little difficult to adjust to.

S: Backwards for us of course, not for many other people around the world who read from right to left. 

M: Yes, but  I am still not sure whether I was supposed to start from the top of the page or somewhere else. 

S: I can imagine that can be disorienting. I have read only one manga-style book and that was disorienting for me, too. But I am honestly disoriented by all graphic novels, so maybe it was also that. Anyways, so let us wrap up this review then. All in all, did you enjoy reading this book? Did you find it interesting?

M: This book was definitely interesting. It helped me understand a little bit more about Japan’s culture and its understated, natural aesthetics and style. I also liked how this version simplified a classic book into a format that was somewhat easy to understand and definitely a lot easier to read for people who can’t read Japanese. I liked how this made one of the great Japanese novels accessible to others! I would rate this book around 95%. 

S: That is wonderful, Marshmallow. Then I am also glad you read it. What would you like to tell our readers as we end the post?

M: Stay tuned for more amazing book reviews from the book bunnies!

Marshmallow rates Soseki Natsume's I Am A Cat: The Manga Edition, retold and illustrated by Chiroru Kobato, and translated into English by Zack Davisson, 95%.
Marshmallow rates Soseki Natsume’s I Am A Cat: The Manga Edition, retold and illustrated by Chiroru Kobato, and translated into English by Zack Davisson, 95%.