Despite this books listing as 1991, it is actually a 2002 printing of a book first published in 1971. For Keene fans, and those wishing to delve a bit deeper into Japanese culture this book would be a good addition to your collection. It is a collection of articles. They are well written and broadly ranging. My favorite is an article called _Confessions of a Specialist_ which originally appeared in the New York Times. In it, Keene describes his emotions as his colleagues roll their eyes and wonder why hes still translating dusty old Japanese scrolls. Well, now its 2003 and Keene is still at it. But this, his early work, has been eclipsed by his subsequent ouptput. At any rate, dont be fooled into thinking this consists of his recent writings.
It is undoubtedly a valuable book for anyone interested in Japanese culture, mainly its easthetics, with a lot of brilliant observations on the culture in general. For people who are more familiar with this topic it may sometimes seem overwhelmed with information on beginners level but on the other hand it is extremely interesting for people who are not experts on this field.
