Narrow Road to the Interior: And Other Writings

Bashō (1644–1694)—a great luminary of Asian literature who elevated the haiku to an art form of utter simplicity and intense spiritual beauty—is renowned in the West as the author of , a travel diary of linked prose and haiku recounting his journey through the far northern provinces of Japan. This edition features a masterful translation of this celebrated work. It also includes an insightful introduction by translator Sam Hamill detailing Bashō’s life and the art of haiku, three other important works by Bashō— - , , and —and two hundred and fifty of his finest haiku, making this the most complete single-volume collection of Bashō’s writings.