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The Book of Tea

by Okakura Kakuzo

Tea, art, and Okakura’s cultural world

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AlbakiReads Editorial

Tea, art, and Okakura’s cultural world

Okakura Kakuzo’s 1906 text uses tea as a point of entry into ideas about art, beauty, and simplicity. This expanded edition places the work alongside material on Okakura’s life and travels, including his connections with artists and writers in several cities. Tea writer Bruce Richardson adds historical photographs and illustrations, offers context on the book’s continuing place in tea culture, and contributes a chapter on American interest in Japanese tea in the late 1800s. The edition therefore brings together Okakura’s reflections and a broader historical frame around the people and culture associated with them.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Readers interested in tea culture and its history
  • Readers exploring Asian philosophy and ideas about art and beauty
  • Readers interested in the historical connections between Japan and the United States

Themes

Tea cultureArt and beautySimplicityJapanese tea in AmericaOkakura Kakuzo’s life and connections

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

The original 1906 edition of The Book of Tea is one of the classic texts found on the desks of artists, poets, teaists and Zen Buddhists around the world. The book has been re-designed and expanded for a contemporary audience.

You will discover the fascinating character of Okakura Kakuzo and the story of how he came to write one of the twentieth century's most influential books on art, beauty, and simplicity--all steeped in the world's communal cup of tea. His incredible journey took him from Yokohama to New York, Paris, Bombay, and Boston, where his life intertwined with such luminaries as Rabindranath Tagore, John Singer Sargent, Henry James, John La Farge, Isabella Stewart Gardner, Ezra Pound, and Henri Matisse. His writings influenced the work of such notable artists as Frank Lloyd Wright and Georgia O'Keeffe.

American tea writer Bruce Richardson includes many historical photographs and illustrations in this updated edition of Okakura's classic text, along with unique insight into how Okakura's philosophy continues to inspire today's tea culture. Plus, Richardson includes an all-new chapter on America's thirst for Japanese tea during the late 1800s, illustrated with archival photographs.

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Customer reviews

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AlbakiReads
Malaika Taylor

I highly recommend to for anyone looking for inner clarity

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Thomas DiMassa

Great service and fast service

Great shopping experience! The book arrived quickly, was well packaged, and matched the description perfectly. I would definitely shop with you again

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Olivia

Smooth.