Waka and Things, Waka as Things

“Anyone interested in Japanese court poetry, court ritual and culture, and painting should read this book with pleasure and come away with a more profound knowledge of the cultures it describes.”—Steven D. Carter, Monumenta Nipponica

“Kamens . . . explores, with profound erudition, the nature of the art of waka.”—Choice

"Through the adroit use of four multivalent case studies, this authoritative work demonstrates with eloquence and insight the vital importance of material, social, conceptual, and other approaches to premodern Japanese poetic culture."—H. Mack Horton, University of California, Berkeley

“Waka and Things, Waka as Things is a major contribution to the field and will be widely acknowledged as a major scholarly accomplishment. The research, writing, and exegesis on display in the book are all absolutely top-notch.”—Morgan Pitelka, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

“The theoretical framework is sound, engrossing, and wholly applicable. The scholarship and research that went into the book are superior, and the integration of primary and secondary sources is adroit and engaging.”—Joseph T. Sorensen, University of California, Davis