Understanding Japan through poetry and understanding the nuances of Japanese poetry

Waka fest continues ths week with two news items...

The first is a National Public Radio  interview with Japanese literature scholar Donald Keene of Columbia University and Japanese-American poet Kimiko Hahn, distinguished professor of English at Queens College of The City University of New York, who offer  recommendations for readers who would like to learn about Japan through its literature.



The second article appears in the Kalamazoo Gazette  In it, Jeffrey Angles, an associate professor of Japanese literature and translation studies at Western Michigan University and  award-winning translator of Japanese poetry and prose speaks about the intricacies of Japanese poetry and the challenges in translating it.