Book of the Day

Blyth, R.H., Zen In English Literature and Oriental Classics (Tokyo: The Hokuseido Press, 1st ed., 1942). A vegetarian and World War I conscientious objector imprisoned for his beliefs, Reginald Howard Blyth (1898-1964) emigrated to Korea as a college professor of English in 1925. He studied zen, learned Chinese and Japanese, and, after divorcing his English wife and marrying a Japanese one, moved to Japan in 1936. There he taught, and wrote a series of books on zen and haiku. Though interned by the Japanese for the war, Blyth emerged as liaison between the Imperial Household and General MacArthur’s occupation staff, and became tutor to the current emperor, Akihito. Blyth had a major influence on Western thought about zen and haiku, especially among the Beat writers of the 1950s. Zen in English Literature and Oriental Classics was his most popular book; in this wartime, English-language version it is quite rare, and rarer still with a very good dust jacket as HBB’s copy sports. Hardcover, unclipped dust jacket, very good condition. 5.25” x 7.25”. HBB price: $175.