The Book of Tea Paperback – December 23, 2011

I co-lead tours to Japan with a craft & architecture focus. This is an excellent, compressed statement of how the tea ceremony organically embodies the whole of traditional Japanese aesthetics: wabi sabi in gardening, architecture, crafts, gesture, & relationships. Obviously the original free & direct tea ceremony has been codified & commercialized nearly out of existence. I am happy to let the tea ceremony exist as an idea now, convinced as I am that anyone, especially a Westerner, could pay for a fresh, immediate experience complete with its original ingredients of raw serendipity & lack of pretension. I would be very happy to be shown otherwise. In the meantime, the ideal concept, loving portrayed here, points the way. Classic little book for the short list.

This is a simple, yet beautiful, book. Incredibly poetic. Anyone interested in writing, zen, tea culture... should read this book

I was doing some research on Charlotte Perriand and I noticed how often she mentioned The Book of Tea in her autobiography Charlotte Perriand: A Life of Creation. Distinguished for her work with Le Corbusier designing furniture, interiors and architecture, Charlotte Perriand understood important concepts of Japanese culture which were influential to her work. The Book of Tea is a great read for anyone wanting to understand the essence of Japanese culture and its influence on mid-century design.

Although the content seems fine and well-written, this "book" is actually more a small pamphlet or brochure which seems incongruous with the high price. I had bought it as a gift for someone, but could not give it to them as it looks like something you would get for free from a street fair.

I think this was an OK book, but would recommend borrowing from a friend or checking it out from the library. It's written in a very academic manner and I thought it was overall difficult to follow and not that exciting. I was hoping for more general information for the essence of tea and it's history in Japan to prepare me for my next trip. I was overall disappointed.

I bought this book for my father, an avid tea drinker who is interested in Asian history and cultural rituals. He absolutely loved this book- it not only speaks about the history of the tea ceremony,but also explains the cultural significance of every part of the ceremony. A must-have read for any tea aficionado or history buff.

The best Sunday-morning read in a long time. Students and teachers trying to grasp the ideals of East Asia should read this book at least once.

Tea, Zen Buddhism, flowers, Taoism, art, orientalism, and a relentless mocking of the Western world for its racism and absurd notion of exceptionaism. Brilliant. Absolutely adored it!