(tent) My Favorite Seasonal Words

A nostalgic, whimsical, and at times poignant journey through 96 seasonal words, revealing the poetry woven into everyday life. This is the first collection of essays on kigo—the seasonal words used in haiku—by Hiromi Kawakami, herself an accomplished haiku poet. In 96 richly textured pieces, she shares moments from her daily life: strange incidents on neighborhood walks, the lively ecology of birds and insects in her garden, the joy of drinking with seasonal ingredients, bittersweet memories of human connection, and even gently eerie, dreamlike experiences. Through these episodes, readers are invited to immerse themselves in the depth and beauty of kigo, all while savoring the signature atmosphere of the Kawakami world. Selected haiku by other poets are also featured throughout.“Kaeru no me-kari-doki (Time When Frogs Lend Their Eyes),” “Kotori-ami (Bird Net),” “Ushi-matsuri (Cow Festival),” “Konoha-gami (Leaf Hair),” “Azuma Coat”… I remember the thrill of discovering these odd, poetic words I had never seen or heard before, nestled in the pages of the saijiki like treasures in a box. And I still recall how it felt the first time I used these once-distant seasonal words in my own haiku—as if I were placing around my neck a delicate necklace crafted a hundred or two hundred years ago, my heart pounding all the while.