The Floating World, Rev. Ed. - by James A Michener (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

The Floating World by novelist James A. Michener is a classic work on the Japanese print of the Edo period (1615-1868). Mr. Michener shows how the Japanese printmakers, cut off from revivifying contacts with the art of the rest of the world and hampered by their own governmental restrictions, were able to keep their art vital for two centuries through their vigor and determination.

For this new edition, Howard A. Link updates the scholarship and expands on many theoretical aspects introduced in Michener's study.

From the Back Cover

Mr. Michener shows how the Japanese printmakers, cut off from revivifying contacts with the art of the rest of the world and hampered by their own governmental restrictions, were able to keep their art vital for two centuries through their vigor and determination.

Review Quotes

Mr. Michener here turns to the field of Japanese prints--and explores it with an unusual mixture of erudition and sheer ebullience. His approach is far from pedantic, and he tends to treat the subject chiefly as a human interest story.-- "The New Yorker"