Most people know Natsume Sōseki for his novels. Few know he wrote haiku his entire life: quiet, funny, deeply human poems. This book pairs 25 of his best with the original Japanese, furigana, translations, vocabulary and grammar notes.
25 haiku by Sōseki, each with its own short chapter:
- The haiku in Japanese with furigana, a romanized reading and several English translations.
- Vocabulary for every word in the poem, and the seasonal word (季語, kigo) explained.
- A short explanation in Japanese, with furigana and its own vocabulary list.
- A plain-English analysis of what the poem means and how its grammar works.
- Audio of every haiku and every explanation. Scan the QR code on the page to listen.
What you get
- The paperback, 2026 Edition: 142 pages, 5.5 x 8.5 inches.
- The eBook and audio, right away. PDF, ePub, MP3 audio and an Anki flashcard deck, ready to download as soon as you order. No waiting for the mail.
- The book in the Makoto+ Japanese Explorer app (iPhone, iPad and Android). It unlocks automatically for the email you order with, and the unlock code is printed in the back of the book too.
This book is part of Learn Japanese through Haiku. Prefer to go all digital? The Learn Japanese with Haiku bundle has all three books in this series (Chiyo-ni, Natsume Sōseki and Akutagawa Ryūnosuke) as eBooks with audio.
Buy 3 Clay & Yumi paperbacks, get a 4th free. Mix any titles. The discount is applied automatically at checkout.
Ships from the US to anywhere in the world.
Learn Japanese through Haiku: Natsume Sōseki is a 142-page paperback (2026 Edition) with 25 haiku by Sōseki, each in Japanese with furigana, a translation, the seasonal word, a Japanese commentary, line-by-line vocabulary and grammar, and native audio. The code printed in the back unlocks the book in the free Makoto+ Japanese Explorer app for iPhone, iPad and Android.
