The Seasons in Haikai

The Seasons in Haikai by William J. Higginson. Irvington Press, 1996, 56 pages, paperback, 5½ by 7½ inches. $7.00 postpaid from Irvington Press, 3439 N.E. Sandy Boulevard #174, Portland, Oregon 97232 [address no longer correct]. Do not confuse this chapbook with Higginson’s Haiku Seasons, recently published by Kodansha. This volume, published earlier this year by Ce Rosenow at Irvington Press, resulted from a 1995 essay contest sponsored by the Northwest Literary Forum. As a revised excerpt from The Haiku Seasons, this material puts special emphasis on the seasons in haikai literature, and is recommended as a brief introduction to the content discussed in the longer book.