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There was a saying when I lived in Japan that a Westerner would write the definitive book on Japanese life and culture after being there six months but then realise that it was entirely wrong a further six months on. Fortunately I was far from falling into such a trap being aware that almost any view considered definitive, not just of matters Japanese, was doomed to failure. Perhaps there are subjects consisting of things no longer changing but sufficiently proximate in time that all or most information about them is still available.
I’m generally disappointed with books on tea. Since I have pretences to know everything about tea (true experts are probably those who are aware of what they do not know: as one ascends a tower, the horizon inevitably falls away.) my gauge of a book’s quality is to read the portions about which my knowledge feels secure and assess those portions. If the research there seems inadequate, I assume that the research elsewhere is inadequate and can not trust what I might learn from reading that book.
Fortunately, the most recent tome to come my way, The True History of Tea by Victor H. Mair and Erling Hoh (Thames and Hudson 2009) seems a most worthy effort, well-researched and clearly written. The section on the Japanese Way of Tea, where I began my appraisal, though clearly showing that it has been assembled by non-practitioners whose judgement of what details are truly telling and worth including, gives a very good account. The research for it has been wide yet carefully done and with a good understanding of contexts.
Further reading confirmed my thoughts and I have no hesitation in recommending this book to anyone interested in an intelligent account of tea history. More later.
Alex runs east teas in Borough Market, Friday 12-6p.m. and Saturday 9-4p.m. Email epoch@east-teas.com.
