Product Description

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #198369 in Books
• Published on: 2006-03-28
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 256 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9781402735608
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Customer Reviews

Disappointed Beginner
Both reviews here and in various Bonsai forums around the internet led me to choose this as my first bonsai book. Unfortunately, I was rather disappointed with the book. Here's a few reasons why:
- there are "lessons" from various bonsai artists around the world ... oddly, there are none from any Japanese artists. Granted it wasn't the Japanese that started it, but there's a reason that practically all bonsai terms are in Japanese, and not Chinese, English, or Vietnamese.
- there is a limited index, but there is no glossary, and terms are used without prior reference. A simple diagram of tree anatomy would be interesting.
- there is a lot of varied focus on advanced techniques (shari, jin), but little information on basic things like how to thicken trunks or how to reduce leaf size.
- I found the tree reference section fairly limited. Granted, Coussins is Scottish, and he does cover the basics. But it would have been nice to see reference to some of the alternatives - especially for those like me who live in the Southern Hemisphere and/or the tropics.
- I thought the book poorly organized and felt really incoherent. For example, he talks about the suitability of various trees for different styles, but this is before he discusses the various traditional styles. There are other examples, but I can't remember them at the moment.
- Most of the pictures were of excellent quality, while some looked like poor quality colour printouts. There were however, a couple of photos which I marveled that they got into print - one because it has a very strong lens flare, and the other because the colours were not aligned properly. Furthermore, some pictures were repeated or simply didn't match the caption. In one place, a tree was made a centerfold, which really detracted from the photo, as the main trunk was hidden in the binding. Maybe it's not Mr. Coussins' fault, but with this book, Sterling's reputation has become tarnished, for me.
- There was some good information on pots, which I really looked forward to as a professional potter trained in Japan, but the section was not especially helpful as it seemed more like a "here's my collection, isn't it great?". Some of this material also seemed like it would fit better in a magazine than in a book. I also thought that many of the pots were unattractive, or inappropriate for the trees they held - but to be fair, that's largely personal taste.

Well, I think that about sums it up. Hope this was helpful.

Great book as school for all grades from early to advanced persons.
This school book helped me very much in my Christmas bonsai gift. How and when to be precise, when to feed and fertilize, which month in the year and how often and when to add or stop the feeding in the year. Plus when to water each and every species as all bonsais known in the world.... in two words, THANK YOU. :)

Beginner's essential
Covers all the topics with sufficient depth to keep you going for a tree's early life and beyond. It's a must have for those seeking an exhaustive beginning course. Highly recommended.