Mountains in the Sea: The Vietnamese Miniature Landscape Art of Hon Non Bo

Rating:
Summary: The book that we have been waiting for
Review: The amount of work that has gone into this excellent book shows clearly in the clear writing and great images throughout. Not everything is Bonsai now, we are learning about other cultures, and their path to what we find is a mutual interest. This is not a book about Vietnamese Bonsai at all but a book about creating landscape in miniature. Popular for many centuries but little know outside its home, Hon Non Bo is exciting in concept and immensely pleasurable in developing. Not difficult as an art form but does need this book to explain to you how to get started and how to develop your understanding of this ancient art. I enjoyed the book and found myself reaching for it a number of times this year. I recommended it to all my classes, friends and students.

Produced by one of the worlds leading Horticultural publishers, Timber Press, the guiding hand of the editor is apparent in the demand for concise and clear explanation throughout the book that reflects the quality of the rest of their excellent publications. The task was very well achieved by Lew Buller who developed and wrote the book over many years with one of Americas leading exponents in this art, Lit van Phan.

You really do need this on your bookshelf although I have a feeling it will rarely stay there.