There is an absolute freedom both in respect of language and choice of subject. The kiôka must be funny, that is all.¿ ¿ William J Aston History of Japanese Literature 1899. This Reader is a selection from ¿Mad in Translation ¿ a thousand years of kyôka, comic Japanese poetry in the classic waka mode,¿ a 2000poem, 200chapter, 740page monster of a book. It offers a 300page double distillation highproof sample of the poetry and prose, with improved translations, reconsidered opinions and additional snakelegs explanation some scholars may not need. The scattershot of twopage chapters and notes have been compounded into a score of cannonballsized thematic chapters with just enough weight to bowl over most specialists yet, hopefully, not bore the amateur and sink a potentially broadbeamed readership. Generally speaking, even readers with no particular interest in Japan ¿ if such odd souls exist ¿ may expect with apologies to Chesterton unexpected pleasure from this book if English metaphysical poetry, grooks, hyperlogical nonsense verse, outrageous epigrams, the impossibilities and process of translation between exotic tongues, the reason of puns and rhyme, outlandish metaphor, extreme hyperbole and whatnot tickle their fancy. Read together with The Woman Without a Hole, also by Robin D. Gill, the hitherto overlooked ulterior side of art poetry in Japan may now be thoroughly explored by monolinguals, though bilinguals and students of Japanese will be happy to know all the original Japanese is included.