All the titles mentioned in the references are of interest, though often in relatively narrow domains of study. The following English-language works are recommended for those who would like to have a manageable list of readings, either in preparation for a trip to Japan or simply as an extended introduction.
Addis, Stephen, How to Look at Japanese Art (New York, 1996): one of the most intelligent introductions to the subject.
———, Zen Art (New York, 1989): a sumptuously illustrated, erudite study.
Bashō, Matsuo, Narrow Road to the Interior [1694], trans. Sam Hamill (Boston, MA, 2000): the classic travelogue by the great haiku poet.
Benedict, Ruth, The Chrysanthemum and the Sword [1946] (New York, 2005): the locus classicus on Japanese behaviour and psychology.
Cort, Louise Allison, Shigaraki: Potters’ Valley (Bangkok, 2001): probably the most detailed study in English on a single type of Japanese pottery, this work is also an extraordinarily rich source on the art form’s more general practical and aesthetic aspects.
Crueger, Anneliese, Wulf Crueger and Saeko Itō, Modern Japanese Ceramics (New York, 2006): a detailed and fully illustrated book offering an overview of the many regional types of contemporary Japanese pottery, with extensive practical information.
Holborn, Mark, The Ocean in the Sand: Japan, from Landscape to Garden (Boulder, CO, 1978)
Mizuno, Katsuhiko, and Tom Wright, Zen Gardens: Kyoto’s Nature Enclosed (Kyoto, 1990): or any other book on Kyoto gardens by photographer Katsuhiko Mizuno, for beautiful images of gardens, many of which are closed to the public.
Murasaki, Shikibu, The Tale of Genji [early 11th century], trans. Royall Tyler (New York, 2000): the origin of Japanese literature and a treasure trove of cultural information.
Nitschke, Günter, Japanese Gardens (Cologne, 2003): one of the most comprehensive, well-illustrated studies.
Okakura, Kakuzō, The Book of Tea [1906] (New York, 1964): the classic introduction to the subject.
Richie, Donald, A Tractate on Japanese Aesthetics (Berkeley, CA, 2007): the most succinct statement on Japanese aesthetics, by one of the foremost Japan specialists.
Sadler, A. L., The Japanese Tea Ceremony [1933] (Rutland, VT, 2008): a fascinating compendium of tea lore.
Sei, Shōnagon, The Pillow Book [1002], trans. Meredith McKinney (London and New York, 2006): this journal of encyclopedic form by a court lady contemporary of Murasaki Shikibi, including portraits, anecdotes, poems, tales and lists, is one of the earliest psychological self-portraits, offering a rare glimpse into the secret life of the Heian court.
Slawson, David A., Secret Teachings in the Art of Japanese Gardens (Tokyo, 1987): an excellent design-oriented study by a landscape architect, this book includes a translation of Zōen’s classic Illustrations for Designing Mountain, Water, and Hillside Field Landscapes (15th century).
Tanaka, Sen’ō, and Sendō Tanaka, The Tea Ceremony (Tokyo, 2000): an excellent primer on contemporary tea aesthetics and practice.
Tanizaki, Jun’ichirō, In Praise of Shadows [1933], trans. Thomas Harper and Edward Seidensticker (Stony Creek, CT, 1977): a classic by one of Japan’s most celebrated modern novelists.
Treib, Marc, and Ron Herman, A Guide to the Gardens of Kyoto (Tokyo, 2003): the best pocket guide to the gardens.
Yasuda, Kenneth, trans. and ed., The Japanese Haiku (Rutland, VT, 1957): a rich, annotated volume of haiku.
In addition, I have found the following pottery-oriented websites to be particularly useful:
www.e-yakimono.net
The extraordinarily informative site of Robert Yellin’s Yakimono Gallery (Kyoto), with especially fine photographic documentation.
www.g-utsuwakan.com
Minoru and Mitsuko Umeda’s outstanding and innovative Utsuwakan Gallery (Kyoto), specializing in non-traditional contemporary pottery.
www.mirviss.com
Joan B. Mirviss Ltd (New York) is perhaps the foremost dealer of modern Japanese ceramics outside Japan.
www.yufuku.net
Wahei Aoyama’s Yufuku Gallery (Tokyo), with excellent commentary on contemporary Japanese pottery and other crafts.