A History of Japanese Literature: volume 1, The First Thousand Years; volume 2, The Years of Isolation; volume 3, The Modern Years

New York, New York, U.S.A.: Kodansha International, 1991. 1st Edition. Soft cover. As New/Mass Market Paperback. Unique set! Shuichi Kato's History of Japanese Literature in three volumes was first printed in 1979. The first volume was released in paperback in 1981, and this set has the third printing of that volume. Volumes two and three were never printed in paperback until 1990, the year of the third printing of volume one. These are rare books, and it is hard to find more than one volume being sold together. This listing not only has all three volumes from the 1990 release, but they are a boxed set. The box has some bump and rubbing damage, but is overall in Very Good or better condition. The books appear unread, and are sharp, tight, and square. There are traces of rubbing or smearing on the spines, and there is something that looks like a crease on the spine of volume three. Otherwise these are superb books, and will make an amazing addition to the collection of a student of Japanese books. 12mo - over 6¾ - 7¾" tall.