This lovely novella, Kawabata's best known work, begins with a tea ceremony -- a spare, scripted, traditional ritual -- and goes on to consider the place of tradition in modern Japan. It's a story of love, grief, and redemption. Kawabata's prose is as economical as the tea ceremony itself, and very beautiful. This Vintage edition is illustrated with wonderful pen-and-ink drawings by Fumi Kobatsu.  (JPN34, $12.95)