The Seashell Game is a 1672 anthology compiled by Japanese poet Matsuo Bashō, in which each haiku is followed by critical commentary he made as referee for a haiku contest. It is Bashō's earliest known book, and the only book he published in his own name. The work contains 60 haiku by 36 poets, including two by Bashō himself.
Example
Bashō compares the following pair of verses on the topic of colourful autumn leaves: :How like it is to :A midwife's right hand– :Crimson maple leaf! :—Sanboku :"I haven't crimsoned. :Come and look!" So says the dew :On an oak branch :—Dasoku In his commentary, Bashō declares that the first poem "ranks thousands of leagues" above the second. ==References==