Reviews (17)

More helpful than maps found in travel guides
I was very reliant on the Tokyo City Atlas and the maps found outside train and subway stations. The level of detail in the maps on the City Atlas is helpful if you're one of those people who need to check every two minutes if you're heading in the right direction.
Good, but NOT Great
You are kind of stuck.You need a map like this to navigate Tokyo, and this is the only map of its kind on the market.In other words, you pretty much have to buy this book.
Excellent Book for self-guided travel
Just like most of the reviewers, I agree that this book is an excellent source for self-guided travel. The Map is so easy to use and accurate.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - Japan    2. Maps & Road Atlases    3. Reference - Guides (General)    4. Travel    5. Travel - Foreign    6. Japan    7. Travel & holiday guides   

Reviews (1)

Creative, engaging and edgy
This is a fascinating look into an aspect of Japanese culture I never knew existed.Joan Sinclair got incredible access -- access not only to the actual establishments, but access to the inner lives of some of these women and men whom she portrays with honesty and integrity.She has a fresh, exciting lens which comes through not without a revolutionary edge.This is an original.The intro by Farrer is also excellent. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Anthropology - General    2. Cultural And Social Anthropology    3. Human Sexuality    4. Japan    5. Nightclubs    6. Pictorial works    7. Psychology    8. Sex customs    9. Sex-oriented businesses    10. Social Science    11. Sociology    12. Art / Popular Culture    13. Erotic art    14. Photographs: collections    15. Pop Culture; sex; travel; Japan   

Reviews (18)

better than Frommers, Lonely Planet, etc
A travel buddy recommended this for our upcoming trip to Japan this fall and I was very pleased with the content and layout. It's well worth the $16 investment ... lots of interesting cultural factoids and clear pictures ... plus the usual list of hotels, shops and restaurants. Will update this review when I get back from Tokyo.

A good start to plan your trip to Japan
My wife and I enjoy to travel and we have been to many places and we have used the DK Eyewitness Guides a number of times (see my homepage). We bought the Japan guide to start planning our trip to Japan in May 2005 and we found the guidebook useful (as usual). We used it to find out where to buy tickets for a sumo match in Tokyo, we used it to navigate around Tokyo, we used it when we came to a restaurant in Kyoto where the two old people behind the counter didn't speak any English etc. We also found it very useful when we went to the castle at Himeji and found out that there was no guided tours in English. The book has lots of pratical information in my opinion or maybe it is just me that are getting used to this style in guidebooks. I do find the DK Eyewitness guides to be far more interesting that e.g. Lonely Planet, Frommer's etc

Beautiful Guide to Japan
This is a great and fascinating guide to Japan. Every page is full of captivating illustrations and interesting information on arts, culture and history around Japan. However, although this is an excellent book to look through and read before going to Japan it is not advised to take this book and this book alone on a trip to Japan. The information on accomadation, restaurants and language is rather vague and sketchy therefore it is best to get a more detailed travel guide on such matters. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - General    2. Asia - Japan    3. Guidebooks    4. Japan    5. Travel    6. Travel - Foreign    7. Travel / Asia / Japan   

Reviews (8)

A disappointment
I generally like the Lonely Planet Guides and have used them in many countries.This particular guide became a running joke.It is difficult to get a bad meal in Japan, but the worst meals we had were at places recommended in the Guide.If the Guide recommends a restaurant, I would stay away.Just use the maps to wander around a neighborhood, look at the food in the windows, find something that looks good and you will enjoy your trip much more than if you depended on this book for culinary recommendations.

Much like everyone said - the best general guide for Japan, but that doesn`t make it good
It`s not a bad guide, but it fails on many fronts.
Our Japan travel "bible!"
I find the other reviews of this book interesting.Maybe it's b/c going to Japan was the first trip out of the country on our own (so we don't have any other LP guides to compare to), but my boyfriend and I found this book invaluable for our trip.A day didn't go by when we didn't pull this book out and look at its maps or information about where we were at in Japan.In fact, one day we left the book in our hotel room--and we regretted every minute of it.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - Japan    2. Guidebooks    3. Japan    4. Travel    5. Travel - Foreign    6. Travel & holiday guides   

Reviews (2)

Virtually essential
Virtually essential when travelling to Japan for business (or visiting relatives) and extremely helpful for the casual tourist. In spite of its brevity, it covers nearly all of the essentials and provides a weath of historical and cultural background for many of the customs. Even though this is the only one I have read so far, I would imagine that other books by De Mente are well worth reading.

the authors time tested phonetic system is great
the authors time tested phonetic system is great and I think he should write a complete English-Japanese and Japanese-English dictionary using romaji and true Japanese characters.a complete dictionary with all four systems:english, romaji, japanese, and the authers phonetic system. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - Japan    2. Etiquette    3. Travel    4. Travel - Foreign    5. Cultural studies    6. Etiquette & entertaining    7. Japan    8. Korea    9. Travel & holiday guides   

Subjects:  1. 1945-    2. Collections, Catalogs, Exhibitions    3. Description and travel    4. Japan    5. Japan - History    6. Photo Essays    7. Photography    8. Pictorial works    9. Social life and customs    10. Travel - World/Asia    11. Views    12. Places & peoples: general interest   

Reviews (19)

Nigh of the Ninjas
This book is a very nice mystery chapter book. When you finish it, you want to add a chapter or 2. This book is mostly about ninjas. Jack and Annie have a big problem to solve. Their friend, Molly, was in a trap! She sends them a letter. It says, "Help! In a land of ninjas! In a tree house!"Jack and Annie are afraid! They want to help Molly but they can't, that's because they don't know how to get to ninja's land. I won't tell you any more. If you want to know more, then read the book. I think it's a good book to read.
Night of the Ninjas
Raymond Georges 3/13/06
An imperfect series that nontheless captures children's attention
The Magic Tree House series is a great idea that could be executed much better.I agree with some of the other reviewers comments regarding limited and in some instances dubious information on their subject matter.However, I am giving this book four stars because my five year old son loves it.I have found it a struggle to finds books that he will sit down and read with me and the fact that this book grasps his attention is a great credit to it.In fact, now that I have bought the first eight books in the series, his ten year old sisters are reading and enjoying them, also.These books serve the purpose of introducing a topic (usually historical) and sparking a child's that can then be pursued in other books.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Action & Adventure    2. Action & Adventure - General    3. Children's 4-8 - Fiction - Fantasy    4. Children's Books/Ages 4-8 Fiction    5. Children: Grades 3-4    6. Fiction    7. Japan    8. Juvenile Fiction    9. Magic    10. Ninja    11. Osborne, Mary Pope    12. Readers - Beginner    13. Science Fiction, Fantasy, & Magic    14. Time travel    15. Fantasy    16. Juvenile Fiction / Action & Adventure   

Reviews (12)

Terrible book and terrible trip
This book is bad. REALLY BAD. We spent countless precious vacation hours being lost because the directions in this book for restaurants and bars, etc. were either terrible, nonexistent, or the place did not exist altogether.
The best book in the world for Japan bound tourists.
Hello I just want to say that I can not belive all the info about Japan that is in this book. Granted It can't have it all no book does. But that's only because gernalists are lazy ha ha ha! This book has Busniss names, Addresses, Phone numbers, International calling codes, Maps, Also the avrage costs of common items your likely to buy. It has places to visit that arn't tourists traps! And if they are a tourist trap it says so. It even has a list of words in the back of the book in Japanese to learn to help you get around. For example, Where is a hospital? and How much does this cost? and Do you have any rooms availible? and much more. I can say I realy enjoy this book. Personally I have never been to Japan. But I will be a much more confadent tourist when I go now that I have this book.

Very solid guide, great maps and in-depth info
We recently returned from a 2-week trip to Tokyo and this was the guide we took with us on our trip. We had originally planned to venture outside Tokyo but due to some unforseen circumstances we ended up staying in Tokyo the entire time. So, although I think we would have been better off with Frommer's Tokyo-only guide this was a solid guide and served us well on our trip.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - Japan    2. Guidebooks    3. Japan    4. Travel    5. Travel - Foreign    6. Travel Guides    7. Travel & holiday guides    8. Travel / Asia / Japan   

Editorial Review

If you ever wondered where the catwalk got its claws, then the portraits gathered in photographer Shoichi Aoki's book Read more

Reviews (59)

Colorful World
I had the good fortune to run into this book on vacation. As soon as I got home I ordered both Fruits and it's companion. As a self motivated student of fashion and all of it's off-shoots, I immensely enjoy this book. It is a plethora of individuals, and not a duplicate picture in the book. It features mostly youth (teenagers) but that is to be expected. But it doesn't limit itself to just the very young. There are a few family photos and "older" individuals. It is a monument to anyone who creatively clothed themselves. It gives brief details: name, age, point of fashion, fashion brands and makers. A lot of the "point of fashion" remarks seem like nonsense at first. After reflection, I think they are just 'smart allec come-backs', much like what you'd get from someone in the American Gothic culture if you asked one of them why they wear black all the time. Even with brief details you can start to see patterns in clothing styles seperating themselves out from one another. By age particularly, and by preference to designers within a group of friends. The only problem I had was reading some of the bubble gum colored print that it was done in.

My stepdaughter loves this book!
I got this book as a gift for my 17 year old stepdaughter. She loves it! She's a big fan of anime and japanese fashion, so this is a natural for her.

BUY THEM NOW!!!!
These are great for framing! Buy them now, you won't be disappointed! They're so inspiring, and just fun to admire. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Art    2. Clothing    3. Clothing and dress    4. Fashion    5. Fashion photography    6. Individual Photographer    7. Japan    8. Photography    9. Pictorial works    10. Subjects & Themes - Fashion    11. Subjects & Themes - Travel - World/Asia    12. Teenagers    13. Tokyo    14. Aoki, Shoichi    15. Fashion design    16. Individual photographers    17. Photographs: collections    18. Photography / General    19. Popular culture   

Reviews (2)

About This Book
Artist Book and Exhibition Monograph. Collection of photographs on subject. Possibly the photographer's single most beautiful book. The true first. Precedes all other editions. One of the most exquisite productions ever made by Michael Kenna, Chris Pichler, and Nazraeli Press: Oversize-volume format. A large book in square shape. Red silk cloth boards wrapped in handsome black silk folding slipcase in the Japanese style, with white toggles at the ends. Photographs by Michael Kenna. Text in Japanese and English by Kotaro Iizawa. Printed in Tokyo, Japan to the very highest standards. Without DJ, as issued. Published on the occasion of a series of exhibitions in the United States and Japan. "Michael Kenna's photographs have long inspired words such as 'mysterious', 'elegant' and 'hauntingly beautiful', adjectives that likewise describe the Japanese landscape. These photographs are the result of an ideal pairing of artist and subject. Kenna has had a large following in Japan ever since his first exhibition there in 1987. His many subsequent exhibitions and publications in Japan have provided him with ample opportunities to visit and photograph. During the past several years, as this project began to take shape, Kenna's trips became more frequent and intense. The resulting images are stunning" (Publisher's blurb). "He has been reflective when others have been militant, romantic when others have been skeptical. Such isolation can starve all but the most independent of talents, but for these it can provide a sanctuary where visions can develop undisturbed. Kenna is one of these" (The Times of London). Michael Kenna's best book thus far. � 2006, ModernRare.com

BEAUTIFUL!!!
This is another fine offering from the good people at Nazraeli... Makers of EXTRAORDINARILY beautiful limited edition art books, and this one is NO exception.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - Japan    2. Individual Photographer    3. Travel   

Reviews (14)

Fabulous Freaks
Another amazing collection of eye candy fashion. I love the full page color photos and the brief descriptions. It is interesting to see how a sub-culture of fashion in itself fractures off into seperate catagories. Like L.O.L.A., european punk, goth, hippie, couture, et cetera. All amazingly creative free spirits. This is a great buy if you like cultures and community, fashion design, or interesting coffee table conversation starters. I love the book "fruits" as well, they are like twins, something to be kept together. I would love to see what changes in style another ten years has brought to Japan. Hopefully I'll run accross that book next. The only irksome bit was the bubblegum text color. It was hard to read at times. And my eyes aren't too bad.

Bambi
I saw the Fruits exhibition a while ago and I wanted this book ever since!! And i have to say that i'm pretty pleased with it!
great pics
Great colorful pics, going to Japan again in Dec and just wanted to peep out what some cats were sporting in the far east. Great book not a wealth of info but good none the less ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Art    2. Design - General    3. Design - Textile & Costume    4. Fashion    5. Photography    6. Subjects & Themes - Fashion    7. Subjects & Themes - Portraits    8. Subjects & Themes - Travel - World/Asia    9. Art / Fashion    10. Fashion design    11. Japan   

Reviews (15)

Very Useful, But Could be Much Better!
I did a fair amount of research before deciding to purchase this particular guidebook for my week-long trip to Tokyo.I read much of it on the plane ride over, which is when began to see some of its weaknesses.The book could have stood better editing, for one thing.On p. 11, for instance, a passage reads, "Emperors became largely figureheads, manipulated by a series of powerful regents from the dominant Fujiwara family.The invention of the kana syllabary, " etc., and then immediately following "The emperors were largely figureheads, manipulated..."!
My Favorite Tokyo Resource
My week trip to Tokyo was made much easier with this guide. I researched a great deal before I took the trip using this book and others but this is ultimately the travel guide that came with me.
Mandatory for a trip to Tokyo
I've just returned from my first 10 day trip to Tokyo and had to write about how fantastic this guide book was. The maps were excellent - especially since the streets in Tokyo are not always labeled.They enabled my group and I to find the excellent clubs, shrines, temples and restuarants with ease.All the places we checked out in the guide were fantastic and the paragraph descriptions were insightful and helpful.I will always take a Time Out Guide when traveling going forward! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - Japan    2. Travel    3. Travel - Foreign    4. Japan    5. Travel & holiday guides   

Subjects:  1. Language    2. Japan    3. Japanese    4. Language learning: audio-visual & multimedia    5. Language self-study & phrasebooks    6. TRAVEL & HOLIDAY   

Reviews (4)

A good presentation of Kyoto Gardens
After visiting Kyoto , i think this book gives us many opportunities to appreciate so many details of the wonderful and chaming japanes gardens of the ancient Japan capital.
Great picture reference for Japanese gardens and courtyards
This a beautiful collection of large-sized well composed photographs of the different type of gardens found throughout Kyoto.They are accompanied with brief text on their design principles and historical background.Might proof useful as inspiration and reference for anyone writing and/or illustrating a story set in Feudal Japan like Samurai-Ninja stories.It might also be a nice surprise present to Anime/Manga fans by adding another dimension to their collections.

thoughtful and thorough
This book provides an excellent inside look at kyoto's historical gardens, though without much of the context in which they exist (e.g. surrounding city, houses). The photography is fantastic as it realistically shows the reader both the intricate details & broad strokes that make up these complex settings. Keep in mind, it is a serious piece of work and the descriptions are somewhat short and/or dry (but maybe that's the point). ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. Japanese Gardens - General    5. Subjects & Themes - Landscapes    6. Subjects & Themes - Travel - General    7. Subjects & Themes - Travel - World/Asia    8. Japan    9. Landscape art & architecture   

Reviews (22)

Essential for traveling in Japan
This book is weighty but great!It has all kinds of information that is pertinent and useful for all travelers to Japan.The cultural and historical sections are not only informative but also pithy and interesting to read.The descriptions of all the sights are excellent and the maps are helpful. You can get more detailed maps at your destination but the maps in the book give you an overall picture of the areas.The only negative is that some of the restaurant and hotel info is outdated.

Read this book at home - and don't bring it to Japan
This book is rich of historic material of each part of Japan, if you want to know who lived in a palace, for example, and what he did, before you visit there.
useful despite age
The cultural and sightseeing information in this guide is vastly better than in any other book.You might think that the hotel and restaurant recommendations wouldn't be so useful considering the years that have elapsed since its publication.Japan isn't like the US, however.A restaurant does not rise and fall as employees are hired and leave.In the smaller towns the better restaurants have often been run by the same family for several generations.Ditto for the Japanese-style inns (ryokans).Where you might wish for a more recent guide is when looking for a business hotel with in-room Internet.Here the newest hotels are often the most comfortable.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - Japan    2. Guidebooks    3. Japan    4. Travel    5. Travel - Foreign    6. Travel & holiday guides   

Reviews (3)

Very, very short
A useful and welcome concept, but the book is altogether too short, I feel, to teach you much. Most of the topics covered will already be things that someone who's read a few basic books about Japan and Japanese culture will have read already. I would recommend this book to a person who doesn't know anything about Japan as a quick guide to the culture, perhaps. I felt an expanded edition-- some added topics or digging a little deeper into holidays or national policy or government-- might be more interesting.

A thorough guide and a must...
As many seasoned travellers are acutely aware, visiting foreign countries without adequate research into the language and culture can turn a business trip or holiday into a nightmare. Since WW2, most European countries use English as a second language and therefore are accommodating to the ignorant visitor. In other terms, one can 'get by' without too much confusion or fuss. A few years ago, on my way to the U.S. to visit friends and family, I made a two-day stop over in Japan.Because of my limited stay and time constraints, I chose not to do any research on the language and culture. This was a big mistake. The reason being is that Japan's culture - behaviour, customs and attitudes are so different to Western modes of living. My two-day stop over was a personal disaster for many reasons. If only I had done at least a little research, my short time in Japan would have been much more meaningful. ~The Japanese Way~ is a gem of a text that covers the essentials for any one to successfully 'get by' while visiting this fascinating country. Shagadelic!
Joyous day! A very informative and helpful book . . ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - Japan    2. Japan    3. Japanese    4. National characteristics, Japa    5. National characteristics, Japanese    6. Social life and customs    7. Sociology    8. Travel    9. Travel - Foreign    10. Anthropology    11. Language learning: specific skills    12. Travel / Asia / Japan   

Reviews (8)

A must buy
I found this very easy to understand, as did my husband who had no prior knowledge of the Japanese language. I read it many times before our trip, in order to remember important basic words.
Useful inspite of itself.
I bought this on my first flight back from Japan after taking my first semester in Japanese.I thought that it supplied a ton of useful auxillary vocabulary to run with at the level of grammar I was capable of using.The book also has many slight mistakes, even I, a first year student, was able to pick out.It's got a few cute but dumb, potentially racist but we'll say ignorant drawings included.But so few that it cues one in as to how cheaply produced this probably was.I give it three stars though because I learned it forward and backward and broke it out numerous times to meet my needs in bars and train stations (never in restaurants for some reasons).And, to get me comic leverage in many conversations where I was not privy to the Japanese side of the chatter.

sloppy formatting and too many errors
This book has the right idea:a pocket-sized book with a good variety of useful everyday phrases, organized by subject.However, there are enough flat-out mistakes to be pretty annoying.Also, the English and Japanese did not line up perfectly on the page which, in combination with the the print being quite small, made it difficult to figure out which defintion went where (perhaps this is not a problem with all these books but it was with mine).But most annoying are the errors and typos. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - Japan    2. Foreign Language - Dictionaries / Phrase Books    3. Japanese    4. Multi-Language Phrasebooks    5. Travel    6. Japan    7. Language self-study & phrasebooks   

Reviews (19)

Just OK
This book definitely has a lot of info in it.I took it to Tokyo and Kyoto with me.It would have been nice if it had walking tours like some other guides have because otherwise it's hard to know where you're at when you're trying to read lines and lines of text.
Thoroughly researched and well presented
The best guide to Japan, from a resident of ten years in Hokkaido. I'm not refering to the coverage of Hokkaido, which is better than most guides available, but of the entire country. Should a visitor wish to see off the beaten track destinations, this guide will helpto take you there. The information is up to date and almost any aspect of travel in Japan, and difficulties of travel in Japan--there are many--is covered.
Informative and helpful
Although I tend to favour Lonely Planet over the Rough Guide, in the case of Japan, the Rough Guide is definitely preferable, and this is increasingly the case now that the latest edition of the Lonely Planet has cut coverage of lots of off-the-beaten-track areas. The Rough Guide to Japan has the edge is conveying the feel of the places covered. I have lived in Japan for more than two years and the guide was practical and sensible on my first trips to Hiroshima and Kyoto - I still find it informative and helpful when I travel around the country now, after substantial experience of Japan. One caveat - while the coverage of such cultural sites as temples and castles is very thorough, the author is obviously not that interested in painting or sculpture. Museum after museum is dismissed for being overpriced, often when the entrance fees are, by Japanese standards, really very reasonable (600 yen or so). Some readers might be put off visiting interesting museums by this bias.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - Japan    2. Travel    3. Travel - Foreign    4. Travel Guides    5. Japan    6. Travel & holiday guides    7. Travel / Asia / Japan   

Reviews (2)

An Interesting Look At Japanese Culture
Since I am going to Japan this summer, I have taken many interests to different books about the country. This one in particular was a wonderful read because it wasn't just "Hey, this is how it works in Japan." It was more of a comparrison to the Japanese lifestyle to the American lifestyle. It also has feelings and oppinions from each culture. Like someone from Japan would state that Americans talk too much but then you would have someone from America say that the Japanese listen too much. I have already recommended this book to others I work with!
I work at a Japanese Company and recently participated in across-cultural learning class.This book was provided as apre-requisite to the class.I was able to get more out of this book than any other book on this subject that I had previously read. The book explains how children are raised in the Japanese Environment, their belief/value system, and how that translates into their eventual adult/working life environment.I have recommended this book to both people inside my company and Companies I deal with on a daily basis. It has taken some of the "mystery" out of the Japanese Culture for me. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - Japan    2. Civilization    3. Customs & Traditions    4. Ethnic Studies - Asian American Studies    5. Japan    6. National characteristics, Japa    7. Social Science    8. Sociology   

Subjects:  1. 20th century    2. Asia - General    3. Asia - Japan    4. Asian - General    5. Essays    6. General    7. Japanese fiction    8. Short stories, Japanese    9. Translations into English    10. Travel    11. Travel - General    12. Japan    13. Travel / General    14. Travel writing