Tokyo - by Hidenobu Jinnai (Hardcover)

About the Book

"The sheer physical extent of Tokyo, its mile upon mile of high-density and mostly low-rise development, seemingly without topographic or maritime memory, makes it a difficult city for many Westerners to understand. We suspect that the same may be so for many Japanese. Jinnai Hidenobu shows us how today's Tokyo is rooted in its early development and how today's streets, waterways, land uses, and building types come from a past that remains visible to those who would care to look. One needs to walk or to row with Jinnai to see how yesterday makes today. His is a work of love that ties generations together in their physical environment."--Allan B. Jacobs, author of "Great Streets"

Book Synopsis

Tokyo: destroyed by the earthquake of 1923 and again by the firebombing of World War II. Does anything remain of the old city?

The internationally known Japanese architectural historian Jinnai Hidenobu set out on foot to rediscover the city of Tokyo. Armed with old maps, he wandered through back alleys and lanes, trying to experience the city's space as it had been lived by earlier residents. He found that, despite an almost completely new cityscape, present-day inhabitants divide Tokyo's space in much the same way that their ancestors did two hundred years before.

Jinnai's holistic perspective is enhanced by his detailing of how natural, topographical features were incorporated into the layout of the city. A variety of visual documents (maps from the Tokugawa and Meiji periods, building floorplans, woodblock prints, photographs) supplement his observations. While an important work for architects and historians, this unusual book will also attract armchair travelers and anyone interested in the symbolic uses of space.

(A translation of Tokyo no kûkan jinruigaku.)

From the Back Cover

"The sheer physical extent of Tokyo, its mile upon mile of high-density and mostly low-rise development, seemingly without topographic or maritime memory, makes it a difficult city for many Westerners to understand. We suspect that the same may be so for many Japanese. Jinnai Hidenobu shows us how today's Tokyo is rooted in its early development and how today's streets, waterways, land uses, and building types come from a past that remains visible to those who would care to look. One needs to walk or to row with Jinnai to see how yesterday makes today. His is a work of love that ties generations together in their physical environment."--Allan B. Jacobs, author of Great Streets

Review Quotes

"It was a particular pleasure to discover "Tokyo: A Spatial Anthropology, for Jinnai's book is precisely a guide to Tokyo-literacy. By this, I do not mean that it is a conventional guidebook. . . . Rather, it is a book about the historical and social logic of Tokyo: a compelling exploration of the reasons why the city acquired is present shape. . . . "Tokyo: A Spatial Anthropology is very obviously a labor of love; its style overflows with enthusiasm at the wonders to the city. . . . An original, readable, and fascinating book."--Tessa Morris-Suzuki, "Journal of Asian Studies

About the Author

Jinnai Hidenobu is Associate Professor in the School of Architecture at Hosei University in Tokyo.