Tokyo: A Certain Style

Ah, think of the serene gardens, tatami mats, Zen-inspired décor, sliding doors, and shoji screens of the typical Japanese home. Think again. Tokyo: A Certain Style, the mini-sized décor book with a difference, shows how, for those living in one of the world's most expensive and densely packed metropolises, closet-sized apartments stacked to the ceiling with gadgetry and CDs are the norm. Photographer Kyoichi Tsuzuki rode his scooter all over Tokyo snapping shots of how urban Japanese really live. Hundreds of photographs reveal the real Tokyo style: microapartments, mini and modular everything, rooms filled to the rafters with electronics, piles of books and clothes, clans of remote controls, collections of sundry objects all crammed into a space where every inch counts. Tsuzuki introduces each tiny crash pad with a brief text about who lives there, from artists and students to professionals and couples with children. His entertaining captions to the hundreds of photographs capture the spirit and ingenuity required to live in such small quarters. This fascinating, voyeuristic look at modern life comes in a chunky, pocket-sized format--the perfect coffee table book for people with really small apartments.

Kyoichi Tsuzuki has written extensively for Japanese publications about art, architecture, and travel, and has also written several books on the same subjects. He was born, raised, and educated in Tokyo, where he still lives.