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Clueless in Tokyo: An Explorer's Sketchbook of Weird and Wonderful Things in Japan

by Betty Reynolds

A sketchbook view of everyday Tokyo

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Regular price $22.27 USD Sale price $13.36 USD
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Paperback New English

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AlbakiReads Editorial

A sketchbook view of everyday Tokyo

Built from seven years of observation in Japan, this illustrated guide gathers Betty Reynolds’s watercolors and hand-lettered notes on Tokyo’s everyday surprises, from transport and vending machines to food, fashion, sports, festivals, and seasonal customs. Japanese script accompanies selected words and phrases, making the book as much a visual introduction to cultural details as a travel keepsake. Its compact sketchbook format foregrounds small encounters and contrasts: long-standing rituals appear alongside contemporary urban design, while practical objects and pastimes become entry points into daily life in the capital.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Travelers preparing for or remembering a visit to Tokyo
  • Beginning learners seeking Japanese words and phrases in a visual context
  • Fans of illustrated travel journals and urban sketchbooks

Themes

Tokyo daily lifeJapanese languageTravel sketchingFood, fashion, and transportTradition and modernity

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

A perfect introduction to Japan and Japanese culture, this illustrated culture and travel guide contains loads of original drawings as well as the Japanese script for key words and phrases.

Some people take photos, but artist Betty Reynolds captures memories with her paintbrush and watercolors. Clueless in Tokyo provides an outsider's take on everyday life in Japan's capital city--a place where vending machines talk, toilets can be terrifying, and centuries-old festivals unfold against a backdrop of space-age architecture. During the seven years Reynolds lived in Japan, she filled thirty sketchbooks with everything that caught her eye. Whether it's fashion, food, sport, transport, seasonal rituals, or Japanese pastimes, each vibrant sketch is a delight, and Reynolds' witty hand-lettered captions in both Japanese and English provide an entertaining resource for beginning learners of the Japanese language.

Adult students and travelers alike will find this Japan travel guide to be a charming and insightful addition to their trip.
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