Customer Reviews
Cute Book - Great for any coffee table 
2008-05-23
As a total Japanophile, I really loved this book! The pictures are beautiful and its just a perfect example of why I love those Tokyo Fashionistas. Unlike North America, where we are slaves to what we think other people want to wear and try to "fit in", a lot of the young Japanese people on the streets where what they want and have no qualms about standing out and looking unique!
The book shows and describes the different looks, and often which district the look is from or originated. The text is mostly narrative, but I would've preferred some more informational style text. Such as a list of what elements compose each style and/or how to recreate the look for yourself.
A Motley Collection of Fashion and Fashionista - Super Cute Book! 
2008-02-17
My current ringtone on my celly is a short clip of "Harajuku Girls" by Gwen Stefani - it's been on phone for over a year now. As someone who has spent a formidable amount of my life in Japan, I covet and collect anything remotely "cute" from or even inspired by Japan, ringtones included. So it's no wonder that I love this book. Published by Japan-based Kodansha International, The Tokyo Look Book (2007) is a motley collection of photographs and interviews of Japanese fashionistas and fashion designers. "Motley" is probably a huge understatement, given what Philomena Keet (the author/editor) calls the "fashion spectrum" that exists in Tokyo. The photographs of Japanese guys and gals make me smile knowing that those pictured often follow their own drum beats. Even in the most outrageous and incongruous outfits, the Japanese youth wear their clothes with confidence or paint their faces with layers of make-up without second-guessing why they do it. If anyone has ever wondered who these "Harajuku Girls" are that Gwen Stefani sings about, pick up a copy of this book. They are fantastic!
Amazing and Inspiring 2008-02-16
i love japanese street style! this book gives so many different pictures of fashionable people on the streets of tokyo. it gives a little bit of background information about the culture and background, but if you want to get a more in-depth background and information on japanese styles and and designers and shops, i recommend Style Deficit Disorder by Tiffany Godoy.
I used this for research 2008-02-05
Since I'm an author, and my novels often feature both Asian Americans and Asians who have moved to the US from overseas, I was very interested in this book as a research tool. I was not disappointed.
This book is rich with pictures showing the different fashion styles prevalent in Tokyo. For someone who only visited Tokyo a couple times with family (and who didn't meet anyone my age), this was an eye-opener.
I like the fact that there are often several photos showing examples of each particular style, rather than just one photo to show each style. It helped me get a better feel for the trends of the "look" rather than just one person's ensemble.
The book shows the entire breadth of styles, from conservative to garish. I liked the hair and makeup showcased on the people photographed, as well.
The fact that the people were all from off the street gave the book an air of greater credibility, since they didn't arrange a photo shoot with models. I felt like I was getting a slice of Tokyo life and culture.
For me, this was an excellent research tool.
Illustrated Anthropology and Commentary on Fashion 2008-01-24
I've never been to Japan, and I read books all the time about how people in Japan love the global luxury brands (Gucci, Louis Vuitton, and Dior). But seeing the cover of this book suggested that something else is going on with young people in Tokyo.
Philomena Keet focuses on Shibuya (cool youth fashion), visually avant garde styles, street-defined ensembles, high fashion in a global taste sense, and what the well-dressed man wears to work. The last two seemed somewhat like what I expected, the first three were not.
Each section is a nice combination of explaining the cultural roots behind the way of dressing, focuses on some designers, describes some celebrities defined by the style, and talks about the social implications. These aspects were welcome because I wouldn't have appreciated the logic behind the various looks without that background.
The book has four big weaknesses:
1. The analysis of what's covered is pretty superficial.
2. The photography isn't as good as you usually see in a style-oriented book. I suspect that's because these are often virtually candid shots rather than fashion shots.
3. The layout of the book isn't very appealing. There is an attempt to pick up the Tokyo look style, but I didn't think it worked.
4. The type faces and backgrounds make the text difficult to read.
Net-net, I found the book contained more than enough of interest to keep me reading through the book. I also felt I have a better sense of the role fashion plays for younger people in Japan. To me, the biggest aha was realizing that Western-style clothing is so relatively new to Japanese culture that young people feel a greater freedom to move away from traditional style concepts . . . even when the mixtures of clothes and styles are extremely eclectic.
A book as wild and stylish as its subjects... 2008-01-17
Tokyo is home to the most creative and stylish fashion in the world. The Tokyo Look Book takes us on a dazzling journey through the streets, clubs, and boutiques of this trendsetting city to introduce us to the people who wear the latest fashions and the people who make them. Crammed with cool, full-color photographs of Tokyo's trendy teens and twenty-somethings captured candidly as they work and play, this is a comprehensive look at the richly varied fashion scenes that thrive in Japan's capital city -- from the "gal" mecca of Shibuya, to the goths and cosplayers who hang out on Jingubashi bridge on Sundays, through the cutting-edge kids on the Harajuku backstreets, to the stylish young professional men and women on Omotesando Boulevard.
Yuri Manabe's distinctive photographic portraits are complemented by insightful text from British anthropologist and fashion expert Philomena Keet, who offers witty and informative background information on each of the fashion scenes introduced, and a plethora of soundbites and quotes from the featured fashionistas. In addition, there are interviews and spotlights on Tokyos hottest fashion designers, magazines and boutiques, including:
SHIBUYA 109: Shibuyas iconic shopping mall
GLAD NEWS: One of 109s leading boutiques
REIKO NAKANE: A former trendsetting charisma109 shop girl, now producer of her own fashion label
MANA: Japanese pop star and designer of Elegant Gothic Lolita brand, Moi-meme-Moite
H.NAOTO: Creator of the popular goth/punk brand
TAKUYA ANGEL: Creator of the cult cyber-kimono brand
TEAM MESSAGE: Designer of skate/streetwear brands
DOG: Owner of a cult street-fashion boutique
SHOICHI AOKI: Creator of the influential street-fashion magazine FRUiTS
GARCIA MARQUEZ GAUCHE: The husband-and-wife team behind this stylish brand for young women
5351 POUR LES HOMMES: A fashionable mens brand
TOKYO FASHION WEEK: A peek behind the scenes
MANNENYA: Purveyor of traditional Japanese workmens outfits
extensive book about streetwear.... 2008-01-17
a fantastic addition to any clothes horse or Japanese fashion fan collection. This tome features many varied styles and I loved the "caught in the act" aspect of the photography-what better way to showcase street wear than in the street. A must for any avant fashion aficionado.
5 stars
J-pop on the street 
2008-01-17
If you want a real conversation starter, have this on your coffee table. The Tokyo youth fashion scene is unlike any I can imagine - the closest might be the 60s London, but with a large dose of glam-rock, punk, and uniquely Japanese influences. Excellent photo coverage, but not really enough text to explain the phenomena to the uninitiated. Still, visually arresting and probably the best one-volume coverage.
Like Touring the Streets of Tokyo with a Fashion Expert! 2008-01-16
Doctor of Tokyo fashion Philomena Keet's Tokyo Look Book takes the reader directly to the streets of Tokyo with herself as our guide and ears, and photographer Yuri Manabe as our eyes. Their colorful book is loaded with photos and such specific cultural and subcultural fashion information that an amateur on the subject, such as myself, will feel quite overwhelmed at first. If you too are a novice, you'll be amazed at the subtle differences the trained eye notices in fashion styles and cliques that rule the Tokyo scene. The book is divided into 5 chapters: Shibuya Girls and Guys, which focuses on energetic young teen styles, Spectacular and Subcultural, which holds more theatrical styles like the popular Lolita, Goth, and Cosplay, among others, Youth Street Fashion, which takes a look at young people whose style is fashion for fashion's sake, The Stylish Female, which is much like it sounds, a section on slightly older, more professionally fashionable young women, and finally, Young Men At Work, which is sort of the male version of The Stylish Female. The book also takes a look at popular locales and interviews various designers who are particularly en vogue.
The Tokyo Look Book is a visually fun read and has plenty of info for someone new to the whole Japanese fashion scene. I, myself, being a professional artist and having noticed how popular certain Japanese styles are in commercial art and illustration today, found it to be quite fascinating, but I also realized that what I would have preferred would have been a book focusing on that second chapter, Spectacular and Subcultural. This is because it's those extreme, theatrical styles that are naturally most prevalent in U.S. illustration these days. I know there are a few books out there that do cover some of those very popular styles specifically, and I'll have to pick some of them up, but for the broader view of styles worn by young people on the streets of Tokyo, The Tokyo Look Book is an excellent guide.
Fascinating Look at Young Tokyo's Fasion 2007-12-30
Although I'm not a fasionista, I was immediately addicted to this book. I've never been to Tokyo, but I found the photos of the diverse fashions and the author's descriptions fascinating. Keet divides the book into several chapters devoted to each type of fashion. She begins the chapters with a description of the fashion and the characteristics and interests of the wearers; from there, the book is primarily composed of photos and captions describing the photos.
The photos are bright, colorful and intriguing. As other reviewers mentioned, some photos are not of the best quality, which is disappointing in a book that is somewhat like a coffee table book. The captions are mostly very good, but I found that some photos were missing captions (and these were some of the most intriguing photos!) or some captions were not as descriptive as they could have been (missing what type of fashion the person was wearing, for example). Mostly, however, the book is fun and colorful, and I feel that if I were to go to Tokyo, I could identify the different fashion genres on the street. This is a book I'll definitely share with friends who are interested in fashion or travel!
