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It’s the furthest thing from a paean to the market – my old nemesis the megadeveloper Mori Building comes in for a proper slating, in particular (though, in perfectly Japanese style, never by name). What it *is* is a detailed consideration of five spatial strategies – yokocho alleys, rail infrastructure infill, ankyo streets, the low-rise cell of the chome-scale neighborhood & the mixed-use zakkyo building typology – the authors think combine to produce the wonderful and distinct Tokyo urbanity.

As someone who lived in Tokyo and cherished precisely those qualities of it, yet found discourse about it overwhelmed by both Western orientalist fetishization and the grotesque domestic exceptionalism, I particularly appreciate the great care the authors have taken to see the city for what it is, and their attempt to understand how it actually works. I have no idea what book Noahpinion read, or thought he did, but this one slaps.

Even beyond the plain love of the city, I am just blown away by the rigor of thought and clarity of writing in “Emergent Tokyo.” It’s generally the mark of someone who has a truly profound understanding of their topic that they can present complex ideas with clarity and verve, and without resorting to jargon, and so it seems to be here.

@adamgreenfield loved this book too. Really rigorous.

@PaulGrahamRaven Oh. Well then. Duly noted. He certainly seems to have utterly missed the very clearly articulated point (and explicit intent) of this book.

@adamgreenfield That surprises me not in the least. I keep encountering him against my will, because he is also into science fiction, but his misparsings thereof tend likewise to boggle the mind

@PaulGrahamRaven @adamgreenfield “I keep encountering him against my will” perfectly encapsulates my relationship with him as well.

@bcamper lol

@bcamper who or what is noahpinion, anyway??

@adamgreenfield just a long-time twitter/blogger blowhard