Japanese schoolgirl fashions and subcultures have sprung up, burned out, mutated, and evolved into a pop culture phenomenon gone globalfrom Gwen Stefani's "Harajuku Girls" to Gothic Lolita-fueled manga and the deadly schoolgirl in Kill Bill, it's no wonder that international fashion designers look to the streets of Tokyo for fresh inspiration. This playful and thoroughly researched handbook examines the key styles and subcultures past and present: sailor-suited gangsters, Pippi Longstockings risen from the dead, girls in blackface, teens sporting giant hamster costumes, and more. Each fashion profile is packed with photos and illustrations, history, ideal boyfriends, and must-have items. Also included are a gatefold evolutionary fashion chart, resources, and makeup tips. At last, an in-depth guide to what the girls are wearingand why on earth they're wearing it.
Japanese Schoolgirl Inferno
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
About the Author
Patrick Macias and Izumi Evers have written and produced several books on Japanese pop culture. They split their time between San Francisco and Tokyo.
Kazumi Nonaka is an artist and rock 'n' roll guitarist whose illustrations have been featured in Japanese magazines and TV shows. She lives in Tokyo.
Kazumi Nonaka is an artist and rock 'n' roll guitarist whose illustrations have been featured in Japanese magazines and TV shows. She lives in Tokyo.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
23 of 23 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I've been waiting for this book since I first read about it months ago; when I picked it up, I was a little concerned. I mean, it seems a bit thin and it's not a photobook the way Fruits and Fresh Fruits are.
Lucky for me, it was better than that. "Japanese Girl Inferno" is a history lesson in the social evolution of the various trends that have pervaded the lives of young japanese women, from the motorcycle gangs to gothloli. It was incredibly informative and filled in a lot of gaps for me.
The book is divided into sections by trend, starting with the gang-types fro the early 60s and 70s and ending with the present-day decora; not only does it outline the history, it has "profiles" on each type which include and illustration of a typical member and details on specifics, then another section outlying "Ideal Boyfriends" and "Must-Have Items". The illustrations themselves were very charming, and the book is well-written.
All-in-all, I recommend this book for any fan of Japanese fashion, especially those who enjoyed the movie Kamikaze Girls.
Lucky for me, it was better than that. "Japanese Girl Inferno" is a history lesson in the social evolution of the various trends that have pervaded the lives of young japanese women, from the motorcycle gangs to gothloli. It was incredibly informative and filled in a lot of gaps for me.
The book is divided into sections by trend, starting with the gang-types fro the early 60s and 70s and ending with the present-day decora; not only does it outline the history, it has "profiles" on each type which include and illustration of a typical member and details on specifics, then another section outlying "Ideal Boyfriends" and "Must-Have Items". The illustrations themselves were very charming, and the book is well-written.
All-in-all, I recommend this book for any fan of Japanese fashion, especially those who enjoyed the movie Kamikaze Girls.
15 of 15 people found the following review helpful
By NabiTi
Format:Paperback
When i got this book in the mail, I was really happy and read it right away. The information about all the fashion that happened in Japan and the pictures were really good and interesting, and the mini-interviews of actual people involved in the fashion was really nice. The articles tell you how long that fashion lasted and what caused it to go out-of-style. To me, it was a nice cute touch on how sprinkled in a few of the chapters were the "life of a Manba/GothLoli", and even a segment on how you can transform your face like a Ganguro girl's. Even when my friends looked into the book, then liked how informative it was.
Why did I rate it 4 stars? Well, it's not the information of the book I took out a star for...it's the fact that merely a few minutes after I opened the book, pages started to fall out. And I'm a person who's very delicate with books. I'm not sure if I was the only one that it has happened to, or if the batch of books they were selling were defective ones. But it's not a good thing.
I'm not trying to say "Don't get this book, it's defective!", because really, this handbook is a VERY good one for anyone interesting in the history of Japan's fashion. I'm just trying to give out a little warning to people who are considereing buying this book.
Why did I rate it 4 stars? Well, it's not the information of the book I took out a star for...it's the fact that merely a few minutes after I opened the book, pages started to fall out. And I'm a person who's very delicate with books. I'm not sure if I was the only one that it has happened to, or if the batch of books they were selling were defective ones. But it's not a good thing.
I'm not trying to say "Don't get this book, it's defective!", because really, this handbook is a VERY good one for anyone interesting in the history of Japan's fashion. I'm just trying to give out a little warning to people who are considereing buying this book.
13 of 13 people found the following review helpful
By Romy Kuro
Format:Paperback
I found this book before it came out, just dubbing around on Amazon. I thought it looked interesting enough, and not too expensive, so I ordered it. I was so pleased when I got my copy in the mail! It's an interesting, well organized, and well catagorized history of Tokyo teen girl fashion. From the well known and ongoing to the unheard of and extinct, it shows a timeline, influences, and interests of every sort of girl. What that girl did in her day. What her interests were. What future styles she may have inspired.
It really is a great book, full of pictures and cute illustrations. It even includes a few makeup and dressing tips, as well as references to check out if anything tickles your fancy. It isn't too long or wordy, and is written in an entertaining style so that the book can interest both hardcore subculture freaks, or maybe just a girl who happens to think Lolita is cute.
I must say, I really enjoyed it, and would highly recommend it to anyone with any sort of interest in Tokyo's peculiar fashions, or even someone with an interest in girl power alone.
It really is a great book, full of pictures and cute illustrations. It even includes a few makeup and dressing tips, as well as references to check out if anything tickles your fancy. It isn't too long or wordy, and is written in an entertaining style so that the book can interest both hardcore subculture freaks, or maybe just a girl who happens to think Lolita is cute.
I must say, I really enjoyed it, and would highly recommend it to anyone with any sort of interest in Tokyo's peculiar fashions, or even someone with an interest in girl power alone.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Informative & also entertaining
Such a good book, the only problem was that the pages were coming out of the spine. They were not loose or falling off but I think the glue was wearing off. Read more
Published 16 days ago by M.D
5.0 out of 5 stars
Love It!!! ^_^
I really loved each style that they've talked about in this book & I've enjoyed it!! Even the pictures were great! I would recommend buying this.
Published 4 months ago by Marie
3.0 out of 5 stars
ok
This was an interesting history of japanese fashion for teenagers. It was alright but I wish it went into more detail and took longer to read. It was nothing special.
Published 7 months ago by tarotqueen
4.0 out of 5 stars
Looks Promising!
Nice pictures, interesting research material.
Looks to be a good read. I think I will enjoy it. Read more
Looks to be a good read. I think I will enjoy it. Read more
Published 13 months ago by Lillith
5.0 out of 5 stars
Love It!
I would definitely recommend this book to anyone interested in unique and unusual fashion. I picked this up in my local library and fell in LOVE. Read more
Published 13 months ago by William E. A. Ayetey
3.0 out of 5 stars
good book but, fell apart first day
Love this book! :-) Only reason I didn't give it more stars was because the cover came unglued and fell off the book as soon as I got it!
Published on April 3, 2010 by ELF and Gnome
5.0 out of 5 stars
One amazing book about Japanese Subculture!
This is an amazing book. It is fun to read. It gives you everything you want to know about why these girls dress the way they do, what started it, and even their ideal... Read more
Published on March 29, 2010 by Claeris
2.0 out of 5 stars
Meh
Nothing special about this book really. Read most of it while in a book store because I was bored. Sure it's got some history about the fashion trends in Japan over the years but... Read more
Published on August 16, 2009 by S. Jez
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good descriptors, not for if you're looking for inspiration
Japanese Schoolgirl Inferno is pretty in-depth with its description of the history of certain fashion movements in various districts of Tokyo. Read more
Published on October 18, 2008 by Angela Rovnyak
5.0 out of 5 stars
Macias Strikes Gold Again
The image of the Japanese schoolgirl is one that many a Japanophile fantasize over and romanticize to ridiculous degrees. But really, who can blame them? Read more
Published on September 10, 2008 by noname-san
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