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Lisa Katayama

Urawaza: Secret Everyday Tips and Tricks from Japan Paperback – April 2, 2008

by Lisa Katayama (Author), Joel Holland (Illustrator)

87 ratings

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Japan has a way of thinking that is just . . . different. Nowhere is this more apparent than in Tokyo-born journalist Lisa Katayama's collection of urawaza (a Japanese word for secret lifestyle tricks and techniques). Want to turbocharge your sled? Spray the bottom with nonstick cooking spray. Can't find someone to water your plants while you're away? Place the plant on a water-soaked diaper, so it slowly absorbs water over time. The subject of popular TV shows and numerous books in Japan, these unusually clever solutions to everyday problems have never before been published in English until now! Urawaza collects more than 100 once-secret tricks, offering step-by-step directions and explanations in an eye-catching package as unconventional as its contents.

Print length

144 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Chronicle Books
Publication date

April 2, 2008
Grade level

8 and up
Reading age

13 years and up
Dimensions

4.63 x 0.5 x 7 inches
ISBN-10

0811862151
ISBN-13

978-0811862158
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Editorial Reviews

Review

TOYKO ART BEAT
There is more to Urawaza, however, than these tricks exposed. The Tokyo-born and bred Katayama delves into the history of the craft and contributes anecdotes from her own experiences, meaning readers come out knowing that much more about life in the megalopolis. Her witty, down-to-earth style makes for a fun read while illustrator Joel Holland adds a comic book touch, and just a hint of irreverence.

"Armed with urawaza like these, you'll never need a store-bought fix again." ReadyMade magazine

About the Author

Lisa Katayama has written for Wired, Giant Robot, and Glamour, and is an editor at Planet magazine. She lives in San Francisco.

Joel Holland's illustrations have appeared in Holiday Hero as well as in Rolling Stone, Newsweek, and the New York Times. He lives in New York.

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Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Chronicle Books (April 2, 2008)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 144 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0811862151
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0811862158
Reading age ‏ : ‎ 13 years and up
Grade level ‏ : ‎ 8 and up
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 9 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 4.63 x 0.5 x 7 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #2,190,872 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #257 in Disorders & Diseases Reference
- #1,857 in Trivia & Fun Facts (Books)
- #3,008 in Home Cleaning, Caretaking & Relocating

Customer Reviews:
87 ratings

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Customer reviews

5 star		48%
4 star		22%
3 star		20%
2 star		6%
1 star		4%

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Top reviews from the United States

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Florida Mc

Disappointing and hard on the eyes.

Reviewed in the United States on November 2, 2016

Verified Purchase

Disappointing. There was very little information that couldn't be easily accessed on the internet. There was little cultural link between the hints and Japan. Worst of all the Kindle rendition was in a light grey typeface that made it quite difficult to read. I regret having paid for this book.

11 people found this helpful

Helpful

Adrien C

Fun little book full of trivial, and sometimes quite useful tricks

Reviewed in the United States on February 15, 2017

Verified Purchase

The trick about using a sliced potatoe for preventing windshield fogging is one of my favorites. Overall the book seems to have been written for a more female audience (not too many dudes will fix their lipstick using an air dryer) but still it is a fun and sometimes instructive read. I wish it would feature more anecdotes on the Japanese culture though.

3 people found this helpful

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Kindle Customer

Can't be read

Reviewed in the United States on October 5, 2019

Verified Purchase

I am really interested in the content of this book, but after I bought it and opened it, I found the text is bright red and cannot be changed on my Kindle. I won't be able to read this. I'd like a refund, but Amazon doesn't do refunds in digital books.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

M.A. De Neve

EXCELLENT IDEAS; I WISH THE BOOK WAS LONGER

Reviewed in the United States on October 9, 2015

Verified Purchase

Did you know that cleaning your toilet bowl every day is lucky and brings good fortune? Clean it by splashing a little mouthwash in the bowl and then using the toilet brush. There are dozens of great tips in this book. It was a fun read. I love creative ideas.
As a a Michigander I was excited to know I can stay warm this winter by doing deep bows. And I can keep my feet warm by putting chili peppers in my socks.

5 people found this helpful

Helpful

T. Duong

Lifehack tips~

Reviewed in the United States on January 22, 2011

Verified Purchase

I gave this as a housewarming kind of gift for my sister. She is recently married and renovated her home with her husband. I thought I'd give her something practical for Christmas, and I'm a poor college art student. I rather liked the tips, I'll be reusing some of the things I learned in here such as using egg shells to scrub pans. And we also had unriped mangoes, and lo-and-behold, there was a trick in here that made it sweeter! It's fun to read, and useful!

4 people found this helpful

Helpful

Phil Geusz

Bright Red Text

Reviewed in the United States on November 7, 2016

Verified Purchase

On my iPhone, where I do most of my reading, the text is bright red. I was only able to read a page or two before developing a headache. I rather regret this, as the book looked interesting.

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

Mark Adkins

Interesting book...

Reviewed in the United States on June 4, 2012

Verified Purchase

I really, really, REALLY love books like this- jam-packed with tidbits that you can read in a minute, or sit down and read several in a row. I further love the illustration style and usefulness of the ideas.

However, I really cannot say that I actually DO very many of them.

Nonetheless I am happy to have this in my library.

5 people found this helpful

Helpful

Geri G. Miller

I hated her first book

Reviewed in the United States on January 28, 2017

Verified Purchase

hilarious. I hated her first book, but this was for my nephew who at 13 washes his own clothes and is obsessed with new and wonderful uses for household items

Helpful

Top reviews from other countries

London scot

Great wee book crammed full of useful tips

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 16, 2015

Verified Purchase

I've used a bunch of these already and I've only had the book for 3days ! Well worth purchasing this handy little book x

Laura De Giorgio

Useful tips that can make your life a little bit easier and more fun

Reviewed in Canada on December 17, 2011

Verified Purchase

Urawaza, meaning the "secret trick" - contains a bit over 100 tips and tricks that can help to make your life a little bit easier and more fun. The cool part is that you'll also know why the trick works. You'll find some tricks more useful and practical than others. Here are few examples from the book:

* You can restore a flavor to coffee that's been sitting around for a while and has started to taste bitter, by adding a little bit of salt to it. Salt reduces bitterness allowing the coffee bean flavor to prevail.

* To remove coffee or tea stains from a mug, sprinkle some salt on the inside of a lemon or orange peel and use it to rub the mug. The oils in the lemon and orange peel are ideal stain removers, and salt acts as a natural abrasive.

* if you need to pick up tiny pieces of broken glass, put few slices of bread over the danger zone. The tiny fragments of glass will wedge between the holes in the bread, leaving the floor shard free.

Esther Chandy

Not worth reading. None of the hacks are stuff ...

Reviewed in India on November 1, 2016

Verified Purchase

Not worth reading. None of the hacks are stuff I can use. The problems solved are not the everyday ones.

One person found this helpful

Amazon Customer

but those that were there were interesting and useful.

Reviewed in Canada on October 15, 2015

Verified Purchase

I'd hoped for more tips and tricks, but those that were there were interesting and useful.

gotang

Completely useless

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 29, 2013

Verified Purchase

I bought this book hoping to find some useful gems of ideas that aren't obvious - and if that's what you want to find, don't waste your money. The tricks are almost all either incredibly obvious to all but the dumbest of readers (for example, the "tip" for how to keep warm in cold weather is effectively to do exercise), or are entirely ineffective old wives' tales. The rubbish fabricated tricks wouldn't be so annoying, except beneath each one is a "why this works" section, where anyone with even just a decent secondary school science education (or even just two grains of common sense) would be able to tell that the "explanation" is a load of claptrap. The book simultaneously manages to be patronising in tone and devoid of any useful content. Save your money.

One person found this helpful

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Follow the Author

Urawaza: Secret Everyday Tips and Tricks from Japan Paperback – April 2, 2008

Enhance your purchase

Editorial Reviews

Review

About the Author

Product details

Important information

Legal Disclaimer

Customer reviews

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Top reviews from other countries

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