I received this book from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review.

I really love Japan, really want to go (does anyone have a bag of money I could have?). I want to visit Tokyo, I want to visit shrines, see nature, travel through the country and see all the different things. Ah. A dream. One day. Until then I will devour books about Japan, especially when these books also have photographs. Like this one!

In this book we travel around Japan. The book is split up in 4 specific regions. On the pages you will often find travel notes or how to get there notes. Along with website links so you can do your own research as well.
We visit special sights that are often quite hidden unless you know where to go. This is also why I wanted to read the book, because I was curious what kind of beautiful spots we would visit and have me dreaming of visiting those spots. I can tell you that I loved the spots that we read about in this book. I so so would love to be able to visit them. The author has a really nice writing style, it feels like a diary, or an observation rather than most guidebooks which are often to the point, mention only important features/sights to see. In this one it is more than that. For instance the author mentions about Minuma Tanbo this: “On the bridge, people exchange greetings as they pass each other by. Fishermen carry on conversations as they dangle their lines in the river. Walkers amble through the bamboo groves, bogs and shrines nearby.” It feels way more personal and it made me love the book more.

I liked that there was also basic/general information on special things in all of Japan. Like we get a part about festivals, but also local foods, and other items pop up.

I loved that in the end we get a part with some extra references, information, itineraries. That was definitely a nice addition to an already great book!

The photographs are stunning. I love how vibrant and colourful they are and how sharp their quality is. This may sound odd to mention, but I have read some photography books with grainy pictures, or pictures with bad lighting, or pictures that were blown up so they would fit a whole page. This one doesn’t do that, so I think it deserves to be mentioned.

All in all, I would recommend this gorgeous book to all, and should I go to Japan one day (dreams), I will be buying this book to take with me.