Building the Japanese House Today

Fantastic book, perfect as a serious research book or simply as a coffee table adornment! The text is clearly written, assuming that the reader knows nothing about house construction, and is accompanied by many high quality, beautiful images. Highly recommended for anyone looking to build a Japanese house, or to anyone who enjoys traditional architecture!

Stunningly beautiful book. Lots of detailed information (maybe too much for me), but lots of great ideas. Am thinking of building a Japanese house in Tuscany!

Great book, lots of great pictures and very informative

This book passes on a wealth of detailed information on wood, joints, traditions, Bhuddism & building. Also the relevance of old techniques in a modern, western country. Written for builders (& clients) with great generousity in a spirit of sharing hard won knowlege. More than just a dry manual or coffee table book. There are good looking images & constructional detail. Best book on small, timber, buildings I have seen in a long time, & I have shelves full of books on this subject. In gassho, Alex

Great book full of amazing pictures and in depth details

I have had the privilege of meeting Lenny Brackett and visiting his shop/compound in northern California. He is without question one of the foremost western experts on traditional Japanese construction, and is widely recognized as such even in Japan. If you are interested in Japanese architecture or are passionate about this form, this is a most own treasure on the subject. Lenny's main focus since returning to the US has been creating a synthesis of Traditional Japanese design and modern western living. His idea was that although the function and form of Japanese style is perfect in its own right, today it is not suitable for most westerners who can afford the outrageous costs of construction. Most westerners do not want a Spartan home devoid of furniture that requires sitting on the floor (though it is much healthier), or a house that stays rather cold in the winter. They also want modern conveniences like a quality western kitchen as opposed to a fire pit and a proper bath/shower. Lenny has taken all these considerations and created a building style that retains traditional construction methods, aesthetics, and detail that meets the western standard. The book is filled with high quality color photos detailing his buildings, and mostly focuses on a large guest house he built in California with superb detail. I should also note Lenny, I believe, is the first designer to incorporate AutoCad into this type of design, and his clients receive a detailed silk bound book of the plans before construction. The section talking about wood is worth the price of the book alone. Lenny is a master (of many things) wood connoisseur and an avid collector of outstanding pieces. He maintains a large collection of various woods that offer different properties and visuals, and employs them where appropriate in his construction to show off their unique qualities. The Japanese have been hip to wood quality for a long time, but the western market has been slow to catch on. The best wood for the joinery and timber frame construction is Hinoki, known locally as Port Orford Cedar. This is a soft and warm wood that is very workable. Lenny also shows off his incredible tool collection and demonstrates their use in creating the highly intricate joinery, for which he is a true master. One interesting thing is that the Japanese hand plane can shave the wood so fine, that Hinoki produces a glass-like smooth surface and is therefore never sanded or stained but left to cure and darken naturally. The results are truly magical, and the book illustrates this through countless examples. You can check out Lenny's website at [...] This is easily my favorite book on the subject and I have given many copies to friends over the years. I highly recommend it.

Building the Japanese House Today fills a void that has frustrated me for several years. It is difficult enough to find english language books on traditional Japanese architecture, much less those that have practical application in today's society. This book is a case study of one building project. If this book has a flaw, it is that it reads too much like an advertisement for East Wind, Inc., the timber framing company whose work is featured in the book. That said, there is enough technical and philosophical discussion to make this an excellent companion volume to, say, Heino Engel's Measure and Construction of the Japanese House. This book is no DIY manual, but there is more than enough information to make this book a valuable addition to the library of an armchair architect or timber framing student.

This is an inspiring, detailed book on the nuances of building an authentic Japanese building - written by an American who was trained by Masters in Japanese temples. The author and I collaborated on my plans to build 2 Japanese Minkas in New Mexico and California. He is an amazing and kind man!

This book is full of the most beautiful pictures of close up japanese residental architecture. It goes into tradational japanese rooms and how to adapt it to fit modern day needs. It goes through building materials and intricate explanations on elevation levels, roofs, sliding doors, japanese bath and more. It's definitely worth the price if you're interested in japanese architecture or plan to have a japanese style house.