Top 200 Homes of the Heisei Era

Thanks to archdaily.com and Taschen of course 

Title: Top 200 Homes of the Heisei Era

Author: not known 

Publisher: not known 

Source book: The North Light by Hideo Yokoyama (translated by Louise Heal Kawai)

Japanese architect Minoru Aose hopes to reinvent his career with a commission to create a home he would like to live in. The resulting building, an acknowledged masterpiece, is featured in a coffee table book titled Top 200 Homes of the Heisei Era. 

For non Japanese readers, or those who have visited Japan for a short visit, or in my case just for the night (yes really), or indeed everyone else who knows nothing at all: the Heisei Era refers to the period of Japanese history between 8 January 1989 and 30 April 2019: the reign of the Emperor Akihito.

Aose’s clients, the Yoshinos, appear to be delighted with their brand new building, but some months later Aose discovers that not only have they not moved in, but they seem to have disappeared altogether and the building is empty. Except for a single chair. Fingers crossed he got paid, eh?

Now, I have to admit that I haven’t read The North Light. This will probably not be a surprise to my regular readers (if there are any). There is a mystery, and apparently, a solution, but I don’t know what they are. But when The North Light appeared in a Guardian review, in October 2023, complete with a fictional coffee table book… how could I resist? Honestly, when you start looking, it really is astonishing how many books feature a fictional book. I definitely cannot keep up with them all.

Thanks to design boom.com