The Art of Discarding: How to Get Rid of Clutter and Find Joy Hardcover – March 14, 2017

This is the book that influenced Marie Kondo but was only recently (2017) translated. It offers much of the same advice as Kondo but the writing is a little more straight forward, less conversational. Its a quick, enjoyable read. The author is a woman so, as a female reader, I can relate to her practicality and organization. In Part 3 titled "how to feel better about getting rid of things," she considers recycling and environmental issues that Kondo doesn't discuss. This is a great companion piece to Kondo's charming and inspiring books. Both authors explain some Japanese concepts (e.g. mottainai, mono no aware) that can give western readers a new perspective on consuming and discarding.

This is such a simple, smart, well-designed little solar light. The stand/rack/hanger is brilliant even though it is so simplistic. It is easy to adjust the angle for efficient charging or to direct the light where you need it. You can use it as a stand to place it on any flat surface. You can hang it from a nail on the wall in the "V" of the stand. You can hook it over a clothesline. In any of these positions, it is easy to adjust the angle.We had it stored in a shed for a year, and when we got back to our campsite and pulled it out and turned it on, it shone brightly -- it held its charge beautifully. It recharges quickly. I just love it!The reason I gave 4 instead of 5 stars is because of its one weakness... it is designed for indoor use. We were camping during the rainy season (brief, unpredictable rain showers). We did accidentally leave it out charging when we left one sunny afternoon, but rain moved in and the light got wet. The switch jammed. We were able to open it up and un-jam it, but given the application it would be nice if it were more robustly designed for the weather.Still, I am buying a few more of these, if they are still available -- overall, I am very happy with it!

I've read both of Marie Kondo's books and Sasaki Fumio's 'Goodbye, Things' and out of the three, I enjoyed Nagisa Tatsumi's the best. Those who read it today might find it a bit outdated because it was originally written in the 2000s. If you've read any of the other "minimalist" books, you probably don't need to read another, but if you're deciding between which of the three Japanese minimalist authors to read, I can suggest why you should pick this once since all of them are intended towards different readers. They all more-or-less give similar tips.Tatsumi's book has a sense of humor. One of my favorite lines comes from chapter three where she open "Little girls dream that some day a prince will come along - but that day is never likely to arrive. And before she knows it, the little girl is a middle-aged woman.." (the chapter is about how "sometime" never comes). I enjoyed her humor though I'm sure some probably don't.But another thing helpful about this book is she lists out different organizing situations and then how to solve the problem. They're all quite fun and humorous, too, but if you're not aware of Japanese culture, some of the situations pointed out might not be that clear and some of the examples are dated because it was written in the 2000s.Overall, it's a fun read about how you can declutter, but while there may be a tip or two that's new, if you've read other minimizing books, you probably won't find this book helpful. If you want another take on how to minimize or haven't read any, this book is a good start if you keep in mind when it was written and that the intended audience was likely Japanese housewives or Japanese OLs (office ladies).

The core belief of the book is very simple - get rid of things. The reasons and attitude to achieve that is very well explained. But the author is very repetitive with the means to do so. It gets boring after a while.

The book has been a great read. The author inspired Marie Kondo. Frankly, she is a better read and doesn’t have all the self promoting of Ms. Kondo. I was very pleased with the condition of the book. Better than the seller stated. Will definitely use this seller for future used book purchases.

From a first view point, I love the esthetics of the cover because embraces simplicity which the author explains and covers in her book. The book is also lightweight and easy to carry.For those who read The life changing magic of tidying up by Marie Kondo, this book of Nagisa Tatsumi is what inspired Marie to declutter her home. She became a discarding fanatic and I can understand why.This book helps to give a person a jump star on decluttering their homes. I can guarantee you, after you finish this book, you will soon be filling garbage bags with unnecessary things. Nagasi points out the most basic rule about maintaining your space and living your life a simpler one: have what is necessary, and if you don't use it, you dont need it. Evaluate your life and ask yourself, what are the items that you have stopped using and why? Nagasi knows that our life changes. Maybe what you needed in the past is not the same as your present. Buying new items is not a sin. Also, restricting yourself from buying is an unhealthy "diet". Just make sure to keep your items on top and evaluate your life from time to time to know what things you use and what things you dont use to not let it pile up.The only thing I dislike is that she ususes too many examples of situation when she explains her attitudes and strategies to discarding. I thing the perfect number is 3 and not 5. For each attitude she explains there are 5 situations. Having too many examples for me, puta your attention elsewhere rather than focus on the book 100℅ of the time. I hope this review helps.

Great book helped to make me feel better about letting go of things and decluttering my home. Enjoyed this book.

When you go through finding new homes for things you no longer want, you become more selective. I switched to kindle editions to solve my book problem. I ran out of space for more bookshelves. I also a huge garden and plenty of flowerbeds. They need a lot of mulching. I combine shredded leaves with shredded paper. But she is right. Accumulating stuff you don’t need is not a solution. I enjoyed the book.

It really helped me declutter my house and opened up my view on things. Made me less afraid of throwing things away. Fantastic book.

One of the best books on the vexatious subject of clutter. Extremely insightful, it enabled a chronic hoarder like me actually to initiate long overdue remedial measures.Deeply grateful, Ms. Tatsumi.

The situation 1 2 3 sections I glanced over, eager to reach the end and get an overall feeling for the book. Highlighting as I go. I will go back and re read it another time. First impression was that it was a pleasant book to read.