You need a separate "translation book" in English to study properly. And we don't mean "there's no romaji," the entire book is in Japanese. If you're a complete beginner, Minna no Nihongo will present a significant challenge: it's all in Japanese. Studying with the main, all-Japanese textbook will force you to figure things out through context and use your brain a little more. The two book system isn't "bad," necessarily. Also, this means most of the terminology and dialogue is aimed at the college demographic.Īll in all, Genki is a fantastic series and going through both books will give you the foundation you need to start intermediate studies. Genki was designed for classrooms, so if you're a self-learner, keep in mind the material may need to be modified for your situation. The exercises, audio CDs, and workbook match the high quality of the textbook and reinforce what you're learning through variety and repetition. The difficulty of each lesson scaffolds gradually, so you won't feel the material is too far above your head. Genki is not only the favorite of Japanese classes the world over, it's one of our favorites too ( so much, we wrote a full review).Ī perfect starting point for beginners, Genki has an easy-to-follow lesson structure that begins with dialogues using target vocabulary and grammar, which are then taught more clearly in the succinct and easy-to-understand lessons. To get a decent handle on the structure of Japanese, you need a solid textbook (or the equivalent) to explain grammar concepts, provide practice exercises, and introduce material that's only +1 above your current ability level.īelow is a list of our favorite textbooks the ones we feel are the best books for beginners to learn Japanese. The Best Japanese Textbooks for Beginners Kodansha's Furigana Japanese English Dictionary.An Illustrated Dictionary of Japanese Onomatopoeic Expressions.The Handbook of Japanese Adjectives and Adverbs.Jazz Up Your Japanese with Onomatopoeia.English Grammar for Students of Japanese.Yookoso! An Invitation to Contemporary Japanese.The Best Japanese Textbooks for Beginners.With so much kanji packed in your brain, not only will these textbooks be much easier to use, but you'll be able to skip the kanji lessons and use that time to move your Japanese ability forward in other ways. If you're following our path to Japanese fluency, you'll already know upwards of 650 kanji from your WaniKani lessons at level 20. For the most part, Japanese grammar textbooks teach kanji slowly (and sometimes poorly). We won't mention these features in the reviews below, unless there's something noteworthy to say about them.Īlso, we won't be talking much about the kanji learning these textbooks offer. Dialogues with target vocabulary and/or grammar.Stop spending time searching and start studying.īefore we dive in, here's a list of things we'll assume all textbooks include: We've compiled a list of the best Japanese textbooks out there to solve this exact problem. And you'll need those to reach intermediate and beyond.Īfter you've got some kanji knowledge under your belt (about level 10 or 20 in WaniKani), it's time to pick up a textbook and start learning the framework in which you can use all the Japanese you've learned. And beyond textbooks, there is a wealth of reference books, dictionaries, and other things that expand on your textbook's lessons. After you've got some kanji knowledge under your belt ( about level 10 or 20 in WaniKani), it's time to pick up a textbook and start learning the framework in which you can use all the Japanese you've learned.īut which textbook to choose? There are so many.
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