Learn to Read in Japanese: A Japanese Reader

Reading in Japanese is difficult. In order to get started, you will need to be able to recognize and pronounce 46 hiragana, 46 katakana, and hundreds of kanji; and you will also need to devote a number of hours to reading practice.

A good strategy for learning to read fluently within a short time (months rather than years) is to learn hiragana, katakana and basic kanji quickly (although imperfectly at first) and then to start reading almost immediately. This book makes this possible by providing you with 4,200 Japanese sentences written in a large clear font, easily accessible feedback on your reading accuracy, and abundant references, with memory aides, to help you to learn 608 basic kanji characters as you read.

Although it might seem somewhat impractical to start reading practice before you know Japanese characters very well, this approach is firmly grounded in a study technique known as Active Recall, which can be defined as “learning by answering questions.” Active Recall is the basis of the Pimsleur method and of flashcard learning generally. Studies have shown that, in comparison to more passive study methods, Active Recall is highly effective for building strong memories. It is also quite enjoyable.

As you read the book, you will find that all of the help that you need is close at hand. If you relax and read the sentences at your own speed, you will be exposed to the same kanji repeatedly in different situations. By simply reading and availing yourself of the feedback and the references that the book provides, you will soon be able to read with confidence.

The sponsors of the popular website JapaneseAudioLessons.com have built this book around a Japanese Reader with more than 4,200 Japanese sentences for reading practice. These sentences use only hiragana, katakana and 608 "target" kanji. Romaji equivalents and translations are printed in very small text in a column adjacent to the Japanese text, making it possible for you to get immediate feedback as you read but also allowing you to ignore the romaji and the translations when you only want to concentrate on Japanese text.

The target kanji that are used in this book are taught by means of an innovative "Kanji Catalogue." This Catalogue includes pronunciations, meanings, descriptions of the kanji as images, and examples of words that use the kanji.

When you encounter a kanji in the Japanese text that you do not know well, you can easily look it up with the help of the Pronunciation Index, which contains 1,590 pronunciations that are associated with the target kanji. You are encouraged to look up unfamiliar kanji as you read and to focus on the memory aides provided in the Catalogue. These memory aides are both visual (descriptions of kanji as images) and verbal (homophones for each of the kanji's pronunciations).

The huge number of sentences that are provided for reading practice, the ready access to feedback, and the memory aides supplied in the Kanji Catalogue will allow you to make rapid progress. Instead of spending a lot of time on tedious memorization activities, you will be able to relax and enjoy exploring the mysteries of written Japanese.