Teach Yourself: Beginner's Japanese

If you've never attempted Japanese before, this book is a wonderful introduction to learning the basics and getting you started with your studies. The CDs that go along with it are a tremendous help and as long as you don't go too fast - as Helen Gilhooly advises herself that you not do - you can both pick things up and remember them efficiently. You are given lots of useful vocabulary words at an appropriate pace, are able to listen to Japanese conversations that increase in difficulty as you progress through the book, and practice + test yourself at the end of each chapter on what you've learned. The only downfall is that you're not introduced to writing in both the kana scripts, which is essential if you plan to do more than speak Japanese. A small intro to katakana is the topic of chapter 13, but that's about it. If you don't need to write in Japanese, however, chapters 14-20 are all about your visit to Japan: how to shop, converse with business men/women, order food, how to act as a guest in another person's home, etc. I simply used an online website to learn my kana, one that was in fact recommended from this very book! I say buy this audiopackage and get started immediately!

What I love of this book is that it covers not only the language, but also details about everyday life in Japan. Every lesson contains a dialogue that introduces the new grammatical structures in the shape of a conversation as it could happen in Japan. The same dialogue is recorded in the tape that comes with the book. After the conversation there is a comprehensive and exhaustively commented grammar section, followed by exercises. A section follows on Japanese culture and customs. Finally, there is a revision test recorded in the tape that covers the most important structures introduced in the chapter.The pace is brisk. I have read just over half the book, and at this point the complexity of the structures introduced is higher than in other language books. And you can really learn! At this point I can partially understand conversations in Japanese. Speaking it is much harder, but well, no book can help in this, only practice can...This is not the book you would buy if you only wanted to know a set of stock Janapese sentences. But if you really want to know the language and be able to speak and understand it in a conversation, you should definitely buy this book.If I don't give it the top mark it's because the book does not cover Japanese writing, not even hiragana (the text is all in latin characters). But this is not the purpose of this book...

Now, because of Teach yourself Japanese,I am doing great in Japanese. It's really easy to understand. Well written. I think that Helen Gilhooly is a great teacher.

I think this book is wonderful. Now I could finally understand what my friends are saying. Plus I'll finally understand the Japanese anime I watch. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn a new language but feels it's a drag!

It is very good at getting the point across and teaching you some Japanese without overwhelming you. My only qualms was the lack of total kana-immersion.