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51 of 52 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Possibly the best book for Japanese beginners, 15 Oct 2002
For speakers of western languages, learning Japanese is very hard work. It's enjoyable, fascinating, worthwhile, but hard. If you're not prepared to commit significant time and energy to it, any time you spend will be wasted.If you are serious, then this is a great place to start. To clear up any confusion, Japanese for Busy People I (JFBP I) comes in two versions. They cover the same grammatical ground, using the same dialogues and vocabulary. The CDs and workbooks that you can also buy are equally applicable to both and they cost the same. The only difference is that one uses mainly western characters (known as romaji), and the other uses only Japanese characters (known as kana). I started with the ordinary romaji version, but less than halfway through splashed out on this kana version. This was one of the best decisions that I have taken to date in studying Japanese. The first few weeks may be slower and more difficult than those for somebody using the easier romaji text, but after just a few weeks you'll find that you've flown past them. You'll probably find too that your accent is better and that you're better prepared (even eager) to start learning the kanji (Chinese characters) that are introduced in volume II. To use it though you will need some knowledge of the kana writing systems. Fortunately there is a very good companion book, JFBP : Kana Workbook. I recommend that you complete the hiragana I section of this and you will be ready for JFBP I. The remainder is complementary to the early chapters of JFBP I. Criticisms, drawbacks? The emphasis is on preparing somebody to work in Japan, so although many of the scenarios introduce social exchanges there's a greater emphasis on business vocabulary than may suit everybody. The course is also very slow to introduce kanji which for many students is one of the most fascinating aspects of learning Japanese, however, this just spurred me on to finish volume I more quickly. Despite these drawbacks I still rate this as the best introduction that I have seen for somebody wanting to learn Japanese on their own or using it, as I did, to supplement a weekly class.
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by Yasuko Kosaka Mitamura
by Ajalt
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