Jimi's Book of Japanese: A Motivating Method to Learn Japanese (Katakana) (Jimi's Book of Japanese)

by Peter X. Takahashi

This second interactive book in the "Jimi's Book of Japanese" series is a publishing a sequel that is every bit as good as the original. So many sequels come off like a side dish nobody ordered. But "Jimi's Book of A Motivating Method to Learn Japanese(Katakana)" is just as fresh and entertaining as the original. The lessons pick up seamlessly from where the first book left off, and don't feel forced at all. There are dozens of fresh, entertaining illustrations and new characters like Dizzy Fugu. Plus, the bonus material is simply genius! After all, any book that has monkeys, robots, and assorted other creatures teaching you how to speak Japanese has to be cool--and this book certainly is. Perfect for the Japanophile in you.

Genres: Japanese Literature, Language, Japan, Childrens, Manga, Nonfiction

76 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 2002

Reviews

[Morten · Rating 2 out of 5]

Seems to be targeted at younger children. If you want to learn the hiragana efficiently, I would rather recommend the book Let's Learn Hiragana. It does provide some relatively interesting information about words and concepts related to each character, though.

[Abby · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading Challenge 2018: A Book I started but did not finish. Since we moved to Japan, I have had the desire to learn Japanese. This cute little book was great to read with my kids so that we could familiarize ourselves with the hiragana characters, the sounds, and some vocabulary. It was easy to make my own flashcards for further study.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice start to help learn hiragana while learning simple vocabulary while learning a bit about Japanese culture and customs. It could use some advice on how to remember the different symbols a bit more, possible through techniques involving more mnemonics.

[Krista · Rating 3 out of 5]

An entertaining read; I especially liked the cultural nuggets. Not sure if it really helped my katakana progress though...

[Christina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent! What a unique and fun way to learn Japanese Hiragana characters. Bright, colorful pages with plenty of examples of practise words allow for easier retention. Best book around for learning how to write Japanese. The only drawback is they do not explain the use of the dakuten and hand dakuten for some of the other characters, and they do not show all of the full set. Still, really excellent way to practise and learn Japanese characters.

[Christina · Rating 4 out of 5]

The second book in the Jimi series is instrumental in helping to learn the Japanese Katakana.
Although probably best used in conjunction with other Japanese learning materials the book is fun and colorful and therefore aids in memorization of the characters.

[Amanda B · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sometimes you just need a cute monkey to teach you a new language.

[Joseph Weatherly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book for beginners, can be enjoyed by both old and young alike.