Genki II: 1:03 Nihongo Sou Matome: 2:22 Shin Nihongo 500 Mon: 3:19 Shin Kanzen Master: 3:54 Speed Master: 4:59 Kanji Master: 6:11 Sou Matome 45-Day Roundup (not sure what to call it in English??): 7:50 Minna no Nihongo: 8:32
Well you can find this store in most cities in japan!! I’ve actually not found any other book store here that has these many books for learning Japanese, but Tsutaya is another big book store that is even more common than this one! So you could check that out as well! 😋
There's also a huge Kinokuniya book store in Shinjuku as well that you can find lots of Japanese textbooks. I found it was pretty hard for me to find textbooks for Japanese learners in a lot of smaller bookstores outside of Tokyo
I'm actually currently going through the Hobbit with its Japanese translation (with lofty goals of reading through all the LOTR), and I've found it to be exceedingly useful for N2/N1 grammar study!
johannakatakana Honestly, I’m not sure if there is a lower level edition. My teacher gave me that book after a year of study. it really taught me some good grammar points and kanji understanding.
@@edwnx0 Exactly, AIATIJ one of the most popular intermediate textbooks, along with Tobira, among those who are seriously studying the language (as in not just to pass the JLPT while ignoring everything else). It's actually perfect for anyone who used the Genki books, as it pretty much continues where Genki II leaves you. It's clear that @Mr D is utterly clueless, and perhaps not the right person to get advice from.
Perhaps this bookstore is in Ikebukuro. And I think that name is Junkudo. I’m not a native speaker, so maybe my sentence has ungrammatical miss. should my sentence has an ungrammatical miss, please point it out.
Thanks for replying! This is indeed the bookstore Junkudo, but the one I went to was not in Ikebukuro and you can find the store all over the country! I visited it a lot when I lived in Fukuoka and also now when I live south of Yokohama! ☺️
Just starting this journey learning Japanese and it's so refreshing to watch this video, usually other people make it seem so daunting but your enthusiasm gives me the energy to keep going ^_^
Learning a language is supposed to be fun, and there are so so many resources for learning Japanese that it’s easy to keep it fun and fresh! Good luck with your studies, let me know if you haven’t any questions! ☺️
hear hear. i admit am a lazy learner and is not that motivated right now but you're right, her enthusiasm or jolliness if you will, sparked something inside of me. (hope it's not that cheesy 笑笑)
8:40 I went to Japan as an exchange student to learn Japanese. The school that I went to used みんなの日本語. I liked it. My class always enjoyed seeing ミラーさん every time 先生 played the DVDs. lol I finished both beginner books by the end of my year in Japan and now I'm able to hold decent conversations with native speakers. I recommend it.
I went through a Nordic company, but they worked together with a Japanese company called WYS! Not sure if they’re still going but it’s worth checking out at least ☺️
Hi, I have a question! I am interested in using minna no nihongo. Is it okay that I only get the textbook, translation and nothing else? I saw there's about 7-8 other supplementary books. What do you recommend? (I plan on getting the novels for fun haha)
The Genki series makes me laugh. モスバーガーじゃないですよ！マクドナルドですよ！ Or I love when Take-san takes Mary to kabuki and then she's shocked when he tells her all the performers are males. I felt bad for Take-san when he got groped by that 痴漢 on the train though. I already bought 上級へのとびら for after Genki II since it's pretty well regarded, but I'll come back to this video later on for books to study for N2 level material.
Haha, there is sooo much Japanese learning material out there! I haven’t self studied another language before so I can’t really compare, but I’ve heard it many times 😂
Not certain about the points made but ,if anyone else is searching for learn to speak japanese try Pycanta Simple Japanese Protocol (Have a quick look on google cant remember the place now ) ? Ive heard some interesting things about it and my mate got amazing results with it.
I actually find it amazing how you used the Sou-Matome series to study the higher levels. I'm only using the one for N2 grammar to dip my toes into since I intend to also use the Try! N2 and Shinkanzen Master N2 (I hate the layout as well but it's so tough that it prepared me well enough for JLPT N3). I personally have never used Minna no Nihongo, but even my partner who is the studious type said that it was too dry. 😬 So when I started studying, I mainly used Japan Foundation's online courses and supplemented it with the Try! book and Memrise and it worked well enough for me.
i am planning on starting to learn japanese and i know i have to start with learning and memorizing hiragana and katakana but i would like to know what to do after that? i know you have to start learning kanji but when do you start studying grammar and using textbooks? hope someone can answer thank you :)
Why not start right away? ☺️ If you want to use a textbook to study, I think you should get it as soon as you start with learning characters, because why wait! Maybe you could start watching some UA-cam videos about basic Japanese vocabulary/grammar, learn some standard phrases like greetings and asking for directions, and then go from there!
PSA about Genki 1: The 3rd edition came out around March or April this year. The book edition linked and showed in this video appeared to be the 2nd edition. If you are buying the books for the first time make sure you get genki 1 in the 3rd edition. The teacher I am studying with has already switched to the latest book.
Where can you get shonen jump? Is a book or is it online? Also, I just learned hiragana but I don’t know grammar or what any of the words mean. Would it still be helpful to me? If not so you recommend I do?
good advice on the books there are some other good books like tae kim's grammar guide, remembering the kanji by james heisig, mastering the hiragana/katakana, and kids book my first hiragana activity book by Yuko green
Good question! Yes, I had already studied some basics before I got my first book, and enthusiastic and bold as I was I figured I knew enough to jump straight into genki 2! 😂
This is so helpful! I recently started learning Japanese and It is so much more difficult than Spanish and French was for me so being able to see your recommendations on good books to help me learn is saving me so much time and money!
It is right!! I’ve studied French too and it’s so much easier since many words are similar to English/Swedish and the grammar is a lot more similar than Japanese! And you have to spend quite a lot of time to study kanji too which you don’t have to if you study those languages!! I’m happy this video was helpful to you though! 😋
I've never really used books for listening, I've mainly used youtube (and listening to Japanese people around me speak, but you might not have that option!). I'd say look around for some channels with videos with simple listening practices!
This was awesome! I’m not planning to take the JLPT, but I’ve studied most of the 総まとめN2 books. Another book that’s been extremely helpful for me is called 日本人よく使う日本語会話オノマトペ180基本表現. I’m only about 1/3 of the way through the book, but I already understand so much more natural Japanese used in conversation and novels. Most of these are probably covered somewhere along the way in JLPT study books, but I like the way they’re all grouped together in one book.
I should get that book haha!! Onomatopoeia is one of the part of Japanese that I still struggle with 😂 GOSH I wish there weren’t so many 😭 Onomatopoeia is covered a bit in JLPT but not that much, and I think you’d have to do what you are doing right now and learn them separately from the JLPT to be able to learn more! But it’s never ending 🤣🤣
johannakatakana One of my Japanese friends who did a university research paper on onomatopoeia said there are about 4500 used in the Japanese language😱 You’re right-it’s never-ending. I’ll be learning new things about this language the rest of my life😂
I’ve kind of accepted the fact that I can’t study my way through all these words, but I’ll have to live and experience them to learn them 😂 I noticed that even if you learn the meaning of them it’s usually different than the English translation (at least if you just look them up in a dictionary - it might be different with a book that probably gives you good examples), so right now I’m just learning them as I hear my friends use them in conversation 🤣
May i know what this store is? They didn't have japanese books at tsutaya and seibunkan in my city when i was in japan 😢 I ordered my books from amazon instead.
thank you so much, this video is great! i love that you talked about other brooks than minna no nihongo. i am getting tired of youtubes only mentioning that book and no other
Thank you so much!! Yeah I think both Genki and Minna no nihongo are getting a bit too repetitive and there are so many other books to use when you advance in level!! Thank you for your kind comment! ☺️
I’m not giving out the exact location just for privacy reasons, but it’s called Junkudo, and I think that the selection is the same in most of their stores! I’ve been there in Fukuoka too and they had the same amount of books! ☺️
I agree with you. Most of the bookstores I went in Tokyo don't have such a big collection of Japanese learning books. If I can find this bookstore, it will be very very helpful
At least in Sapporo maruzen and Jukundo(or something like that) is huge, and the Japanese section is almost like the one that she shows, I been in the Ikebukuro one and is pretty similar (My English is too bad, I’m 😢)
Johanna, is your university getting shut down until April like the gradeschools and highschools? Stay safe, I'm sure we'll be dealing with Corona soon enough in the US too. :-(
No, seems like it’s not affecting universities (yet)! However, I’m visiting my old city Fukuoka at the moment and most vocational schools/universities age canceling their graduation ceremonies and all activities with students and teachers. I haven’t heard anything about this from the kanto area yet and my university hasn’t said anything, but that’s happening too. Many sport events, competitions etc are getting canceled as we speak, so we’ll just have to see how this unfolds.... right now I’m visiting a friend who works as a chef, and she told me that her restaurant (and many others) are struggling because of canceled group events and less tourist customers, so many places are struggling now. A good time to visit any place that would normally be crowded, like Disneyland or USJ lol xD I hope the US will stay safe and that it won’t unfold and spread like it has here!!
Hi johanna, how many years did it take you to learn and achieve n1 jlpt from not knowing nothing, (zero to hero), greetings Your videos are interesting
Well, I started to study in late 2012 or early 2013 and I passed N1 in December of 2018, but it wasn’t like I studied constantly during all those years! I think if I counted together how much time I spend studying in total it would be like 3,5-4 years! 😋
edit: so my language bschool starts on april 20th... welcome party the 19th -_- i brought my ticket for the 18th and won't get there until 6 pm on the 20th -_- bad first impression already I'm super worried I'll get lost since no one will be picking me up at airport, what tips do you have?
Hi! Not Johanna, but I hope I can help out anyway :) I was super nervous about getting lost when I got to Japan too, so before I left I made a printout of the Google maps directions both in English and in Japanese. That way if I got lost or was wondering which train to take, I could always show a train station attendant and they could point me in the right direction. Having access to any kind of Wi-Fi is also a big help in case you need to change your route for whatever reason. Hope this helps, best of luck in April!
Don’t worry too much about it, there are lots of students and everyone is new so it probably won’t leave any big impression, and most students probably won’t know that you weren’t there 😂 As for what to do at the airport, Matthew gave some great advice!! Write down the full adress and name of where you’re going to stay so you have it to show someone, and try to research about the airport and what it looks like (where the information disk is/how to get to the bus terminal/subway etc) so you feel prepared before arriving. It always makes me feel a bit more calm when I’ve done some research about the airport before leaving! And just know that Japanese staff at the airport and stations are very nice and willing to help you, and most Japanese people around you would most likely help you out if you ask them for directions! If you can, look up on google maps how to get from the airport to your school/dorm/apartment and write down all of the station names and train lines so you have it in front of you when going! And good luck!!!! Let me know if you have any other questions before coming over here! ☺️
Japanese textbooks' grammar explanations are often poor, short and sometimes just wrong. I think a great grammar complement is the Dictionary of Japanese Grammar series by the publisher of the Japan Times.
Hi Johanna, thanks for another great and informative video. Do you recommend getting the workbook counterpart to Genki II or would other workbooks be fine as well? Thank you!
I’m happy it was helpful!! 👏🏻 I never got the workbook when I studied myself but I always wish I did, so yeah, I think getting the Genki one so it’s easier to follow what you’re studying in the text book (if you are using Genki)! ☺️
How many books do you study at one time when you are practicing for the jlpt test?I see people go over several different books when they are studying. I’m just about to complete my genki 1 book, which took me a whole year by myself, and that was only 1 book!
Well, I think the reason why people use more than one book is mainly because the books are focused on different parts of Japanese, you’d have one book for grammar, one for vocab etc! In the beginning you can go a long way with only one or two books that includes all different parts of the language, but as you advance in level the amount you need to learn for each section of the JLPT increases a lot, and so they start making books specifically for the different sections of the test. So people combine these different books to cover all parts of the test when they’re studying!
Hi! This is the first video of yours I watched that was recommended by youtube and is actually perfect! I'll definitely start with a genki! When I went to Thailand I remember spending a lot of time in book stores, where in the UK I cant remember the last time I stepped foot even in a wh smiths. I feel like having an actual book in your hands to study from makes it seem more real than just using software.
Thank you so much! ☺️ It definitely makes a big difference, and I think it’s just simply easier to study with something in your hands rather than looking at something on a screen!
@@johannakatakana well, your video was the first I watched to mention Genki books, Ive since watched hundreds of others that recommend it. I was just going to buy Genki 1 to see how I get on, but i found an ebay lot where I someone was selling both 1 & 2 and two kanji books for £60!! mint just arrived and they are in mint condish! :ooo Should I really get the work book as well? And work with it or should I get it later?
I don’t know how to access kanji books in India, maybe someone else reading this comment would know? Perhaps you have some language book stores around you, or you could order online?
About the Genki books, there is available an Answer book with all the answers to the exercises (you can find it online too) and then there are excellent apps with all the dialoge, vocbulary, kani and verb/adjective conjugation and on top of that there is also lots of extra stuff and videos on the publisher website so self study is totally possible with the Genki books.
@@KillerofGods in my country, all the books (study book, novel, comic, etc) are wrapped in plastic except 1 or 2 for the sample so people can take a look at the content of the book. sometimes they have no sample at all so you just ... guess before buying
I'm seriously considering Mira-san's diary HUAHSUAHUHUSAHUHSUAHU I think the illustrations in the book are so ugly and at the same time so funny. I've started studying two months ago and I'm in love! It's such a beautiful language. The only problem is that the books here in Brazil are SUPER expensive right now, we are facing an economic crisis, so I'll have to wait. But I loved watching you video and problably as I just found out about your ytc I'll watch many other videos as well HUASHUAHUSHAUHU
Yeah I’m not a big fan of the minna no nihongo illustrations either but when my friend explained about it I thought it sounded legit for studying with 🤣 I didn’t use a lot of books in the beginning, just try to find as much material online as you can! What are you using to study right now? ☺️ I can recommend japanesepod101 on UA-cam for good basics!! Also thank you for your kind words, will definitely be posting more fun stuff 🤪
I have a frustrating experience. Not knowing where to begin or hitting a plateau can feel demoralizing and make it hard to hit the books and study like you know you should…Having friends from other cultures makes me more creative. In fresh ways about space and how people create their own world and environment. It is best way to connect between creative thinking and cross-cultural relationships!
This video is epic and you are so energetic. That gets you 8 out of 10 and the content of the video gets you remaining 2. Just prefect 10 point video 😃😁. So subscribed!!!!!!
I’m so happy to hear that!! Let me know if you have any other questions about it! It’s always good to stay a bit above your current level and challenge yourself, then you’ll improve faster! 👏🏻
This video was refreshing and informative. Personally, I find Japanese coursebooks desperately dry. Lots and lots of pages thick with text and no pictures, no fun parts. Coursebooks for European languages are so much more fun to use and, although I'm an adult, I miss all those fun bits when dealing with Japanese coursebooks.
Thank you! 😋 Oh really? I’ve found a lot of the books I’ve used (at least for beginners and lower intermediate) to be really cute with lots of drawings and fun design! Both Genki and Minna No Nihongo has a nice layout! But i do think you are right in that there aren’t a lot of pictures 🤔 Mostly drawings!
Yo thanks for the vid! I started learning a couple weeks ago using dual lingo.... which is good for vocab but terrible for grammar... I’ll definitely take a look at the books you showed in the video! Also I’m a new sub 😁 I’ll tell my sister bout ur channel too.. she’ll probably sub too!
Thank you for your comment!! My boyfriend uses duolingo for English so I’ve seen the app a bit, and as you say it doesn’t seem to be very helpful for grammar. 😂 I can recommend “maggie sensei”, it’s a blog that teaches you lots and lots of grammar, and I used it a lot when I self studied! Thank you for joining the community! 🙌🏻
You should read the manga. Ruby is waving in the kanji of boy and girl comics. You can learn how to read kanji and onomatopoeia. I am Japanese. When I was a kid, I read "Doraemon" and learned how to read kanji.
That’s true, using kids books/manga is good for learning kanji! I think “adult manga” is a bit harder for beginners though, since they use quite difficult kanjis too. But thank you for the advice!! ☺️
Loved this video. Helped me so much. I bought genki and that was a good tip for me. Also bought some of the books about grammar and vocabulary you recommended. This video was so useful, thank you for that.
@@johannakatakana I’ve heard some people say it can be very “textbook-y” or “robotic,” but I’ve heard it’s still really great and that 1 pretty is equivalent to JLPT N5, and 2 to N4. I’ve been studying Japanese on my own for a little over two months, so I’ll definitely check it out! Thanks again :)
That book store is so amazing, I will be crazy in there trying to get a lot of books, here in my country I just found a few book, I usually have to buy them on internet
It has everything!! And it’s often way cheaper than ordering Japanese books online, I remember ordering Genki 2 and paying almost three times the price of what I could get it for in any book store here (which I noticed when I came here lol). Endless possibilities!!
one question:I'm to lazy to write and don't like using anki or any srs systems so I only learn kanji through reading things of interest ( manga, novels) am I wrong or missing out on sonething ?
I didn’t use any specific systems to learn kanji, I just studied them a few at the time, used them in context and remember them in that way! I personally think if you study Japanese you should learn how to write too, since it is a part of the language. However, if your goals with Japanese isn’t to write, then I guess you probably won’t need to learn how to write them and just how to read them! I do think that you could go about your kanji learning in a more active way, since just learning by reading (if you’re not taking notes and practicing those kanjis) won’t be at all as effective and you probably will forget at lot! If you want to be more effective, I don’t necessarily think that you need to use a “kanji system” to learn, but at least using flash cards or writing them down and practicing them is important! ☺️
Minna no nihongo is hard if you don’t get the extra book with English explanations, because everything is in Japanese! I’d say Genki is one of the easiest ones to understand when you’re starting out!
just a question about the genki book. if u want to buy the first part do u need to be at the n5 level or can i just buy and learn everything from the book
I have just started learning Japanese with teacher who lives on my street. She makes up her own exercises so I am not familiar with the N1-5 system. Is 1 the beginner level or is it 5?
N5 is the beginner level and N1 is the highest! It’s not necessary to study according to the JLPT “system”, it’s more like a guideline to assess your Japanese level (it however does not cover all parts of the language and it doesn’t necessarily reflect your level completely), it’s mainly useful if you want to study/work in japan or in a place where japanese is needed, as a proof of your level! Again, it’s not always accurate to your level and shouldn’t be used as the only way to assess your level! ☺️
@@johannakatakana Thank you. I am somewhat familiar with what it is for because my son has been living in Japan for the last 8 years. I am not sure if he has taken any of the exams but he is at a pretty high level. He has had job interviews where they assessed his Japanese plus he has done some freelance work translating for Manga comics. Also, he is married to a Japanese woman so he speaks it all the time.
Genki II: 1:03
Nihongo Sou Matome: 2:22
Shin Nihongo 500 Mon: 3:19
Shin Kanzen Master: 3:54
Speed Master: 4:59
Kanji Master: 6:11
Sou Matome 45-Day Roundup (not sure what to call it in English??): 7:50
Minna no Nihongo: 8:32
Thanks! :)
thank you so muchhhhhhhh
OH MY GOD A WHOLE ISLE OR STORE FULL OF JAPANESE LEARNING BOOKS LIKE THAT IS MY DREAMSJDJEIEJFJEK
I know right!!! So many choices and so much to look at! 😍
johannakatakana I’m going to japan soon! Do you know anymore stores that are like that???? 😭😭😭
Well you can find this store in most cities in japan!! I’ve actually not found any other book store here that has these many books for learning Japanese, but Tsutaya is another big book store that is even more common than this one! So you could check that out as well! 😋
There's also a huge Kinokuniya book store in Shinjuku as well that you can find lots of Japanese textbooks. I found it was pretty hard for me to find textbooks for Japanese learners in a lot of smaller bookstores outside of Tokyo
OMG THAT S AMAZINGGGGG I NEEDZ THEMMM
This deserves way more views, it was really helpful
I’m happy it was of help!! ❤️
oh, it will. let's start sharing this 😁😁
Honestly girl I feel like we all had that stage of "I'm gonna read Harry Potter in Japanese" at beginner level. XD
It was a brave attempt 🤣🤣
I'm actually currently going through the Hobbit with its Japanese translation (with lofty goals of reading through all the LOTR), and I've found it to be exceedingly useful for N2/N1 grammar study!
A book I always thought was better than “Genki” is “An integrated approach to intermediate Japanese” book. But, most people don’t know about that gem.
I do know of this book, but I’m not sure I’ve ever looked through it! Does it teach you japanese from zero or is it more for intermediate students?
johannakatakana Honestly, I’m not sure if there is a lower level edition. My teacher gave me that book after a year of study. it really taught me some good grammar points and kanji understanding.
Isn’t integrated approach to intermediate Japanese is the following level and on par with tobira
it's unofficially known as Genki 3. it's an intermediate level book from the same publisher.
@@edwnx0 Exactly, AIATIJ one of the most popular intermediate textbooks, along with Tobira, among those who are seriously studying the language (as in not just to pass the JLPT while ignoring everything else). It's actually perfect for anyone who used the Genki books, as it pretty much continues where Genki II leaves you.
It's clear that @Mr D
is utterly clueless, and perhaps not the right person to get advice from.
Where is this bookstore in Japan?? I would really love to visit this shop when I visit Japan.
Perhaps this bookstore is in Ikebukuro. And I think that name is Junkudo.
I’m not a native speaker, so maybe my sentence has ungrammatical miss. should my sentence has an ungrammatical miss, please point it out.
Thanks for replying! This is indeed the bookstore Junkudo, but the one I went to was not in Ikebukuro and you can find the store all over the country! I visited it a lot when I lived in Fukuoka and also now when I live south of Yokohama! ☺️
Awesome, thanks for replying!!
Iran you sit and ride in Japanese bookstores?
Not sure I know what you mean. 😂
Just starting this journey learning Japanese and it's so refreshing to watch this video, usually other people make it seem so daunting but your enthusiasm gives me the energy to keep going ^_^
Learning a language is supposed to be fun, and there are so so many resources for learning Japanese that it’s easy to keep it fun and fresh! Good luck with your studies, let me know if you haven’t any questions! ☺️
hear hear. i admit am a lazy learner and is not that motivated right now but you're right, her enthusiasm or jolliness if you will, sparked something inside of me. (hope it's not that cheesy 笑笑)
Haha I’m happy to hear that, thank you!!
do you want to learn japanese together?
Thank you for this video 🌈
I hope it was helpful! Thanks for your comment 🥰
Natalie?!
woah nataliieee?!?
なに？！
HAHA I SEE YOU ON ALL THESE VIDEOS❤️ love u
8:40 I went to Japan as an exchange student to learn Japanese. The school that I went to used みんなの日本語. I liked it. My class always enjoyed seeing ミラーさん every time 先生 played the DVDs. lol I finished both beginner books by the end of my year in Japan and now I'm able to hold decent conversations with native speakers. I recommend it.
Yeah, they’re definitely good books for learning all the basics!!
If you don't mind me asking, what program did you use? Am interested on going on exchange!
I went through a Nordic company, but they worked together with a Japanese company called WYS! Not sure if they’re still going but it’s worth checking out at least ☺️
If you’re talking about high school exchange? 😂 If you mean going to a language school I went through gogonihon!
Hi, I have a question! I am interested in using minna no nihongo. Is it okay that I only get the textbook, translation and nothing else? I saw there's about 7-8 other supplementary books. What do you recommend? (I plan on getting the novels for fun haha)
日本語を勉強してくれるなんて、
本当に嬉しいです！
私は英語を
勉強しているので、一緒に頑張りましょうね！
From Japan..♡
日本語を完全にマスターすることができる自信は勉強すればするほどなくなっていますが、楽しくて楽しくて永遠に勉強していかないといけなくても全然構いません😂英語の勉強も頑張ってください‼︎私の動画が聞き取りや語彙の練習になれたらとても嬉しいです〜☺️
The books are amazing. The way you are saying itself increase the interest of learning Japanese
I’m happy my enthusiasm is coming through! 😂😂
The Genki series makes me laugh. モスバーガーじゃないですよ！マクドナルドですよ！ Or I love when Take-san takes Mary to kabuki and then she's shocked when he tells her all the performers are males. I felt bad for Take-san when he got groped by that 痴漢 on the train though.
I already bought 上級へのとびら for after Genki II since it's pretty well regarded, but I'll come back to this video later on for books to study for N2 level material.
I haven’t used the とびら book but I have a good impression of it! I hope I have some useful information here too! 😋
There are more Japanese Language books than there are Chinese and korean at Barnes and nobles.
😩I chose the wrong languages 😂
Haha, there is sooo much Japanese learning material out there! I haven’t self studied another language before so I can’t really compare, but I’ve heard it many times 😂
Not certain about the points made but ,if anyone else is searching for learn to speak japanese try Pycanta Simple Japanese Protocol (Have a quick look on google cant remember the place now ) ? Ive heard some interesting things about it and my mate got amazing results with it.
Never heard about it, but it sounds interesting!
I actually find it amazing how you used the Sou-Matome series to study the higher levels. I'm only using the one for N2 grammar to dip my toes into since I intend to also use the Try! N2 and Shinkanzen Master N2 (I hate the layout as well but it's so tough that it prepared me well enough for JLPT N3).
I personally have never used Minna no Nihongo, but even my partner who is the studious type said that it was too dry. 😬 So when I started studying, I mainly used Japan Foundation's online courses and supplemented it with the Try! book and Memrise and it worked well enough for me.
Haha yeah, I guess I mostly used them because that’s what my school gave me! 😂 I definitely prefer Genki over minna no nihongo!
i am planning on starting to learn japanese and i know i have to start with learning and memorizing hiragana and katakana but i would like to know what to do after that? i know you have to start learning kanji but when do you start studying grammar and using textbooks? hope someone can answer thank you :)
Why not start right away? ☺️ If you want to use a textbook to study, I think you should get it as soon as you start with learning characters, because why wait! Maybe you could start watching some UA-cam videos about basic Japanese vocabulary/grammar, learn some standard phrases like greetings and asking for directions, and then go from there!
johannakatakana hi, i’m starting out and was wondering would be the best textbook to get in your opinion.
Personally I think Genki I is a great book to start with!
PSA about Genki 1: The 3rd edition came out around March or April this year. The book edition linked and showed in this video appeared to be the 2nd edition. If you are buying the books for the first time make sure you get genki 1 in the 3rd edition. The teacher I am studying with has already switched to the latest book.
Thank you for the info, I’ll update the link in the description!!
If you're starting out, n5 or n4 level, reading shonen jump manga is a fun way to improve reading speed and do some casual reading in japanese.
Definitely fun! But I struggled reading some kanjis - they use quite hard language sometimes 😂
Where can you get shonen jump? Is a book or is it online? Also, I just learned hiragana but I don’t know grammar or what any of the words mean. Would it still be helpful to me? If not so you recommend I do?
read through the comments and well, glad it's not just me who was inspired by your enthusiasm johannakatakana. 有難う!! 😁😁
Haha thank you!!
good advice on the books there are some other good books like tae kim's grammar guide, remembering the kanji by james heisig, mastering the hiragana/katakana, and kids book my first hiragana activity book by Yuko green
Thank you for some extra tips! ☺️ I remember Tae Kim’s Grammar Guide, I think I had his app or something when I started to study!
Tell me how you just start at genki 2 and not one? Japanese knowledge beforehand?
Good question! Yes, I had already studied some basics before I got my first book, and enthusiastic and bold as I was I figured I knew enough to jump straight into genki 2! 😂
You are never pronounce that Jugem Jugem language.
Not really sure what you are talking about. 😂
@@johannakatakana that is a most difficult name ever.
Thanks a lot for the recommendations!
I've just started off with the Japan Foundation's Marugoto A2/B1 book.
Have you heard about it/tried it?
This is so helpful! I recently started learning Japanese and It is so much more difficult than Spanish and French was for me so being able to see your recommendations on good books to help me learn is saving me so much time and money!
It is right!! I’ve studied French too and it’s so much easier since many words are similar to English/Swedish and the grammar is a lot more similar than Japanese! And you have to spend quite a lot of time to study kanji too which you don’t have to if you study those languages!! I’m happy this video was helpful to you though! 😋
do you want to learn japanese together?
What do you think about Japanese from Zero books by George Trombley?
Never heard of them!
Hello Can you recomended some japanese books for Listening N5 and N4 please, because it’s hard for me to understand the Listening
I've never really used books for listening, I've mainly used youtube (and listening to Japanese people around me speak, but you might not have that option!). I'd say look around for some channels with videos with simple listening practices!
Ok, thanks anyway
I’m learning with the Genki and Adventures in Japanese textbooks 📚
genki and matome books are the best for studying I can recommend that
This was awesome! I’m not planning to take the JLPT, but I’ve studied most of the 総まとめN2 books. Another book that’s been extremely helpful for me is called 日本人よく使う日本語会話オノマトペ180基本表現. I’m only about 1/3 of the way through the book, but I already understand so much more natural Japanese used in conversation and novels. Most of these are probably covered somewhere along the way in JLPT study books, but I like the way they’re all grouped together in one book.
I should get that book haha!! Onomatopoeia is one of the part of Japanese that I still struggle with 😂 GOSH I wish there weren’t so many 😭 Onomatopoeia is covered a bit in JLPT but not that much, and I think you’d have to do what you are doing right now and learn them separately from the JLPT to be able to learn more! But it’s never ending 🤣🤣
johannakatakana One of my Japanese friends who did a university research paper on onomatopoeia said there are about 4500 used in the Japanese language😱 You’re right-it’s never-ending. I’ll be learning new things about this language the rest of my life😂
I’ve kind of accepted the fact that I can’t study my way through all these words, but I’ll have to live and experience them to learn them 😂 I noticed that even if you learn the meaning of them it’s usually different than the English translation (at least if you just look them up in a dictionary - it might be different with a book that probably gives you good examples), so right now I’m just learning them as I hear my friends use them in conversation 🤣
johannakatakana I agree that’s the best way!
Great tips in this video! Do you know of any good second hand bookstores in Tokyo that might have these books, as well as japanese children's books?
May i know what this store is? They didn't have japanese books at tsutaya and seibunkan in my city when i was in japan 😢 I ordered my books from amazon instead.
I wrote it in the description but it's called Junkudo! ☺️ Tsutaya really lacks books for studying Japanese!!
@@johannakatakana Omg i didn't see, sorry! And thank you for replying 😊
good,i am learning japanes ,come from china
hi, im new to learning japanese. can someone explain what the N5, N2 etc are?? id really appreciate it :)
Omg I'll buy it all haha
Thanks for the nice video.
Swedish Japanese UA-cam star.
Soo.... They are super expensive in my country... Super expensive..
Yeah, I ordered Genki when I was still in Sweden and it was so much more expensive than buying it in Japan 😬
im surprised that you didnt recommend the "Dictionary of Japanese Grammar" series. The yellow book at 0:07 at bottom right corner.
I haven't used it, but thank you for pointing it out! ☺️
thank you so much, this video is great! i love that you talked about other brooks than minna no nihongo. i am getting tired of youtubes only mentioning that book and no other
Thank you so much!! Yeah I think both Genki and Minna no nihongo are getting a bit too repetitive and there are so many other books to use when you advance in level!! Thank you for your kind comment! ☺️
This might be one of the most useful videos for japanese learning recources. Thank you!
I'm happy you found it useful! 🤩
Where was this particular store? Most of the ones I went to the selection of Japanese studying books are minimal.
I’m not giving out the exact location just for privacy reasons, but it’s called Junkudo, and I think that the selection is the same in most of their stores! I’ve been there in Fukuoka too and they had the same amount of books! ☺️
I agree with you. Most of the bookstores I went in Tokyo don't have such a big collection of Japanese learning books. If I can find this bookstore, it will be very very helpful
At least in Sapporo maruzen and Jukundo(or something like that) is huge, and the Japanese section is almost like the one that she shows, I been in the Ikebukuro one and is pretty similar
(My English is too bad, I’m 😢)
Johanna, is your university getting shut down until April like the gradeschools and highschools? Stay safe, I'm sure we'll be dealing with Corona soon enough in the US too. :-(
No, seems like it’s not affecting universities (yet)! However, I’m visiting my old city Fukuoka at the moment and most vocational schools/universities age canceling their graduation ceremonies and all activities with students and teachers. I haven’t heard anything about this from the kanto area yet and my university hasn’t said anything, but that’s happening too. Many sport events, competitions etc are getting canceled as we speak, so we’ll just have to see how this unfolds.... right now I’m visiting a friend who works as a chef, and she told me that her restaurant (and many others) are struggling because of canceled group events and less tourist customers, so many places are struggling now. A good time to visit any place that would normally be crowded, like Disneyland or USJ lol xD I hope the US will stay safe and that it won’t unfold and spread like it has here!!
Hi johanna, how many years did it take you to learn and achieve n1 jlpt from not knowing nothing, (zero to hero), greetings
Your videos are interesting
Well, I started to study in late 2012 or early 2013 and I passed N1 in December of 2018, but it wasn’t like I studied constantly during all those years! I think if I counted together how much time I spend studying in total it would be like 3,5-4 years! 😋
Ok. This video is probably the most useful I’ve ever seen regarding language learning recommendations/tips!!! Thank you!!
Yatta!! Thank you! ❤️ Good luck with your studies!!
Nobody ever mentions the books I have in my school. I don’t get why, because they’re really good. Have you heard of “Marugoto” textbooks?
I’ve seen the cover and heard the name before, but not much more than that! What’s the layout? 😋
Wait, where are you?
The store is called Junkudo 😋
Very helpful. Which series would you recommend for grammar?
edit:
so my language bschool starts on april 20th... welcome party the 19th
-_- i brought my ticket for the 18th and won't get there until 6 pm on the 20th
-_- bad first impression already
I'm super worried I'll get lost since no one will be picking me up at airport, what tips do you have?
Hi! Not Johanna, but I hope I can help out anyway :) I was super nervous about getting lost when I got to Japan too, so before I left I made a printout of the Google maps directions both in English and in Japanese. That way if I got lost or was wondering which train to take, I could always show a train station attendant and they could point me in the right direction. Having access to any kind of Wi-Fi is also a big help in case you need to change your route for whatever reason. Hope this helps, best of luck in April!
Don’t worry too much about it, there are lots of students and everyone is new so it probably won’t leave any big impression, and most students probably won’t know that you weren’t there 😂
As for what to do at the airport, Matthew gave some great advice!! Write down the full adress and name of where you’re going to stay so you have it to show someone, and try to research about the airport and what it looks like (where the information disk is/how to get to the bus terminal/subway etc) so you feel prepared before arriving. It always makes me feel a bit more calm when I’ve done some research about the airport before leaving! And just know that Japanese staff at the airport and stations are very nice and willing to help you, and most Japanese people around you would most likely help you out if you ask them for directions! If you can, look up on google maps how to get from the airport to your school/dorm/apartment and write down all of the station names and train lines so you have it in front of you when going! And good luck!!!! Let me know if you have any other questions before coming over here! ☺️
Thanks everyone!
Noo girl go to the manga section -vibe
Haha!! Maybe I need to make a new video for that! 😂
Japanese textbooks' grammar explanations are often poor, short and sometimes just wrong. I think a great grammar complement is the Dictionary of Japanese Grammar series by the publisher of the Japan Times.
Thank you for your input! ☺️
Miller have his own life LOL.... he often shows at minna no nihongo as example....
Haha yeah, he’s so famous! 😂
So I've been wondering who's holding the camera and at 7:47, I already knew!! That hand and that voice!! Haha. I'm definitely a subscriber now.
Yesss my amazing cameraman 😂😂❤️
Thats Genki 2 book cost 400PLN basically book in Poland cost from 20PLN-40PLN.. Thats scary how much this cost
Hi Johanna, thanks for another great and informative video. Do you recommend getting the workbook counterpart to Genki II or would other workbooks be fine as well? Thank you!
I’m happy it was helpful!! 👏🏻
I never got the workbook when I studied myself but I always wish I did, so yeah, I think getting the Genki one so it’s easier to follow what you’re studying in the text book (if you are using Genki)! ☺️
Thanks you for this video.
How many books do you study at one time when you are practicing for the jlpt test?I see people go over several different books when they are studying. I’m just about to complete my genki 1 book, which took me a whole year by myself, and that was only 1 book!
Well, I think the reason why people use more than one book is mainly because the books are focused on different parts of Japanese, you’d have one book for grammar, one for vocab etc! In the beginning you can go a long way with only one or two books that includes all different parts of the language, but as you advance in level the amount you need to learn for each section of the JLPT increases a lot, and so they start making books specifically for the different sections of the test. So people combine these different books to cover all parts of the test when they’re studying!
Books in series would be lot systematic, I think.
Do you mean as in using the same series for all levels? In that case, yeah that would make it easier to study with structure!
Wheres That Place Please Tell The Address???!
They have it in many places in japan! ☺️
Where is that book store located in ?And what is the name of that book store?
Hi! This is the first video of yours I watched that was recommended by youtube and is actually perfect! I'll definitely start with a genki! When I went to Thailand I remember spending a lot of time in book stores, where in the UK I cant remember the last time I stepped foot even in a wh smiths. I feel like having an actual book in your hands to study from makes it seem more real than just using software.
Thank you so much! ☺️ It definitely makes a big difference, and I think it’s just simply easier to study with something in your hands rather than looking at something on a screen!
@@johannakatakana well, your video was the first I watched to mention Genki books, Ive since watched hundreds of others that recommend it. I was just going to buy Genki 1 to see how I get on, but i found an ebay lot where I someone was selling both 1 & 2 and two kanji books for £60!! mint just arrived and they are in mint condish! :ooo Should I really get the work book as well? And work with it or should I get it later?
I also want to get some kanji books in India.. how to get it?
I don’t know how to access kanji books in India, maybe someone else reading this comment would know? Perhaps you have some language book stores around you, or you could order online?
Thanks a lot..
About the Genki books, there is available an Answer book with all the answers to the exercises (you can find it online too) and then there are excellent apps with all the dialoge, vocbulary, kani and verb/adjective conjugation and on top of that there is also lots of extra stuff and videos on the publisher website so self study is totally possible with the Genki books.
wow so in japan they don't wrap the book in plastic....
What? I've never seen that in the US
Yeah, I'm not sure if I've seen that anywhere else 🤔
@@KillerofGods in my country, all the books (study book, novel, comic, etc) are wrapped in plastic except 1 or 2 for the sample so people can take a look at the content of the book. sometimes they have no sample at all so you just ... guess before buying
UA-cam algorithm...... I am learning Chinese and Korean...not Japanese lol.
Lol!! I’m just happy that my video is starting to pop up on peoples recommended lists 😂 Chinese and Korean though, that’s cool!!!
@@johannakatakanafyi it's a great vid :D Keep it up :)
I'm seriously considering Mira-san's diary HUAHSUAHUHUSAHUHSUAHU I think the illustrations in the book are so ugly and at the same time so funny. I've started studying two months ago and I'm in love! It's such a beautiful language. The only problem is that the books here in Brazil are SUPER expensive right now, we are facing an economic crisis, so I'll have to wait. But I loved watching you video and problably as I just found out about your ytc I'll watch many other videos as well HUASHUAHUSHAUHU
Yeah I’m not a big fan of the minna no nihongo illustrations either but when my friend explained about it I thought it sounded legit for studying with 🤣
I didn’t use a lot of books in the beginning, just try to find as much material online as you can! What are you using to study right now? ☺️ I can recommend japanesepod101 on UA-cam for good basics!! Also thank you for your kind words, will definitely be posting more fun stuff 🤪
@@ellyhall5828 .
Miller san, I didn't know. Thank you for introducing me to them.
Yeah the Minna No Nihongo books are famous and popular! And the diary was new to me, but seems nice to study with! 👏🏻
I have a frustrating experience. Not knowing where to begin or hitting a plateau can feel demoralizing and make it hard to hit the books and study like you know you should…Having friends from other cultures makes me more creative. In fresh ways about space and how people create their own world and environment. It is best way to connect between creative thinking and cross-cultural relationships!
This video is epic and you are so energetic. That gets you 8 out of 10 and the content of the video gets you remaining 2. Just prefect 10 point video 😃😁. So subscribed!!!!!!
Lol I love this comment!! 😂 Thank you so much and welcome to the fam!!
@@johannakatakana looking forward to more insight on ur Japanese Learning Style and etc :p
This was really helpful! Thank you ☺️
I’m happy to hear that! 🤩
have you tried learning Japanese from zero series? is it good? or is genki better? in terms of self studying.
yoo where is this located? finding textbooks a lot of bookstore near here doesnt have that kind of books like the heck?
It's a chain store, all over Japan! I put the name of the store in the description! 😋
thank you so much for the video!! I’m studying N4 but I’m thinking of doing directly N3, your video was a big help!! 💕
I’m so happy to hear that!! Let me know if you have any other questions about it! It’s always good to stay a bit above your current level and challenge yourself, then you’ll improve faster! 👏🏻
Thanks for the advice, I’m really trying to learn Japanese kanji & hiragana 😄😊💯
Good luck!! 💥
This video was refreshing and informative.
Personally, I find Japanese coursebooks desperately dry.
Lots and lots of pages thick with text and no pictures, no fun parts. Coursebooks for European languages are so much more fun to use and, although I'm an adult, I miss all those fun bits when dealing with Japanese coursebooks.
Thank you! 😋
Oh really? I’ve found a lot of the books I’ve used (at least for beginners and lower intermediate) to be really cute with lots of drawings and fun design! Both Genki and Minna No Nihongo has a nice layout! But i do think you are right in that there aren’t a lot of pictures 🤔 Mostly drawings!
Yo thanks for the vid! I started learning a couple weeks ago using dual lingo.... which is good for vocab but terrible for grammar... I’ll definitely take a look at the books you showed in the video! Also I’m a new sub 😁 I’ll tell my sister bout ur channel too.. she’ll probably sub too!
Thank you for your comment!!
My boyfriend uses duolingo for English so I’ve seen the app a bit, and as you say it doesn’t seem to be very helpful for grammar. 😂 I can recommend “maggie sensei”, it’s a blog that teaches you lots and lots of grammar, and I used it a lot when I self studied!
Thank you for joining the community! 🙌🏻
johannakatakana cool I’ll check it out
You should read the manga.
Ruby is waving in the kanji of boy and girl comics.
You can learn how to read kanji and onomatopoeia.
I am Japanese.
When I was a kid, I read "Doraemon" and learned how to read kanji.
That’s true, using kids books/manga is good for learning kanji! I think “adult manga” is a bit harder for beginners though, since they use quite difficult kanjis too. But thank you for the advice!! ☺️
Loved this video. Helped me so much. I bought genki and that was a good tip for me. Also bought some of the books about grammar and vocabulary you recommended. This video was so useful, thank you for that.
I'm so happy it was helpful for you!! Love Genki! Good luck with your Japanese studies! 💪
I really appreciate your choice
Weirdly surprised at how she said kanjis instead of kanji for plural
Haha it’s probably not correct but I do say that sometimes 😂
Where the bookstore? Kinokuniya?
whats the name of the store
It’s in the description! ☺️
where did you buy your book? I want.
The name of the book store is in the description! ☺️
@@johannakatakana thank you😊👍
i wonder if she got permission to film in the store.
This is sooo my vibe! Love this, thank you so much! Was on the fence about getting Genki, but I think imma give it a go 😁
Yesss, I loved using Genki!!
@@johannakatakana I’ve heard some people say it can be very “textbook-y” or “robotic,” but I’ve heard it’s still really great and that 1 pretty is equivalent to JLPT N5, and 2 to N4. I’ve been studying Japanese on my own for a little over two months, so I’ll definitely check it out! Thanks again :)
That book store is so amazing, I will be crazy in there trying to get a lot of books, here in my country I just found a few book, I usually have to buy them on internet
It has everything!! And it’s often way cheaper than ordering Japanese books online, I remember ordering Genki 2 and paying almost three times the price of what I could get it for in any book store here (which I noticed when I came here lol). Endless possibilities!!
My country don't have any books!
one question:I'm to lazy to write and don't like using anki or any srs systems so I only learn kanji through reading things of interest ( manga, novels) am I wrong or missing out on sonething ?
I didn’t use any specific systems to learn kanji, I just studied them a few at the time, used them in context and remember them in that way! I personally think if you study Japanese you should learn how to write too, since it is a part of the language. However, if your goals with Japanese isn’t to write, then I guess you probably won’t need to learn how to write them and just how to read them! I do think that you could go about your kanji learning in a more active way, since just learning by reading (if you’re not taking notes and practicing those kanjis) won’t be at all as effective and you probably will forget at lot! If you want to be more effective, I don’t necessarily think that you need to use a “kanji system” to learn, but at least using flash cards or writing them down and practicing them is important! ☺️
Book store address?
The name is in the description! ☺️
I am self-teaching myself japanese. Is it easy to understand those books for someone like me?
Minna no nihongo is hard if you don’t get the extra book with English explanations, because everything is in Japanese! I’d say Genki is one of the easiest ones to understand when you’re starting out!
I needed this type of video!! Tysm for making this vid im currently learning Japanese and this would really help me see which ones I need :)
Happy to hear that!!
Thank you for your valuable review of each text book. Could you provide the name of text books in your video (7.55) ?...Thank you so much.
I’m happy it was helpful! I have put a link to the book in my description under “Somatome grammar”, so please take a look there! ☺️
Can i have your old books? 😔
Haha, I’m afraid I’ve given them all away! 😂
@@johannakatakana oh, i see...thanks anyway.
What is the name of the books at 2:28?
Somatome! The vocabulary book is linked in the bio!
@@johannakatakana ありがとうございました
Thank you for the video. Can you please list the books that you have mentioned in the video and the books for N4 exam practise. Thank you in advance.
I’ve linked all the books in the description box! ☺️
This was so helpful, and you’re so cute!
You’re so sweet, this comment made me smile! Thank you! ☺️❤️
@@johannakatakana that makes me super happy that I could make you smile from across the world! I hope that we can interact more in the future!
So many books , I want them all :P
I know right!!
just a question about the genki book. if u want to buy the first part do u need to be at the n5 level or can i just buy and learn everything from the book
No, you can start with it as a total beginner! When I said N5 I meant that you will learn N5 level japanese with that book! ☺️
Recommendation for self-learners?
Start off with books, start early to study kanji, read texts out loud to practice your speaking/pronunciation/reading speed! ☺️
@@johannakatakana Sorry, I meant books recommendations for self-learners. Thank you
Oh haha! 😂 To start off I recommend Genki! And the somatome books have been of great help in my studies too!
I have just started learning Japanese with teacher who lives on my street. She makes up her own exercises so I am not familiar with the N1-5 system. Is 1 the beginner level or is it 5?
N5 is the beginner level and N1 is the highest! It’s not necessary to study according to the JLPT “system”, it’s more like a guideline to assess your Japanese level (it however does not cover all parts of the language and it doesn’t necessarily reflect your level completely), it’s mainly useful if you want to study/work in japan or in a place where japanese is needed, as a proof of your level! Again, it’s not always accurate to your level and shouldn’t be used as the only way to assess your level! ☺️
@@johannakatakana Thank you. I am somewhat familiar with what it is for because my son has been living in Japan for the last 8 years. I am not sure if he has taken any of the exams but he is at a pretty high level. He has had job interviews where they assessed his Japanese plus he has done some freelance work translating for Manga comics. Also, he is married to a Japanese woman so he speaks it all the time.
excellent.. a lot of different kinds of Japanese books.. but hope to have a great dictionary
They have dictionaries too! ☺️