Thoughts on Tobira Beginning Japanese? Along with some other questions.

4 comments

1. I didn’t realize Tobira had a beginner book, that’s really cool! I’m not sure how it compares to the Genki series but the intermediate Tobira book was a very big (but much needed) step up from Genki 2, in my experience. So I would think it’s worth checking out.

2. The 2nd book should get you through N4.

   There’s no point getting Genki, they’re covering the same material. If you’ve already got this one, I’d in fact strongly say you *shouldn’t* get Genki to supplement. Not because there’s anything in particular wrong with Genki, but because getting 15 different resources covering the same material is the #1 reason people drop Japanese without making any progress. You convince yourself you have to look at all the resources and just stall out. It’s a classic trap.

   Tobira: Gateway to Intermediate Japanese is the obvious followup to the 2nd Tobira: Beginner book.

3. You could search for ToKini Andy’s review of these books which is fairly comprehensive. Even though he uses the Genki books to teach, the Tobira books have a slight edge in quality. The disadvantage is that Genki has a wider userbase and resources. On the other hand, he chose to use Quartet over Tobira intermediate.

4. I actually wrote a short review of the beginner Tobira book [here](https://www.tofugu.com/japanese-learning-resources-database/tobira-1-beginning-japanese/). Enjoy!

   Personally, I find it to be just like Genki, but more colorful and with modern language-learning features like the “Can-Do” system for learning and goal-setting. It’s a pretty comprehensive curriculum and I recommend it over Genki.