Want to learn by reading!

12 comments

1. — You can find a great guide on how to learn by reading here:

   [https://learnjapanese.moe](https://learnjapanese.moe) (after you read through the guide make sure to also check out the resource page)

   — And the best resource for finding books by difficulty is probably this:

   [https://learnnatively.com/resources/search/](https://learnnatively.com/resources/search/)

2. consuming level-appropriate native media is always a good thing

   just be aware that this is not going to include most manga or anime for a beginner

3. First book I read was 魔女の宅急便

   But I only read 4 books. 200 seems pretty far.

4. Both [natively](https://learnnatively.com/) and [jpdb](https://jpdb.io/prebuilt_decks?show_only=novel&sort_by=difficulty) are great to check for books to read at your current level! I’m doing something similar with [my blog](https://dokushoclub.com/). I have collected links to [free reading resources](https://dokushoclub.com/free-reading-resources/n5-free-reading-resources/) which can be browsed by JLPT level.

   I also write short spoilerfree [book reviews](https://dokushoclub.com/category/book-review/) for everything I read inbetween N5 and N2, so maybe you will find the right book for you just by scrolling through 🙂

5. Did you notice about the post you reference that it wasn’t from a rank beginner? He already had a good foundation in Japanese but was just rusty and out of practice.

   You won’t have the anywhere near the same experience or results if you’re just trying to learn Japanese from scratch by essentially *decoding* books.

   Get some foundational skills first.

6. That guy who made the post had already passed the N1 test (which is the hardest proficiency test it goes N5 through to N1). I would definitely not recommend studying japanese from scratch from native materials because the language is so different from English you need some sort of foundation to build on. I would recommend going through Genki Volume 1 and 2 and then you could consider learning by reading after that.

7. Crystal Hunters Japanese version is the easier version and Natural Japanese is the harder version. It’s a great manga for beginners because it slowly levels up your Japanese per volume.

8. If you want to start from easy to harder stuff Graded readers are the way to go!
   For more information and free graded reader pdfs go here: https://www.reddit.com/r/LearnJapanese/comments/o7x7ha/2021_updated_free_tadoku_graded_reader_pdfs_1796/

9. I read without Anki. I’d recommend getting to a level where you can cover at least 5000 characters (~15 pages) a day before making the switch. When I was reading ~3.5k it was rough. Anki and mining will help you get to that point.

   I started with a solid foundation, but with easier materials you can probably start earlier. e.g. I started after passing N3, with Anki claiming my vocab was ~7000/8000, and ~1200 kanji in my deck. I had already read ~10 books, mostly 青い鳥 level stuff, but with a few ‘easier’ LN thrown in.

   The best setup you can use as a beginner is: Yomichan + JMDict + A Grammar Dictionary. That will help you uncover grammar points as you go along. The only struggle will be grammar points that have words in-between, as Yomichan won’t pick them up so easily. This can be done on Android with Kiwi browser if you don’t like reading on a computer.

   Once you’re past graded readers and have got bored of 小学生向け books, good LN is くまクマ熊ベアー, it has some N1/N2 grammar sprinkled in, but it’s rather straight forward.

   Note, learning this way is really not optimal if passing the JLPT is your goal (well not until N1). You end up picking up grammar and vocab from all levels (and stuff that won’t be on it). Likewise, you’ll find reading non-fiction to be beneficial.

10. I’m a bit like you (but did study Japanese many years ago, so there’s some prior knowledge tucked away there somewhere). I’d say understanding Japanese from scratch is pretty hard, even when you know the basic ideas behind sentence structure. It’s pretty much mandatory to study grammar on the side (Tae Kim’s guide is where I’m at myself).

    For actual reading material, I feel more motivated aiming above my level than drudging through textbooks (even if the latter is probably better for quick learning). For example, there’s a bilingual edition of Ogura Hyakunin Isshu (trans. Peter McMillan) which is pretty sweet. Since it’s waka poetry, I’m able to decipher a single text in a matter of only hours X-D

11. くま クマ 熊 ベアー and また、同じ夢を見ていた are fairly easy!

12. Hello! I am the OP from that post so I thought I’d chime in here.

    As u/HanzaiPodcast aptly mentioned, I was already at a higher level when I started the project that I wrote the post about and the target audience was rather those who may have a bit more foundational knowledge and would be curious to know about how they can improve their literacy.

    However, I don’t mean to discourage you! I would say simply based on my experience learning other languages as an adult that I started reading in much earlier and now speak fluently, I think it’s a good idea to first get a strong grasp of the basics before attempting to learn purely through reading. Having a solid grasp of essential, basic grammar and vocabulary will serve you later on and when you want to learn through immersion-type activities.

    If you do want to do some reading as a total beginner, I think it can be a great supplemental activity and opportunity to practice and solidify grammar concepts and vocabulary. There are lots of great suggestions for graded reader-type stuff in other comments of this thread so check those out in addition to the reading practice in whichever textbook or beginner’s resource you use! Implementing a bit of reading as a non-main, practice activity at the start of your learning can help keep things fun and remind you that there’s a big world of Japanese out there beyond what is in your textbook and help you keep your eyes on the prize of reading full-length books one day.

    Good luck with your studies! 🙂