Customer Reviews

Let's Learn Japanese Picture Dictionary (Let's Learn...Picture Dictionary Series)

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book is a necessity for any student of the Japanese language. Hundreds of words each have their own illustrations and most pages have large, beautiful composite drawings great for point 'n' mane practice. The subjects are very diverse and include "The Make-Believe Castle", "The Attic", and "The Mouse Hunt", which list some unusual and fun words. I might just need to say 'fairy princess' while in Japan, or reading manga. The book uses English, romanjij (Japanese words in the Roman alphabet), as well as kana and kanji (Japanese characters) so readers of any skill level can read and use the book. As a beginning student of the language, I found the multiple alphabet format used for each word very helpful. I enjoyed reading and learning from this book very much and I recommend it as an addition to any language student's or child's library.

I bought this book in a bookstore before we moved to Japan; I was so excited to see a Japanese picture book that my daughter may enjoy that I bought it immediately. In reading through it before our move here, it was interesting, although a bit dense with information since I initially bought it for my preschool-aged daughter. This may be more useful for adults or school-age kids who want to learn Japanese words in a context beyond just memorizing the words and their meanings, but rather associating pictures with the Japanese words and how they are pronounced. The pictures are good, and my daughter enjoys looking at them for a little while; however, they really are geared more toward adults or school-age children (i.e. they are not the fun and happy pictures to which preschoolers or that age group are typically drawn). I do still go over it in limited doses with my 3-year old to help her learn Japanese words, but this is not a book she will pull off the shelf and look through on her own (she does do that with most of her other books).

Now that I am living in Japan and learning the language and having to use it in everyday life, I find myself reading this book more than my daughter, where it is useful as a tool to increase my vocabulary. There is also a nice index in the back of the book with both the english as well as romaji text for the Japanese words. I wouldn't use this book by itself to learn Japanese, but do not think that was ever its intention anyway. This is a nice book in that it does include the kanji/hiragana/katakana text for the words as well as how it is pronounced. The actual Japanese script for the words is great because it can help you identify it on packaging or other times you need to learn the written word. For a real beginner, having the romaji pronunciation help there is a plus, since learning all of the kanji scripts and their respective pronunciations can be more than a little overwhelming (at least there are more limited numbers of hiragana and katakana scripts to learn). For those of us learning Japanese and needing to use it in everyday life, having the romaji pronunciation there is a big help, vs. a more academic approach of strictly learning all of the Japanese script (kanji, hiragana, katakana) for the words.

My mother is a Japanese and I am a Japanese American. She and I will be using this book to teach my son Japanese. The drawings in this book are very friendly. Kids have fun time reading this book.

We also use this book to teach adult students Japanese. Like the saying "pictures worth thousand words", the grown-ups also find the classes interesting when using material like this one.

One great thing about this book is that Kanji and English are also listed next to each picture. That is a big help for those who are serious about learning how to read and write Japanese...

We highly recommand this book.

I have never seen a "dictionary" laid out this way, but I love it! Every time you turn a page you get a two page spread of a scene from daily life: school, work, home, neighborhood, etc. - kind of "Where's Waldo" style. Within the picture almost everything is labelled in Japanese. It's really a great idea for helping kids (and adults) link the internal concept of a thing or action with the spoken word for that action, rather than trying the translation approach. A really great learning aid!

This is actually a very well written and illustrated book. The problem is that I am a beginner. This book has hiragana, katakana, and kanji all mixed on the same pages. I am not quite ready for kanji. If you are, the book is perfect. For the true beginner, you may wish to hold off on this book until you learn hiragana and katakana in complete detail!

I bought this for my kids before we moved to Japan but I have ended up using it more often. I have started teaching English to Japanese students (both adults and kids) and this picture dictionary comes in very handy. The pictures are great and it includes a lot of different words, grouped by scenario. For example, the first couple of pages show a house and every thing in the house is labeled. Each room, the furniture/appliances in each room, and various decor in each room. The next couple of pages show a kitchen and many different types of foods that can be found in a kitchen are labeled. Some of the different scenes that are covered are outer space, the ocean, make-believe (which includes a castle and related items), and human history (cavemen) - just to name a few. I recommend this picture dictionary for anyone who is looking to expose themselves or their children to the Japanese language, even if you aren't travelling to or moving to Japan.

Lets Learn Japanese Picture Dictionary is a Japanese learning resource targeted at 4-7 graders but one I find to be useful even as an adult. With over 1500 words grouped by subject (usually a place or locale), it shows the scene (reminiscent of Richard Scarry but with lesser artwork and no animals) and then breaks out the individual items. The items are indentified in English, "Romaji" (Japanese word with Roman letters) and then in Japanese (hiragana, katakana, or kanji as appropriate).

I really like this when compared to other, similar items such as First Thousand Words In Japanese, as the Lets Learn Japanese Picture Dictionary has the English so it can be used by Japanese speakers. I find that having the picture helps reinforce the idea when compared to just seeing the word. Another feature I like is the Japanese-English glossary and index in the back that helps locate a word in either Japanese or English. The inclusion of Romaji makes this usable by even those who cannot (or in my case forgotten how to) read Japanese kanji or kana. I bought one copy for myself (and my native Japanese speaking wife) and one for my nieces and nephews in Japan. I highly recommend it as a handy practice resource for kids and even adults learning Japanese.

My dictionary arrived yesterday. It is the exact same pictionary from back when I was learning Spanish XD It is EXACTLY the same. Same pictures and everything. The ONLY difference is everything's in Japanese instead of Spanish. But it is the EXACT same thing except that part. XD XD

Brings back memories. <3 However, Although it wins points memory wise. A lot of the vocab, you don't need. Like who's wears a "Top Hat" anymore? I remember another comment about a man having a Japanese wife who says,"They have words that people don't even use anymore." That is true. I don't think you are going to need "movie projector" or "spinning wheel." However, the visual aid is very helpful. But the artist is very lazy. I remember the same pictures from my childhood with the Spanish dictionary. What I mean is, they aren't even Japanese scenes. These are American scenes with Japanese words under them. It would be nicer if they were Japanese pictures instead of American pictures.

This book is great for any beginner who is looking to broaden their Japanese vocabulary. It has numerous full page spreads which are interesting and fun to look at. Along the margins are pictures of the objects or people you are learning the Japanese words for along with the romaji and either hiragana, katakana or kanji symbols. My only complaint was that they were not all in simply hiragana or katakana (for reading practice) but were instead in kanji. This is good though considering everything you would read beyond children's level is a combination of the three. Plenty of interesting topics for each layout too, from living room and kitchen to zoo, space and medieval castles! Recommend to any beginner looking to increase their Japanese vocabulary.

Children's book or no, I was hoping this picture dictionary would be very useful. Unfortunately its usefulness is abated by the use of romaji. Do not be mistaken, kana and kanji are used -- each word/image is broken up into English, romaji, and its proper kana or kanji. However, I would very much have prefered that it just be English, kana, and kanji with furigana/rubi where required.

As it stands, the romaji becomes a crutch. Not to mention it is the only way of learning the pronunciation of the kanji, something I very much dislike.

If you don't mind this issue, then it is otherwise a very good book.