Learning Japanese Hiragana and Katakana: Workbook and Practice Sheets [Paperback]

Kenneth G. Henshall (Author), Tetsuo Takagaki (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0804838151 | ISBN-13: 978-0804838153 | Publication Date: November 15, 2006 | Edition: Second Edition

Learning Hiragana and Katakana is a systematic and comprehensive overview of the two kana systems needed to read and write Japanese. With expanded writing and preparation space, this revised edition offers ample provisions for practice, review and self-testing at several levels. It also includes a detailed reference section explaining the origin and function of kana and the various kana combinations. Complete with a detailed pronunciation guide, this volume will prove invaluable for beginning students or those accustomed to romanized Japanese.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Kenneth G. Henshall is a graduate of the universities of London (BA), Sydney (PhD), and Adelaide (Dip Ed), and is now a professor of Japanese at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand.

Tetsuo Takagaki is a graduate of the universities of Wakayama (BA) and San Francisco State (MA). He is the author of several publications on Japanese language and linguistics.

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Tuttle Publishing; Second Edition edition (November 15, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0804838151
• ISBN-13: 978-0804838153
• Product Dimensions: 11.1 x 8.7 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #131,507 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #56 in Books > Education & Reference > Dictionaries & Thesauruses > Foreign Language > Japanese
  • #94 in Books > Education & Reference > Foreign Languages > Instruction > Japanese
  • #97 in Books > Education & Reference > Foreign Languages > Japanese

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Exactly what I needed, November 19, 2007

By 

A. Ulloa (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Learning Japanese Hiragana and Katakana: Workbook and Practice Sheets (Paperback)

I am taking Japanese and needed some extra practice with Hiragana and Katakana. This is exactly what I was looking for. It even has a part where you have to figure out if you are suppose to write in Katakana or Hiragana! It also has empty blocks in the back just for un guided practice...so you don't have to use you notebook paper for more practice! When my Japanese teacher saw me with the book he himself said that it is a great system....my thought...........why isn't it being used in the college!?! This book company sells other great books for learning Japanese as well.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great practice workbook, January 24, 2010

By 

menkey "menkey" (Raleigh, NC United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Learning Japanese Hiragana and Katakana: Workbook and Practice Sheets (Paperback)

This is a great workbook for practicing your strokes. If you need mnemonics to help learn your characters, you will need to look elsewhere. This book is geared toward improving your writing skills, not learning the characters. The nice thing about this book is that not only does it show how the character should look in brush and also pencil, it also shows the historical derivation of the character which is nice to see. There is plenty of room for practice although I used separate sheets so as not to fill up the book. After each group of 10 characters it has several pages of practice words combining what you have learned up to this point which is a nice review. It has the words in romaji as well as written in Hiragana/Katakana so you can either copy if you're working on your penmanship (pencilmanship?), or you can cover the Japanese and look at only the Romaji to practice your character recall. There are also a number of pages with very thorough explanation of the different points in pronunciation, etc. Highly recommended.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Learning Japanese Hiragana and Katakana: Workbook and Practice Sheets, November 23, 2008

By 

Cendra Lynn (Michigan) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Learning Japanese Hiragana and Katakana: Workbook and Practice Sheets (Paperback)

An excellent workbook. Introduces the characters in an easy-to-grasp way and in a sensible order. Explains the derivation of the characters from kanji and gives plenty of ways to practice them.