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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
good place to start, November 8, 2008
I think this is a very good book to start off you basic studies in Japanese with, but expect 9-12 months time to complete it.
True, the first edition was printed in 1977, but the one you are currently looking at was printed in 1985.
Each chapter starts with a dialogue-text in Japanese script:
Hiragana, Katakana and Kanji...even from the first chapter.
After this the authors analyze and explain the dialogue, words and grammar. Following this are exercises in pronunciation, word substitution drills and a reading comprehension text (in script).
But as the book progresses other types of exercises are introduced as well, and there are quizzes every 5th chapter or so. As the book progresses more and more Japanese script is used, but romanized script remains the main tool for explaining the grammar. The grammar is explained very clearly, much more so than in Japanese For Everyone (JFE).
Another positive thing is that the book shows intonation: this book uses the standard Tokyo dialect.
The book introduces around 450 kanji-words, which is about what Japanese For Everyone covers. The Kanji-characters are usually introduced as words, so you don't learn every possible on/kun pronunciation for each character.
Personally, I think this is more practical: recognizing whole words makes your reading speed faster than recognizing Kanji one-by-one. The book does not show you how to draw each Kanji. If you want to you can always look up individual Kanji in a dictionary such as A Guide to Remembering Japanese Characters (Tuttle language library) (Japanese Edition).
The vocabulary covered in the book is around 1400 words, so it covers the basics and prepares you for intermediate.
Related books:
There is a follow-up intermediate book available once you complete this one, written by the same authors: Intermediate Japanese: An Integrated Course.
There are also two grammar note-books that accompany this book: Supplementary Grammar Notes to "an Introduction to Modern Japanese" Part 1: Lessons 1-15 and Supplementary Grammar Notes to an Introduction to Modern Japanese/ Part 2 Lessons 16-30.
Final notes:
I have been learning Japanese for 3 years now and I strongly believe that
it is best for beginners to learn Japanese grammar through romanized script rather than going directly into hiragana when covering grammar.
The problem with using Hiragana for explaining grammar is that the fresh learner has two things to focus on. You will be able to read the script faster, but it also means that your understanding of grammar becomes slower. Only when you are fully confident in Hiragana should you try to learn grammar through it, to me this means not until you reach the intermediate stage.
The book is quite old, but the age is not an issue if you want to learn introductory Japanese, the language still has the same structure, it's just that some vocabulary has changed.
People who like drill-based excercises are usually those who are patient, like a systematic linear method of learning, and like making their own notes. The key to optimize your learning from drill & substitution excercises is to actively think about what you are doing.
Challenge yourself and don't just put 'X into blank space Y' like a robot.
If you are a person who gets bored very easily then I think Genki 1: An Integrated Course in Elementary Japanese 1 (Japanese Edition) or Japanese for Busy People I: Kana Version includes CD (Japanese for Busy People Series) (Bk. 1) would really suit you better.
But personally, of all the Japanese language material I have used - this old book is my personal favorite. I first used it at my university library 3 years ago, but couldn't get my own copy until Amazon started its marketplace service. I still prefer to use this one for my revisions, it may be sentimentality or it may be that this simply is a good book.
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2.0 out of 5 stars
Poor choice for first time learner., October 24, 2008
First things first: This book was first published in 1977.
Second: The book relies heavily on romaji (romanization of Japanese alphabet). For the experienced Japanese learner, that's not a big deal, but for first time learners, romaji has significant negative impacts on pronunciation habits, and slows overall progress because you're not using the Japanese alphabet. Take it from someone who learned that lesson the hard way. Switching over to the Japanese alphabet after learning romaji is much more difficult than just learning the Japanese alphabet in the first place.
Even worse, the romaji and translations are placed on one side of a page, while the pure Japanese dialogue is placed on the opposite page, making it extremely difficult to follow unless you've already had previous Japanese experience.
The book also introduces many nouns within the lessons that are never translated. The lessons simply want you to recite and repeat them while oblivious to what you're saying.
Overall, an extremely poor "introduction" to "Modern" Japanese (if you consider 1970's Japan to be modern).
Look elsewhere beginner students.
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by Kenneth G. Henshall
by Jonathan Bunt
by Wolfgang Hadamitzky
