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Kanji Learner's Course Graded Reading Sets, Vol. 1: Kanji 1-100
* Designed for use with Kodansha’s widely acclaimed Kanji Learner’s Course (KLC)
* Entire series contains an average of over 13 practice items for each of the 2,300 kanji in the KLC
* Practice items contain only kanji you have already learned, and are supported by phonetic guides, an English equivalent, and Kindle’s easy-to-install J-E dictionary
* Series introduces over 600 key grammatical structures as they appear
* Read on Kindle devices or with the Kindle app on non-Kindle devices
The KLC Graded Reading Sets series contains over 30,000 parallel text segments distributed as reading practice for all 2,300 kanji in the course. This Volume 1 contains nearly 1,000 text segments, covering the first 100 kanji. The items for each entry contain only kanji previously introduced, and are designed to give you contextualized practice with reading the kanji-based vocabulary introduced in the course. The Graded Reading Sets allow you to apply each kanji you learn, as you learn it, and to continuously review what you have already studied.
To further aid comprehension, this series also introduces over 600 key grammatical structures as they appear, with cross-references that allow you to quickly find in-depth information about any structure that may be unfamiliar to you. This contextualized grammar support allows you to master a wide range of sentence patterns through the natural process of reading and understanding.
With the KLC Graded Reading Sets, there is no need to learn 1000 kanji or more before enjoying the pleasure of reading authentic written Japanese.
* Entire series contains an average of over 13 practice items for each of the 2,300 kanji in the KLC
* Practice items contain only kanji you have already learned, and are supported by phonetic guides, an English equivalent, and Kindle’s easy-to-install J-E dictionary
* Series introduces over 600 key grammatical structures as they appear
* Read on Kindle devices or with the Kindle app on non-Kindle devices
The KLC Graded Reading Sets series contains over 30,000 parallel text segments distributed as reading practice for all 2,300 kanji in the course. This Volume 1 contains nearly 1,000 text segments, covering the first 100 kanji. The items for each entry contain only kanji previously introduced, and are designed to give you contextualized practice with reading the kanji-based vocabulary introduced in the course. The Graded Reading Sets allow you to apply each kanji you learn, as you learn it, and to continuously review what you have already studied.
To further aid comprehension, this series also introduces over 600 key grammatical structures as they appear, with cross-references that allow you to quickly find in-depth information about any structure that may be unfamiliar to you. This contextualized grammar support allows you to master a wide range of sentence patterns through the natural process of reading and understanding.
With the KLC Graded Reading Sets, there is no need to learn 1000 kanji or more before enjoying the pleasure of reading authentic written Japanese.
316 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 17, 2017
343 people are currently reading
82 people want to read
About the author
Andrew Scott Conning
18 books16 followersI created the kanji course because it was the kind of tool I wished had existed when I was studying kanji myself! To support KLC users, I've made a Graded Reading Sets series, Writing Workbook, Wall Chart, and supporting website. If you're learning kana, please take advantage of my Kana Wall Chart and Kana Learner's Course mobile app (a carefully curated and comprehensive kana curriculum, free except for tests).
I sincerely hope that these tools will help you on your way toward a more direct and profound understanding of Japan and its people. Connect with me at asc349 [at] mail [dot] harvard [dot] edu, and join the growing community of KLC users on our Facebook group.
Best wishes for your studies!
I sincerely hope that these tools will help you on your way toward a more direct and profound understanding of Japan and its people. Connect with me at asc349 [at] mail [dot] harvard [dot] edu, and join the growing community of KLC users on our Facebook group.
Best wishes for your studies!
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
March 19, 2021
In the introduction it is mentioned that we shouldn't look at the translations as translations per se, but rather as an indication of the meaning that gets conveyed. I agree with this approach - more than with the approach where more literal translations are given, causing the Japanese to feel awkward and stiff (which it is not, of course).
Yet, more literal translations do have a place in the learning process; it's a necessary step in-between. So the only thing that would have made this graded reader better, would have been dual translations - at least for the first one or two volumes. The Japanese phrase translated as literally as possible, and whenever desirable, a translation that respects natural English.
This would make the bridge between Japanese and English and v.v. easier to cross. It would also make it easier to find out which elements signify what, and what changes translations often undergo (finding patterns, learning grammar intuitively). Finally, it would make translating the sentences from English to Japanese (more) feasible.
Some examples:
わたしはここのサービスについて一言言いたい。
is translated as:
I have a gripe about the service here.
This translation conveys the meaning of the Japanese phrase, but it doesn't necessarily help if you don't know most of the words already. For novice learners, a dual translation would be useful (scroll down to skip a long yet inexhaustive list of examples):
わたしはここのサービスについて一言言いたい。
I+here+service+about+a word+want to say.
Lit.: I want to say a word about the service of [this place] here.
KLC.: I have a gripe about the service here.
一から十までいわないとわからないの?
one(from)+ten(to)+not spell+not understand+?
Lit: From one to ten: if I don't say, you don't understand?
KLC: Must I spell out every little thing?
長い目で見て下さい。
Long + eye + look + please.
Lit: Please look with long vision.
KLC: I hope you won't expect results immediately.
話せば長くなります。
If talk+long+become.
Lit: If one talks, it will be long.
KLC: It's a long story.
本田さんは舌がよく回る
Honda+san+tongue+well+revolve/to function well.
Lit: Honda-san [his] tongue functions (very) well.
KLC: Honda-san is very talkative.
全く見えなかった
Lit: Everything could not be seen.
KLC: I could see nothing.
「無口」とは、ほとんど話をしない人のことを言う。
Lit: Mukuchi regarding, it says: barely talk wanting person.
KLC: "'Mukuchi' refers to a person who seldom talks."
And sometimes, a more literal translation would not only be closer to the original Japanese, but ALSO natural, at times even more natural. In these cases, the Kodansha translation could be omitted, or rather, replaced. Examples:
長話はもう止めたら?
Long+story+already+will stop.
Lit: Why don't you stop the long story?
KLC: "How about giving your tongue a rest?"
金山さんはぜいたくに生活する
Lit: Kaneyama-san lives in luxury.
KLC: "Kaneyama-san lives large."
なにも見えなかった。
Lit: Could not see anything.
KLC: "I could see nothing."
白山さんの言うことは全く正しい。
Lit: The thing Shirayama-san says, is wholly correct.
Nat: "What Shirayama-san says is spot on."
小金を大事にする人。
Lit: A person [for whom] small money is important.
Nat: "A great nurser of pennies."
This is about the only 'minus' I could give for the book. For me, it was perfectly fine as it was. But if a complete novice would try and use this reader, he would sometimes not understand how certain translations came to be - due to a lack of knowledge concerning grammar and set expressions. As this is a first volume of a series, and clearly made for a beginner; a 'graded' reader - only building upon the kanji that were already practiced, and adding notes for each new grammar point - I think dual expressions would be a good call, at least sometimes. As it is now, the reader risks discouraging novice learners. "Why don't I understand this? Isn't this beginner's material??" No, it is not. Not for an absolute beginner at least.
Side notes with implemented vocabulary + translations would be lovely as well, but I understand this might distract readers from the actual purpose: practicing kanji in context, and practicing reading. Vocabulary notes would definitely be beyond the scope of the reader. I would thoroughly appreciate it, but not having it doesn't make this reader any less worthwhile.
Novice learners: I don't recommend postponing kanji study, but it might be a good idea to wait with this reader until you've learned some grammar (like Genki). You can already start learning many kanji, but wait to take up the readers until you're a wee bit more advanced. I studied for 6 months several hours per day, only then I felt quite comfortable with the first reader.
All in all a definite 5 stars.
P.S. For those interested in planning: working through this reader and adding translations and info for the words I didn't already know, took me about 33 hours spread over 20 days, with a background knowledge of Genki I, 800 words, and 300 kanji (the latter being utterly useless for this reader, of course). You'll go faster much faster if you have more grammar down, or if you only focus on understanding the words and kanji in stead of learning them. What approach you choose, is entirely up to you.
Yet, more literal translations do have a place in the learning process; it's a necessary step in-between. So the only thing that would have made this graded reader better, would have been dual translations - at least for the first one or two volumes. The Japanese phrase translated as literally as possible, and whenever desirable, a translation that respects natural English.
This would make the bridge between Japanese and English and v.v. easier to cross. It would also make it easier to find out which elements signify what, and what changes translations often undergo (finding patterns, learning grammar intuitively). Finally, it would make translating the sentences from English to Japanese (more) feasible.
Some examples:
わたしはここのサービスについて一言言いたい。
is translated as:
I have a gripe about the service here.
This translation conveys the meaning of the Japanese phrase, but it doesn't necessarily help if you don't know most of the words already. For novice learners, a dual translation would be useful (scroll down to skip a long yet inexhaustive list of examples):
わたしはここのサービスについて一言言いたい。
I+here+service+about+a word+want to say.
Lit.: I want to say a word about the service of [this place] here.
KLC.: I have a gripe about the service here.
一から十までいわないとわからないの?
one(from)+ten(to)+not spell+not understand+?
Lit: From one to ten: if I don't say, you don't understand?
KLC: Must I spell out every little thing?
長い目で見て下さい。
Long + eye + look + please.
Lit: Please look with long vision.
KLC: I hope you won't expect results immediately.
話せば長くなります。
If talk+long+become.
Lit: If one talks, it will be long.
KLC: It's a long story.
本田さんは舌がよく回る
Honda+san+tongue+well+revolve/to function well.
Lit: Honda-san [his] tongue functions (very) well.
KLC: Honda-san is very talkative.
全く見えなかった
Lit: Everything could not be seen.
KLC: I could see nothing.
「無口」とは、ほとんど話をしない人のことを言う。
Lit: Mukuchi regarding, it says: barely talk wanting person.
KLC: "'Mukuchi' refers to a person who seldom talks."
And sometimes, a more literal translation would not only be closer to the original Japanese, but ALSO natural, at times even more natural. In these cases, the Kodansha translation could be omitted, or rather, replaced. Examples:
長話はもう止めたら?
Long+story+already+will stop.
Lit: Why don't you stop the long story?
KLC: "How about giving your tongue a rest?"
金山さんはぜいたくに生活する
Lit: Kaneyama-san lives in luxury.
KLC: "Kaneyama-san lives large."
なにも見えなかった。
Lit: Could not see anything.
KLC: "I could see nothing."
白山さんの言うことは全く正しい。
Lit: The thing Shirayama-san says, is wholly correct.
Nat: "What Shirayama-san says is spot on."
小金を大事にする人。
Lit: A person [for whom] small money is important.
Nat: "A great nurser of pennies."
This is about the only 'minus' I could give for the book. For me, it was perfectly fine as it was. But if a complete novice would try and use this reader, he would sometimes not understand how certain translations came to be - due to a lack of knowledge concerning grammar and set expressions. As this is a first volume of a series, and clearly made for a beginner; a 'graded' reader - only building upon the kanji that were already practiced, and adding notes for each new grammar point - I think dual expressions would be a good call, at least sometimes. As it is now, the reader risks discouraging novice learners. "Why don't I understand this? Isn't this beginner's material??" No, it is not. Not for an absolute beginner at least.
Side notes with implemented vocabulary + translations would be lovely as well, but I understand this might distract readers from the actual purpose: practicing kanji in context, and practicing reading. Vocabulary notes would definitely be beyond the scope of the reader. I would thoroughly appreciate it, but not having it doesn't make this reader any less worthwhile.
Novice learners: I don't recommend postponing kanji study, but it might be a good idea to wait with this reader until you've learned some grammar (like Genki). You can already start learning many kanji, but wait to take up the readers until you're a wee bit more advanced. I studied for 6 months several hours per day, only then I felt quite comfortable with the first reader.
All in all a definite 5 stars.
P.S. For those interested in planning: working through this reader and adding translations and info for the words I didn't already know, took me about 33 hours spread over 20 days, with a background knowledge of Genki I, 800 words, and 300 kanji (the latter being utterly useless for this reader, of course). You'll go faster much faster if you have more grammar down, or if you only focus on understanding the words and kanji in stead of learning them. What approach you choose, is entirely up to you.
January 9, 2019
Like a good wine and cheese, this book pairs well with Kodansha's Kanji Learner's Course.
In many ways, it's the ultimate resource for anyone wanting to be genuinely literate in Japanese. Each "chapter" contains around 12 sentences with one new kanji that's combined with everything else you've learned beforehand. This means that you're never reading anything beyond your reading level. It also means that the more kanji you acquire, the more words become available to you. The sentences also become more interesting, and you learn more grammar.
And if there is grammar point you haven't seen before, a reference to the grammar point is included with the exact page number in the popular A Dictionary of Japanese Grammar series.
Strongly recommended to everyone using the Kodansha Kanji Learner's Course!
In many ways, it's the ultimate resource for anyone wanting to be genuinely literate in Japanese. Each "chapter" contains around 12 sentences with one new kanji that's combined with everything else you've learned beforehand. This means that you're never reading anything beyond your reading level. It also means that the more kanji you acquire, the more words become available to you. The sentences also become more interesting, and you learn more grammar.
And if there is grammar point you haven't seen before, a reference to the grammar point is included with the exact page number in the popular A Dictionary of Japanese Grammar series.
Strongly recommended to everyone using the Kodansha Kanji Learner's Course!
April 11, 2021
This is a fantastic way to learn kanji, with its carefully chosen order, and the basic principle to build on examples that only use previously learned kanjis (the order corresponds to the one in the more terse, yet fundamental listing of 2,300 kanjis by the same author).
Not only this method reinforces learning through recognition of kanjis in context, but it's also a grown-up, reading person's course, as the examples consist of phrases from just about any way of life, from common usage to literary, technical, and also the occasional textbook-like entry.
Phrases are often glossed with useful grammatical information, with references to major Japanese grammars. The Kindle edition is probably best accompanied with the printed one, since for quick reviewing and reference the printed version is much more practical.
Finally, this first volume is only about the first 100 kanjis in Conning's Learner's Course, which gives a good idea of how deep and rich the supply of examples is.
Not only this method reinforces learning through recognition of kanjis in context, but it's also a grown-up, reading person's course, as the examples consist of phrases from just about any way of life, from common usage to literary, technical, and also the occasional textbook-like entry.
Phrases are often glossed with useful grammatical information, with references to major Japanese grammars. The Kindle edition is probably best accompanied with the printed one, since for quick reviewing and reference the printed version is much more practical.
Finally, this first volume is only about the first 100 kanjis in Conning's Learner's Course, which gives a good idea of how deep and rich the supply of examples is.
September 21, 2020
Gran compañero del The Kodansha Kanji Learner's Course: A Step-By-Step Guide to Mastering 2300 Characters. Ya deja bien claro desde un principio que se han ajustado tanto el uso de algunos kanji como las traducciones para que se entienda el uso de los mismos, no su significado literal. Es perfecto para praticar lectura, sin duda. Pese a todo, aconsejo no intentar aprender vocabulario con este libro. Mejor centrarse en el proporcionado por el KLC y marcado como de recomendada memorización.
August 24, 2017
It says $0.99 but the author distributes this book for free on his website as a pdf.
Five stars for the great N+1 kanji practice concept, large volume of exercises, and unbeatable price. But don't expect to read articles or stories. All the exercises in this volume are one sentence long.
There are about ten exercises per kanji on average, so it does add up to a lot of practice.
Five stars for the great N+1 kanji practice concept, large volume of exercises, and unbeatable price. But don't expect to read articles or stories. All the exercises in this volume are one sentence long.
There are about ten exercises per kanji on average, so it does add up to a lot of practice.
January 10, 2025
(Currently studying The Kodansha Kanji Learners Course (KKLC) via the physical main (blue) book, and reading these KKLC graded reading sets via the application called "Kanji Study" by Chase Colburn.)
You would think that these books would be good for beginners, but you need knowledge of hiragana, katakana, beginner grammar, and basic pronunciation for these books to be usable.
It would probably be best to work through these books after a course directed completely at beginners such as:
Beginner textbooks: Genki 1 and 2, Minna No Nihongo, Tobira Beginning Japanese
Free website for learning Japanese: Tae Kim https://guidetojapanese.org/learn/com...
Audio course: (the absolute best for near native pronunciation!) Pimsleur Japanese
If you're at the very beginning and struggling with hiragana and katakana, take a look at Dr. Moku. His app helped me a lot when I first started learning Japanese. https://www.drmoku.com/
Once you have the basics down, let's get into the meat of these KKLC graded readers.
The Good
Lots of sentences right at your fingertips with translations so that you know if you're doing it right. Lots of kanji and repetitions of said kanji you learn in current and future sentences to help you cement them in your mind.
The Bad
Uncommon words and terminology are often used to help you learn kanji. While this might be great for helping you have to remember the different readings, I feel like it is a monumentous waste of time to be learning words that aren't common.
Jank translations. (adj- broken; unnecessarily redundant, superfluous, or meaningless; stupid or ridiculously moronic; bootleg or of questionable quality - urban dictionary) Even considering that you need to have the basics down before you start this series, I am constantly and consistently surprised by how overdone and ridiculous some of the translations are. It's like some of them are completely normal, and some come straight from your British history class. This isn't, in my opinion, conducive for learning.
In Conclusion
I only VERY LIGHTLY (and with some consternation) recommend these books by themselves (with just the main textbook). They're not horrible but they sure as hell aren't enough and anyone who tells you that they are is pulling your leg big time.
You would think that these books would be good for beginners, but you need knowledge of hiragana, katakana, beginner grammar, and basic pronunciation for these books to be usable.
It would probably be best to work through these books after a course directed completely at beginners such as:
Beginner textbooks: Genki 1 and 2, Minna No Nihongo, Tobira Beginning Japanese
Free website for learning Japanese: Tae Kim https://guidetojapanese.org/learn/com...
Audio course: (the absolute best for near native pronunciation!) Pimsleur Japanese
If you're at the very beginning and struggling with hiragana and katakana, take a look at Dr. Moku. His app helped me a lot when I first started learning Japanese. https://www.drmoku.com/
Once you have the basics down, let's get into the meat of these KKLC graded readers.
The Good
Lots of sentences right at your fingertips with translations so that you know if you're doing it right. Lots of kanji and repetitions of said kanji you learn in current and future sentences to help you cement them in your mind.
The Bad
Uncommon words and terminology are often used to help you learn kanji. While this might be great for helping you have to remember the different readings, I feel like it is a monumentous waste of time to be learning words that aren't common.
Jank translations. (adj- broken; unnecessarily redundant, superfluous, or meaningless; stupid or ridiculously moronic; bootleg or of questionable quality - urban dictionary) Even considering that you need to have the basics down before you start this series, I am constantly and consistently surprised by how overdone and ridiculous some of the translations are. It's like some of them are completely normal, and some come straight from your British history class. This isn't, in my opinion, conducive for learning.
In Conclusion
I only VERY LIGHTLY (and with some consternation) recommend these books by themselves (with just the main textbook). They're not horrible but they sure as hell aren't enough and anyone who tells you that they are is pulling your leg big time.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews