Basic Kanji Book, Vol. 1

Kanji Books #1

by Chieko Kano

Basic Kanji Book Volume 1 This volume covers about 250 kanji and the second volume completes the 500 in the Basic series. These books are really textbooks just for learning kanji. Each lesson covers about 10 characters and begins with a section called "About the kanji" which gives interesting background on the kanji you are about to learn. Next comes writing and reading lessons for each kanji. Lastly, there is a longer reading section followed by a game or some quiz.

Genres: Japanese Literature, Nonfiction, Language, Japan, Reference, Textbooks, Education

235 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1990

Reviews

[Danni (bookswithdanni) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book for learning Kanji!
This was used alongside my Japanese Uni course and was really helpful. You do need to know some basic grammar to complete some of the review sections, but this book is a great tool to use for practice.

[Tobi ﾄﾋﾞ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve used this book many times over the last few months, and I really recommend it. This is an essential resource for learners of Japanese seeking to grasp the fundamental characters of the language. This textbook offers a structured approach to kanji acquisition, catering to both beginners and intermediate learners.

The book begins with a detailed introduction to the Japanese writing system, providing invaluable insights into kanji's historical development, stroke order, and radicals. This foundational knowledge sets the stage for the following chapters, where learners are introduced to a curated selection of 250 kanji characters.

Each kanji is presented with clear explanations of its meaning, readings (both on'yomi and kun'yomi), and common compounds. Ample space is provided for practice, allowing students to reinforce their understanding through writing exercises. Furthermore, the book incorporates mnemonic devices and mnemonic stories to help memorisation, making the learning process more engaging and effective.

One of my favourite features is its emphasis on context. Through contextual examples and dialogues, you can practical insights into how kanji are used in everyday communication, enhancing their comprehension and retention.

The book includes exercises and quizzes to assess progress, along with materials such as vocabulary lists and review sections. These resources serve to reinforce learning and facilitate self-assessment, making it an invaluable tool for self-study or classroom instruction.

With its clear explanations, ample practice opportunities, and focus on practical usage, it is an indispensable resource for anyone embarking on the journey of mastering the Japanese writing system. Whether you're a beginner seeking to build a strong foundation or an intermediate learner looking to expand your kanji proficiency, this textbook can help bring your language skills to new heights, and you should definitely check it out!!!

[Elena Zhelezina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good book for a start. You need to know some grammar basics to do exercises, so it is not a book for someone from level 0. I especially enjoyed excersises. All other books that I saw in a shop don't have them. It took me about two months to finish it.

[Diana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really good for learning Kanji! It shows the steps of writing, different readings, and a few words using each character. It also has exercises so that you can practice reading.

[Jenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I used this as a supplement to my class textbooks when I was a beginner in Japanese. A very simple but useful way to learn the most important kanji. As the kanji are grouped together (some lessons have kanji that share a radical or meaning etc) I found it easier to remember, and there are of course exercises to practise the kanji you have just learnt. Importantly, the Basic Kanji Book also has lessons to introduce important fundamentals (such as radicals, stroke order, wago, kango etc) that I have found to be missing from some other beginner's kanji textbooks. Both Vol. 1 and 2 are in the same format and I do recommend this for beginners either to learn or review the most frequent kanji.

[Kenzie Tuttle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book for learning kanji. My teachers in Japan used this book to teach us kanji. I really liked the layout of the pages. It gives the kanji, the meaning, the on and kun readings as well as the stroke order. For each kanji the book gives common words that that kanji is used in. It also includes tips on how to remember a variety of kanji. Definitely my favorite book series for learning kanji.

[Hanieh Sadat Shobeiri · Rating 3 out of 5]

Putting aside the fact that Kanji is already so FU***KING hard, this book handles it quite well. Although I think it could have tried to make studying a little bit more interesting.

[Natasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had gotten this book a few years ago when I had entered my Beginners Japanese class. I have since then bumped up to Intermediate Japanese. My main struggles revolve mostly around kanji and not being able to remember the vast numbers of said characters we are expected to know. As I was struggling this year, I took some time to review with this Kanji Book, and it had helped me a lot! I wouldn't say it was fun, but with the work spaces included and drawing as a means to help remember certain characters, I found it very advantageous in my Japanese studies. I recommend this book to those who want to learn Japanese in a memorable and straightforward way.

[Aya Bawadekji · Rating 5 out of 5]

It took me almost a month to finish this amazing book...
I found it simple and exciting... Love the instructions of how to draw strokes
But not for those who have no idea about basic grammar
Hope that I'll finish vol.2

[nocka · Rating 5 out of 5]

Honestly it's the best book for kanji I've ever used. It comes with English translation of character's meanings and words, so it's a good book to use if self-studying Japanese too~

[Irene · Rating 4 out of 5]

Goodie

[Samantha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like this book as a practice!

[karolinka · Rating 1 out of 5]

jak ja nienawidze kanji

[Dina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wish there was a key with the answers of the exercises. Great book to learn kanji and vocabulary.

[David DL]

lengua

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

In 22 lessons, 250 high-frequency kanji are introduced, grouped by categories (sometimes multiple lessons with the same category), for example, kanji made from pictures, numbers, signs, adjectives, verbs, time, radicals, human relationships, movement, position, etc. Meanings and readings are taught with a good amount of both recognition and production practice. This is a workbook and you should do all the exercises to get the most benefit out of it. It's good for a beginner but would need to be used in conjunction with other language materials that teach grammar, etc. since you might have difficulty with the reading practice otherwise (in understanding the sentences). It goes without saying that you should already know your hiragana and katakana before opening this book. For me, I already recognized all the 250 kanji, if not in Japanese, then in their Chinese meaning, so I was using the book for Japanese reading and usage practice. For that purpose, I really liked the exercises, their relevance to real life, and their variety (reading simple maps, letters, little games like crossword puzzles, etc). I also learned a fair amount of new vocabulary from the kanji compounds presented.

[Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my first introduction to kanji as a beginner student in 1998/1999 and it was an indispensable learning tool. It gave me a great foundation in the language and was structured well in that the grammar used in each section ramped up slowly as the units went on, complementing what I was studying with my teacher. An excellent primer on kanji -- there is no other study text I would recommend.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like this kanji book a lot. They give you kanji in a nice order for learning, balancing starting simply with usefulness. Showing a path of evolution from picture representation to kanji is useful, and interesting. The various readings, examples, and exercises help me to remember the kanji, and how to use the different characters. Overall, an excellent supplement to a Japanese textbook and class.

[Ainur Rofiq · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sudah saya babat habis buku ini sejak jaman kuliah. Kanji dasar berjumlah kurang lebih 500 kanji di ajarkan di buku ini. Mulai dari kanji alam sampai kanji tubuh. Struktur kanji masih sederhana tidak terlalu rumit, begitu juga dengan jumlah coretannya masih sedikit. Buku ini sangat bagus dan mudah di gunakan. Sangat bermanfaat sekali bagi pembelajar bahasa Jepang.

[Lukáš · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book presents kanji in a number of doable chunks, all complete with readings, meanings, examples and follow-up exercises that will help you ingrain them in your mind. I recommend to combine it with a SRS software like Anki to get the most out of it - there are even premade decks for both volumes!

[Mikuwashi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I SO love this book. It was my first kanji book for studying the Japanese writing system and it was itroduced to me by my sensei. I owe her so much for recommending it to me - I just run through it at first and I already knew I was going to really get into learning Japanese, including the writing, which tends to put off so many students. That wasn't the case for me - thanks to this book series.

[Erin]

I've done two lessons so far and they are really great. The second lesson builds on the first so as to reinforce previously learned material. Plus it's in the format of a workbook and I love workbooks.

[Brendan · Rating 4 out of 5]

These are the best

[Eaglechen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bin zwar noch nicht durch und erst (!) bei 65 Kanji, aber das Buch muss aus der Liste da raus, deswegen bewerte ich es jetzt schon und es gefällt mir ja auch wirklich. :D

[Javier · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book use a simple methodology to learn kanji.

[Noghy · Rating 5 out of 5]

warui

[Virgo Yến · Rating 5 out of 5]

sách hay nhiều

[Brenn Timoteo · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's the perfect book foe building your most basic kanji skills. It has a lot of reading and excercises and not just a list of words like many other books.

[Tegas Memleket]

yes

[Izzuddin Ahsanujunda · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fun and made-easy way to learn an otherwise daunting part of Japanese languange - the Kanji. This book helped you about the mnemonics and radicals of each kanji which could helped you in developing your own mnemonics. Along with the kanji characters, you also given a structured exercise and reviews that helped you not only learn new characters but also keeping the characters you've learned from slipping away.