Damn. I'm trying to teach myself Japanese since I can't afford a class, an' all. I bet my pronunciation's waaay off.
Posted by J00kst3r at January 16, 2006 08:48 PMI should compile a list of books I've used. My speaking skills suck, since I study alone. Reading, with the help of a dictionary is okay. I'm not anywhere close to where I want to be though. I study several hours a week. Also, having a couple of friends in Japan to talk with is a big bonus. You can find people to talk to at places like Kanji Step and what not. Keep it up! It's hard, but fun!
Posted by Zoso at January 19, 2006 07:25 PMHave you heard of a series of books by James W. Heisig? The first one contains an ingenious method that works astoundingly well. All the books carry hefty titles (Remembering the Kanji I: A Complete Course on How Not to Forget the Meaning and Writing of Japanese Characters) but are otherwise a great help. A PDF-file containing the first 8 or so lessons is available for download, you shouldn't have much trouble locating it. Kanji are after all a bitch to remember.
The second book is where things get interesting for you; it teaches you the on-yomi as well as kun-yomi readings of the kanji learned in the fist book (2000+). (purchasing the second volume without having learned the first one is far from advised) I have heard of people who passed the JLPT using these first two tomes in addition to previous lessons. As I said before; search for the downloadable first part (250 kanji) and READ the introduction before you start. Also, useful advice from users can be found at amazon.com.
Good Luck
Hey, thanks! I think I know what you're talking about and have seen them online. I'll check them out. I need all the help I can when it comes to remembering those little buggers!
Posted by Zoso at January 25, 2006 01:19 PM