Product Description

Japanese is a wonderful language, very different from European languages. It is also the gateway to the rich culture of the exciting and complex island nation of Japan. Some people get intimidated by the prospect of speaking Japanese—worried that it’s just too complex and different—but these fears are unfounded. While you can devote a lifetime to the study of this or any language, picking up the basics of Japanese doesn’t require any more than an interest and a willingness to try something new.

Japanese For Dummies has everything you need to get off the ground with speaking the language. Author and Professor of Japanese Eriko Sato starts you off with the essentials of grammar and pronunciation, giving you a working sense of the language, before showing you Japanese in action. You’ll then explore vocabulary and expressions through dialogues taking place in situations such as:

• Introductions and greetings
• Eating and drink ing
• Shopping
• Exploring the town
• Talking on the telephone
• Asking directions
• Getting around
• Staying at a hotel

You’ll also discover social customs, formalities, and manners, from how and when to bow to how to unwrap a present. Whether you simply want to introduce yourself to the Japanese language, say a few words to a neighbor or coworker, or you’re planning a major trip or study abroad in Japan, Japanese For Dummies will enable you to get the basics fast and work towards your own goal at your own pace. You’ll also find out about:

• How to use karaoke to help you learn Japanese
• Movies that will introduce you to Japanese culture and language
• Learning Japanese the “gourmet” way
• When ignoring “no, thank you” shows good manners
• Proper table manners
• Proper body language
• How to sound fluent
• And much more!

With helpful vocabulary summaries, a mini–dictionary at the end, and an audio CD full of conversations and pronunciations, Japanese For Dummies assumes no prior knowledge of Japanese on your part—providing the perfect guide for a quick–but–thorough, lighthearted–but–not–lightweight introduction to the language.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #141487 in Books
• Published on: 2002-06-20
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 408 pages

From the Back Cover
Speak Japanese – the fun and easy way!

Packed with clear explanations and real–world examples

Your friendly guide to understanding Japanese – quickly and easily!

Whether you’re a student, a traveler, or you just want to pick up basic Japanese, this unintimidating guide will help you start speaking the language in no time. Inside you’ll find a wealth of fascinating cultural facts and handy references – including a Japanese–English mini–dictionary, lists of common expressions and verbs, and much more!

All this on the bonus audio CD

• Pick up Japanese the easy way –through actual conversations
• Features dialogues by native Japanese speakers
• Allows you to hear Japanese as it’s really spoken
• Reinforces lessons from the book

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About the Author
Eriko Sato, PhD, is Professor of Japanese at State University of New York (SUNY) at Stony Brook. Sato is a native Japanese speaker experienced in teaching Japanese and in translation.

Customer Reviews

Learning Basic Japanese
I originally liked the look of this book because it was separated into clear sections and each chapter looked both interesting and useful.
Another feature of this book that I liked was the fact that it also contained cultural tips and Japanese faux pas - which I thought would be extremely useful, especially for people who wanted to visit Japan.
Once I started to use this book, however, I was a little disappointed. I did find it a useful language tool, but I was diappointed that the CD did not contain all of the converstaion exercises found in the book. I thought that it could have gone into more depth as pronounciation is very important when learning a language, especially with Japanese as it is so different to our own.

Not suitable for complete beginners
To echo the other reviews this book is not suitable for learning how to speak Japanese from scratch. For an introduction to speaking Japanese I'd recommend the excellent Talk Japanese book and CDs from the BBC.

I bought this book for an alternative introduction to Japanese and it is different. I have learnt a few things. Be aware that it's written for an American audience (another reason to get the BBC book). There is a lot of information in here but the presentation in terms of learning phrases is lacking. Also, huge chunks of dialogue are not represented on the CD. Don't get it as your first book, consider it for a second.

Useful - but only just
Don't rely on this for your Japanese instruction, but it does make a useful contrast to other Japanese self tutors.

The CD aural exercises are not brilliant - better elsewhere.