Here is a list of recommended language resources from users in our community.

Of course we've been addicted to language learning for a while, so we've got a few things to recommend on this page that can help you excel in Japanese. But as the day's, week's, month's, and year's pass by, this list will see an evolution or recommended books, web sites, and multimedia (CDs, MP3s, Tapes, Video). This evolution will come from our ongoing interest in the language and through your excellent feedback and recommendations.

Everyone starts out somewhere along the road to improving their language skills and we look forward to adding your contributions along that journey.

Hopefully we'll get everything covered, but if you don't see something you think should be on the list let us know.

For the beginner

If you’re looking for a complete educational series that takes you from beginner to expert, then take a look at the Japanese for Busy People series published by AJALT (Association for Japanese-Language Teaching). AJALT is located in Tokyo and has an excellent reputation for teaching Japanese to business executives and diplomats.

If you like to do your own research or have plenty of time to browse the internet for good resources, then head on over to Jim Breen’s Japanese Resource page. He has a number of links related to all-things-Japanese that get updated on a regular basis.

If you're looking to complement Kanji for Fun! by learning more about Japanese writing, we recommend:

1. Remembering the Kanji (Vol 1) - An excellent way to remember Kanji by James W. Heisig
2. Beginner’s Japanese Dictionary - A great book for learning Kana and the first few grades of Kanji

For strictly learning Hiragana and Katakana we recommend two excellent workbooks written by Yasuko Kosaka Mitamura.

1. Let's Learn Hiragana
2. Let's Learn Katakana

And for grammar, we recommend:

1. A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar– by Seiichi Makino and Michio Tsutsui

For those who know a little more (or a lot)

For intermediate to advanced studies in Kanji, you can’t go wrong with books written by Halpern and Heisig. For general language learning the Kodansha's Children's Classics like the Let's Learn series above are very good. You’ll want to see about getting a good general reference dictionary as well. Here is our short list:

1. The Kodansha Kanji Learner's Dictionary - by Jack Halpern
   
   
2. Remembering the Kanji (Vol 2) - by James W. Heisig
3. Remembering the Kanji (Upper Level Proficiency) - Some people call this Volume 3
   
   
4. All About Particles
5. Japanese Core Words and Phrases
6. Japanese Sentence Patterns for Effective Communication
   
   
7. Kodansha's Basic English-Japanese Dictionary

Other recommendations

These references are good for all levels and have been recommended by our staff, you, and fellow students.

Crazy for Kanji - this is a fun book and something definitely worth looking into if you’re interested in learning more about the different meanings behind Kanji. This is an excellent complement to using the Kanji for Fun! reference section while learning your Japanese.