Japanese From Zero! 1: Proven Methods to Learn Japanese with integrated Workbook and Online Support
- Downloads：4148
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-05-11 10:53:45
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：George Trombley
- ISBN：0976998122
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
Japanese From Zero is an innovative and integrated approach to learning Japanese developed by professional Japanese interpreter George Trombley and co-writer Yukari Takenaka。 The lessons and techniques used in this series have been taught successfully for over ten years in classrooms throughout the world。Using up-to-date and easy-to-grasp grammar， Japanese From Zero is the perfect course for current students of Japanese as well as absolute beginners。In Book 1 of the Japanese From Zero series， readers are taught new grammar concepts， over 800 new words and expressions， and also learn the hiragana writing system。Features of Book 1: * Integrated Workbook with Answer Key* Over 800 New Words and Expressions* Learn to Read and Write Hiragana* Easy-to-Understand Example Dialogues* Culture Points about Japan* Bilingual Glossaries with Kana and Romaji。。。and much more
Reviews
Furio
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------George TROMBLEY Jr。 / Yukari TAKENAKA - Japanese From Zero 1 - YesJapan Corporation （2014）---------------------------------------------------------------------------PremiseThe perfect Japanese coursebook doesn't exist。No， this isn't it。 Sorry。FeaturesThis is a Japanese self-study course for the layman， the gamer/anime fan/manga reader who wants to learn Japanese but has no experience in learning foreign languages and doesn --------------------------------------------------------------------------George TROMBLEY Jr。 / Yukari TAKENAKA - Japanese From Zero 1 - YesJapan Corporation （2014）---------------------------------------------------------------------------PremiseThe perfect Japanese coursebook doesn't exist。No， this isn't it。 Sorry。FeaturesThis is a Japanese self-study course for the layman， the gamer/anime fan/manga reader who wants to learn Japanese but has no experience in learning foreign languages and doesn't know how to do it。The course is self-sufficient， you don't need anything else， but you can watch the author's videos on YouTube or on the JapaneseFromZero website。Pro- Trombley knows his Japanese。 He was an interpreter， he's worked in Japan， he's married with a Japanese lady （the co-author）。- the author never forgets the book is aimed at self-learners。- explanations are basic and clear， there's no jargon。- although a separate booklet for kana is available， you don't need it。 You can learn kana with the book。- there's enough exercises and they are in the book， there's no need for a separate workbook。- the learning curve is low。- the cover looks good， but the paper is common。 No guilt-trip when writing in the book 🙂Contra- be prepared for rote learning。800 new words are introduced by 。a number of vocabulary lists。 A minority of that vocabulary is actually used in readings and exercises。- be prepared for rote learning （2）。The method is not always enlightened。How do they deal with numbers （numbers， in Japanese， are complicated）？ With charts。 Glorified lists。 There are not enough exercises to memorise them the sweet way。Personally， I used Elon。io。 Much better！- the method is not always enlightened （2）。Introducing the colours in a beginner's book is not a good idea。Why not？ Because they are highly irregular （don't ask） and have a lot of quirks。Trombley introduces those but he doesn't talk about regular adjectives。 Why？ Oh， why？Later in the books， counters are introduced。 Once again， with a chart。 Good luck with that。 And thank you Elon。io for allowing me to memorise them。- the book is simply not good for those with an analytical mindset or much experience with language learning。 Explanations are never fulfilling， not even for a beginner's level course。- by completing the first volume， you're NOT ready for the JLPT N5。Conclusion/Should you buy it？-you're not used to language learning？-you want a self-contained， self-study tool？-you don't need to pass an exam in the near future？-you have no problem with rote learning？Go for it。 。。。more
Chia-Yueh
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This books mix hiragana and romaji in the same sentence and introduces kanji too late， just to make Japanese learning less formidable。 However， this hampers learning progress for those who are serious learners。 Not recommended。
Timothy Johnson
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Incredible book！ Learned a lot， and in a very fun yet systematic way。 Will continue with book no 2！
Dinara Urazova
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Great book！ I tried both Minna nihongo and Genki but only this book helped me move forward and progress although those 2 are still good。 There were too many materials in those books， which was intimidating while here you only have 1 book and George's free YouTube videos。 I'm learning Japanese on my own now and this course is just perfect for me。 Absence of audio might be a drawback but no， youtube videos that go to all the lessons are so great and helpful， and fun as well）））。 Maybe It's just per Great book！ I tried both Minna nihongo and Genki but only this book helped me move forward and progress although those 2 are still good。 There were too many materials in those books， which was intimidating while here you only have 1 book and George's free YouTube videos。 I'm learning Japanese on my own now and this course is just perfect for me。 Absence of audio might be a drawback but no， youtube videos that go to all the lessons are so great and helpful， and fun as well）））。 Maybe It's just personal taste， I liked George very much， his laid-back， yet professional and friendly approach that learning Japanese has turned into a real pleasure like learning a language from a very good friend， so kind and motivating。 Look forward to passing through all the other books （have already purchased Kindle versions up to the last 5th book）。 I'm planning to combine this course with James Heisig course on kanji + trying to listen to simple Japanese radio or watch youtube videos for better practice 。。。more
Jason Cihelka
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Awesome first steps into learning the Japanese language。 It really gives you bite-sized pieces of information， while the integrated workbook is great for solidifying what you've learned。 As well， George's companion Youtube series is awesome - there are so many resources that go along with the book， and it's clear the authors have spent a lot of time thinking about how to teach Japanese。My only complaint would be that it's a little too slow （especially if you're using multiple resources to study， Awesome first steps into learning the Japanese language。 It really gives you bite-sized pieces of information， while the integrated workbook is great for solidifying what you've learned。 As well， George's companion Youtube series is awesome - there are so many resources that go along with the book， and it's clear the authors have spent a lot of time thinking about how to teach Japanese。My only complaint would be that it's a little too slow （especially if you're using multiple resources to study， and already learned a concept in the book）， but it's not a big deal- I'd much rather have something too slow than too fast。 。。。more
Andrew
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After reading “Japanese From Zero，” by George Trombley and Yukari， I realised how easy it could be to learn a fouriegn language。 The authors did an astounding job， and I was pleased to find such a good resource that would help me learn Japanese。 Most language learning Programs， like Duolingo， Bunpo， and Hiragana plus， teach in a one sided manner。 But “Japanese From Zero” informed me of many things besides language。 The authors included things like how to bow respectfully， how to set up devices After reading “Japanese From Zero，” by George Trombley and Yukari， I realised how easy it could be to learn a fouriegn language。 The authors did an astounding job， and I was pleased to find such a good resource that would help me learn Japanese。 Most language learning Programs， like Duolingo， Bunpo， and Hiragana plus， teach in a one sided manner。 But “Japanese From Zero” informed me of many things besides language。 The authors included things like how to bow respectfully， how to set up devices so I could type in all three forms of Japanese， and Japanese culture。 The book was structured in a way that I could easily retain information。 It also had review sections after every chapter， which helped me study before I continued。 I learned an unprecedented amount of Japanese with the help of this book。 Finally， “Japanese From Zero” synergized well with the previously mentioned programs to help me learn content quickly and effectively。 I can recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn Japanese， and in fact I already have。 ありがとうございます。 。。。more
Daniela Coccorullo
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Since I was a teenager， I've always wanted to learn Japanese。 I came across George's books and decided to give it a go with the first volume。 Best decision ever。 The books are easy to follow， fun and the progressive learning of the hiragana makes learning so natural。 And the YouTube videos that follow the lessons are the best。 I wish George had more books for other languages I want to learn， because he's so much fun and his technic is amazing。 I can't wait to read the other books （I've already b Since I was a teenager， I've always wanted to learn Japanese。 I came across George's books and decided to give it a go with the first volume。 Best decision ever。 The books are easy to follow， fun and the progressive learning of the hiragana makes learning so natural。 And the YouTube videos that follow the lessons are the best。 I wish George had more books for other languages I want to learn， because he's so much fun and his technic is amazing。 I can't wait to read the other books （I've already bought the 2nd and 3rd）。 。。。more
Christian Price
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Easy to understand begining to JapaneseAs textbooks go， this is probably the easiest to understand， granted the concepts introduced aren't too challenging， but the book is nonetheless an excellent introduction to basic Japanese。 I finished the whole thing in about two months on and off， but there is still a lot of vocabulary I've yet to memorise。 The only drawback is the lack of audio accompanying the textbook， but this is made up for by George's YouTube series by the same name。 Overall， it is d Easy to understand begining to JapaneseAs textbooks go， this is probably the easiest to understand， granted the concepts introduced aren't too challenging， but the book is nonetheless an excellent introduction to basic Japanese。 I finished the whole thing in about two months on and off， but there is still a lot of vocabulary I've yet to memorise。 The only drawback is the lack of audio accompanying the textbook， but this is made up for by George's YouTube series by the same name。 Overall， it is definitely the best textbook for beginners to Japanese， and I will definitely continue using the JFZ series。 。。。more
Michael Haase
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I liked the structuring and the lessons are never very overwhelming， but the vocab was too random at times and they weren't used frequently enough to memorize them。 All in all， a decent book for beginners。 I liked the structuring and the lessons are never very overwhelming， but the vocab was too random at times and they weren't used frequently enough to memorize them。 All in all， a decent book for beginners。 。。。more
Sarah
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This is honestly the best tool for learning Japanese。 I have used a couple of different tools including watching his online YouTube videos which I started on first。 I found them very helpful but always felt like there was something missing。 I finally purchased these books and they were amazing！ I like that they have little cultural facts along the way so you learn more about Japan then just the language。 I also like that each new lesson will tell you what you are expected to know before proceedi This is honestly the best tool for learning Japanese。 I have used a couple of different tools including watching his online YouTube videos which I started on first。 I found them very helpful but always felt like there was something missing。 I finally purchased these books and they were amazing！ I like that they have little cultural facts along the way so you learn more about Japan then just the language。 I also like that each new lesson will tell you what you are expected to know before proceeding and what to expect to get out of the next lesson。If you haven’t watched the YouTube videos I highly recommend them also but the books are the most important。 I also recommend downloading a little game whether it be on your phone or Nintendo ds to help memorise hiragana and kitana。 。。。more
Joanna
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I purchased this workbook and began chapter one in Sept 2018。 I marked it finished on leap day （Feb 29） of 2020。 It certainly didn’t take THAT LONG， but it was something I kept coming back to。 Over the past 6 months I became more serious about studying and this was a perfect supplement to my self study methods。 Daily Duolingo + 2 hours of this workbook each weekend。 I purchased book 2 and look forward to diving in！
Bridget
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Even though I don’t have much of an interest in learning Japanese myself， at least at the moment， the manga girl makes me intrigued。 My current language learning method is through drawing， so if it’s at least somewhat like that， that’s cool。 Maybe if I gain an interest in learning at least very basic Japanese I’ll look this one up。
Lona
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Hands-down the best book I have found for someone independently studying Japanese。 The YouTube videos that go along with the lessons are amazing as well！
Waleedalasiry
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Thank you so much for this great book George sensei。
Lang
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This book is the most user friendly （compared to Genki and Japanese for Busy People）。 It seems to go slowly at first， but then halfway you zip through。 So much of Japanese is decoded for you and told to you straight。 No it isn't comprehensive and it isn't a grammar book。 But if you go through the lessons methodically and just do it， you learn with ease。 （Reminds me of the gold list method， but fun。）I recently moved to Japan and I found myself learning a grammar point and immediately using it wit This book is the most user friendly （compared to Genki and Japanese for Busy People）。 It seems to go slowly at first， but then halfway you zip through。 So much of Japanese is decoded for you and told to you straight。 No it isn't comprehensive and it isn't a grammar book。 But if you go through the lessons methodically and just do it， you learn with ease。 （Reminds me of the gold list method， but fun。）I recently moved to Japan and I found myself learning a grammar point and immediately using it within 24 hours。 With the bite size nature of the grammar points， you get small wins everyday。 Versus normal Japanese course books that overload and baffle so you are flustered and get no wins。 I already started book 2 and it picks up right where the last book left off。 Immediately more useful and usable information。 。。。more
Rhys
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This book is a fun series of learning material for learning Japanese- I would recommend this if you can remember the symbols with ease as this book doesn't seem to give basic guide， before throwing you into the deep end！ This book is a fun series of learning material for learning Japanese- I would recommend this if you can remember the symbols with ease as this book doesn't seem to give basic guide， before throwing you into the deep end！ 。。。more
Lana
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Started this book knowing almost no Japanese。 I just finished it （in about 3 months） and can now proudly say that I know a lot of new words and sentences， can construct sentences myself and know all the hiragana。 The hiragana learning part was a bit too slow for me though， so to challenge myself I started learning all the katakana as well from other resources。 Already started the second book and I can't wait to learn more。 Also started learning a little kanji， but ofcourse that is much harder。 N Started this book knowing almost no Japanese。 I just finished it （in about 3 months） and can now proudly say that I know a lot of new words and sentences， can construct sentences myself and know all the hiragana。 The hiragana learning part was a bit too slow for me though， so to challenge myself I started learning all the katakana as well from other resources。 Already started the second book and I can't wait to learn more。 Also started learning a little kanji， but ofcourse that is much harder。 Now I'll be able to speak a little Japanese/ask for things when I'm going to Japan next year。 Thank you George！ 。。。more
Marek
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Biggest advantage of the book is that it has the video support on Youtube。 This way， you can practice not only using the book but even with the videos。On the other hand， the videos are way too lenghty full of random talk and fixing mistakes on the run。 And so is the book。 It also teaches many unnecessary words while skips important conversations。 Hence I ended up knowing 60 animals but I was not able to book a hotel。Last but not least， if you want to review your knowledge， the book is a bit usel Biggest advantage of the book is that it has the video support on Youtube。 This way， you can practice not only using the book but even with the videos。On the other hand， the videos are way too lenghty full of random talk and fixing mistakes on the run。 And so is the book。 It also teaches many unnecessary words while skips important conversations。 Hence I ended up knowing 60 animals but I was not able to book a hotel。Last but not least， if you want to review your knowledge， the book is a bit useless due to its "progressive" kana learning method。 All the phrases will be written using a hybrid of English and Japanese。 。。。more
Cameron
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Pretty good， I don't have a full grasp on all the concepts in this book but im getting better。 I'm just sorta proud of myself for taking this whole language learning thing seriously。 Pretty good， I don't have a full grasp on all the concepts in this book but im getting better。 I'm just sorta proud of myself for taking this whole language learning thing seriously。 。。。more
Gabby
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There were quite a few small typos throughout the book， but nothing major enough to make anything incomprehensible。 After just three months I completely grasp the entire hiragana alphabet and quite a few basic Japanese phrases and grammar rules （such as particles）。 The cultural facts also proved very useful。 I completed 11/13 of the lessons before traveling to Japan and was surprised at how much I knew！ I will absolutely be purchasing books 2 and 3 to continue learning Japanese。 This series is a There were quite a few small typos throughout the book， but nothing major enough to make anything incomprehensible。 After just three months I completely grasp the entire hiragana alphabet and quite a few basic Japanese phrases and grammar rules （such as particles）。 The cultural facts also proved very useful。 I completed 11/13 of the lessons before traveling to Japan and was surprised at how much I knew！ I will absolutely be purchasing books 2 and 3 to continue learning Japanese。 This series is a great resource！ 。。。more
Isla
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It's a wonderful book to learn japanese！ The lessons are progressive and well explained。It's the perfect book to learn It's a wonderful book to learn japanese！ The lessons are progressive and well explained。It's the perfect book to learn 。。。more
Rumy
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Living in Japan has its own struggles as you have to learn the language that its native people are speaking in。 Japanese is hard。 From as simple as hiragana to kanji， they're way too much of them are too hard for a beginner。 Grammar makes no sense to a non-native speaker sometimes and this book helps you with it。 I was reading it at least for like a couple of hours per week and I saw a significant amount of difference as I started using them in my everyday conversation with friends。 One thing I Living in Japan has its own struggles as you have to learn the language that its native people are speaking in。 Japanese is hard。 From as simple as hiragana to kanji， they're way too much of them are too hard for a beginner。 Grammar makes no sense to a non-native speaker sometimes and this book helps you with it。 I was reading it at least for like a couple of hours per week and I saw a significant amount of difference as I started using them in my everyday conversation with friends。 One thing I learned from this is that you can't be afraid to make mistakes if you want to learn a new language。 Your friends will correct you and help you along the way。 That's the only way to learn a language efficiently。 。。。more
Alex Sperellis
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I'm new to Japanese and decided to start with this book。 It's a pretty solid foundation to start with if you practice regularly。 Highly recommend for people that know nothing about the language。 #2 is on its way。 I'm new to Japanese and decided to start with this book。 It's a pretty solid foundation to start with if you practice regularly。 Highly recommend for people that know nothing about the language。 #2 is on its way。 。。。more
Arthur Graham
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Don't be fooled by the cartoon cover！ While I didn't exactly come to this workbook knowing "zero" Japanese myself， it wasn't many pages in before I'd already begun to build upon my knowledge of its vocabulary and grammar。 I could see this being useful for students （self-taught or class-based） in junior high on up， provided you're not too embarrassed reading something that looks designed for children as a grown-ass man。Unlike some other language workbooks I've seen， this one forces you to learn t Don't be fooled by the cartoon cover！ While I didn't exactly come to this workbook knowing "zero" Japanese myself， it wasn't many pages in before I'd already begun to build upon my knowledge of its vocabulary and grammar。 I could see this being useful for students （self-taught or class-based） in junior high on up， provided you're not too embarrassed reading something that looks designed for children as a grown-ass man。Unlike some other language workbooks I've seen， this one forces you to learn the written component of the language （which is tempting to skip when you just want to communicate verbally） by gradually substituting the rōmaji （Roman letters） on the page with their corresponding hiragana （Japanese syllabary）。 The effect is that， like it or not， you really do start to recognize the consonants and vowels these represent， as well as all the different ways in which they function when used across various constructions。While I would recommend a more multimedia learning tool （e。g。， Human Japanese） and/or a listen-and-repeat audio program （e。g。， Pimsleur Method） to be used in conjunction with something like this， I have yet to find a better workbook for integrated study of the Japanese language。 Highly recommended！ 。。。more
Mariana
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Has a few typos， which can be troubling for a book of this type。 Other than that， it was very helpful and easy to follow。 Really recommend it for anyone who wants to get into japanese。
Mykka
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Excellent Japanese SourceThis is an excellent Japanese source。 It is easy to follow。 If you can't learn Japanese with this source， you won't find anything better。 Excellent Japanese SourceThis is an excellent Japanese source。 It is easy to follow。 If you can't learn Japanese with this source， you won't find anything better。 。。。more
Dylan
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An amazing book for beginners。 The book is really user friendly and it is now accompanied with videos on YouTube which follows the lessons in the book。
Jacks
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Very easy to follow。 Lots of great exercises to complete。Makes studying fun and is structured so you don't have to think about how to study。 Very easy to follow。 Lots of great exercises to complete。Makes studying fun and is structured so you don't have to think about how to study。 。。。more
Agnese Vēze
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I am not a language people und learn new language is hard for me， but this book was excellent for me！ I get my first steps in Japanese and can't wait to start 2nd book！ Step by step grammar， hirigana and practice！ Easy to understand！ I am not a language people und learn new language is hard for me， but this book was excellent for me！ I get my first steps in Japanese and can't wait to start 2nd book！ Step by step grammar， hirigana and practice！ Easy to understand！ 。。。more
Mat Davies
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