くらべてわかる日本語

Japanese
#1

Thought I would take this opportunity to plug an absolute gem I found on Amazon. This book (there are 3 volumes. Beginner, intermediate, and advanced) is without a doubt the best book I’ve ever read regarding the Japanese grammar mindset, the way a Japanese person would see it.

It is completely in Japanese but should be readable by anyone at an N4 to N3 level. It takes similar grammar points and contrasts them by presenting unique sentences where either grammar point could easily go if you don’t understand the nuance fully. Then it will tell you through explanation and pictures why one of them is the better choice.

It even compares particles! I have learned some nuance things even just from the beginner volume that I thought I already knew inside out. For example, did you know you should never use
なになにしたほうがいい as a question?
It implies you already know the answer.

That’s just one very small example of a myriad of gems in these books. If you’re the type of person who hesitates to speak because you’re stumped about which ‘similar’ grammar point you should use, this book series will give you an enormous amount of confidence in your choice of expression moving forwards.

是非見てご覧！

Screenshot_20210407-213427_Kindle
Screenshot_20210407-213427_Kindle1440×2042 516 KB

15 Likes
#2

Ooh that looks pretty good actually!
I might try this out, thanks for the tip!

1 Like
#3

Does it have an answer to this question?

2 Likes
#4

Reading Japanese grammar books is actually akin to a dream for me. I will engage with my contacts shortly. Thank you for making me aware of this series.

2 Likes
#5

Think you post a sample page so we can get a feel for how complicated the explanations are? One person’s simple can be another’s unreadable after all.

2 Likes
#6

I found the first volume on JP Amazon, which has a preview available.

https://www.amazon.co.jp/くらべてわかる-初級-日本語表現文型ドリル-岡本牧子/dp/4863920040
(non-affiliate/tracker/etc link)

1 Like
#7

No worries, I’ll post an example today. I’ll edit this post with it soon

Edit - here’s an example. Most books teach てもらう、くれる、あげる as a set. But this book actually groups される and てもらう together, highlighting that the grammar structure is exactly the same (particle wise), but they tend to show the opposite feeling to eachother.

Screenshot_20210408-094252_Kindle
Screenshot_20210408-094252_Kindle1439×1986 280 KB

Screenshot_20210408-094325_Kindle
Screenshot_20210408-094325_Kindle1439×1978 230 KB

Note - there are many more example sentences at the back of the book for each point.

2 Likes
#8

Not that I’ve seen yet, I’ll have a look today

1 Like
#9

Thank you for sharing. I put it on my wishlist.
It still hard for me to read the sample so maybe after I finish N4 in bunpro I’ll buy it.
The furigana at the bottom is weird, tho.

1 Like
#10

I’m not sure if there is a reason why they put the furigana at the bottom. I think it is to encourage you to read the kanji first without needing furigana, as it is really easy to accidentally read the furigana while looking at the kanji when it’s on top.

1 Like
#11

Furigana on the bottom is so that you can use a piece of paper (or index card, etc) to cover the lines as you read from top to bottom, and only uncover the furigana when you need it.
When furigana is on top, you can’t easily cover the furigana.

4 Likes
#12

I bought these on Kindle a while ago and really liked them but the layout makes them annoying to read (especially on a real Kindle). Definitely recommend getting them on paper instead.

3 Likes
#13

On a small screen they could be a bit harder to read for sure. My ereader is 7.8 inch andthe size feels perfect. That’s a little bigger than most ereaders though.

#14

I bought the 2 drill books. My level is a good N3/a terrible N2 (most of my vocabulary is from hitting anki decks, so I am a fairly reliable measure of approximate level, for now) and I will find around 0-1 new words per page. If people are about halfway into N3 it should be fairly plain sailing (there ARE a few grammar words you won’t grab from JLPT lists, but they are usually defined within the books).

The layout is absolutely fine for use on the windows kindle app.

1 Like
#15

Yeah. While they are all in Japanese, and there is an obscure/non JLPT kanji every now and then (腫れる）for example, I think they are very readable by the average N3 student.

1 Like
#16

Thanks for this suggestion! Definitely feel like I struggle with small nuances often, and since participating in WK book clubs it’s only gotten worse :joy:

1 Like
#17

Would you say these series of books would be good for someone who is aiming on taking the JLPT N2? Or is it too basic for that?

1 Like
#18

I would say they are definitely still good, considering they cover fine nuances that aren’t often discussed. I am learning quite a bit from them and have already finished most of the bunpro content, so they definitely have value.

The mid level book has many grammar points that appear in N2.

2 Likes
#19

Great! I’ll have a look at them. It might be useful to use these books (at least the first two) for a grammar refresh before I take the JLPT.

3 Likes
#20

Thanks @Asher for the recommendation, @nekoyama for the vote of confidence, and @FredKore for the “unusual furigana” explanation! :stuck_out_tongue:

I just ordered first (only?) two books to show up tomorrow. I figure most of the grammar in the first book should be “easy,” but the devil’s in the details, as they say. The hardest part of grammar is learning all its varied, subtle nuances, which is probably best (or at least, fastest) explained by using comparisons, like these books do.

3 Likes