Japanese Study Apps That DON’T Use AI
Language is inherently human. It’s made, evolved, and used by humans to communicate—to convey ideas and emotions. Generative AI is antithetical to this. Generative AI, which uses stolen data scraped…
Strange House, Strange Mystery – 変な家 (Henna Ie)
変な家 (Henna Ie) by 雨穴 (Uketsu) Author: 雨穴 (Uketsu) Japanese Level: JLPT N2 Genre: Mystery Pages: 238 Bookwalker Japan: 変な家 Japanese Summary 知人が購入を検討している都内の中古一軒家。 開放的で明るい内装の、ごくありふれた物件に思えたが、間取り図に 「謎の空間」が存在していた。知り合いの設計士にその間取り図を見せると、 この家は、 そこかしこに 「奇妙な違和感」が存在すると言う。 不可解な間取りの真相とは!? 突如消えた元住人は一体何者!?…
How to Have a Conversation in Japanese
I struggle to have conversations with Japanese people in Japanese. Not because of a lack of Japanese ability, but because of a lack of conversational ability. I can converse (somewhat)…
A Shallow Slog – 黄色い家 (Kiiroi Ie)
黄色い家 (Kiiroi Ie) by 川上 未映子 (Meiko Kawakami) Author: 川上 未映子 (Meiko Kawakami) Japanese Level: JLPT N2 Genre: Human drama(?) Pages: 608 Bookwalker Japan: 黄色い家 Japanese Summary 2020年春、惣菜店に勤める花は、ニュース記事に黄美子の名前を見つける。 60歳になった彼女は、若い女性の監禁・傷害の罪に問われていた。 長らく忘却していた20年前の記憶――黄美子と、少女たち2人と疑似家族のように暮らした日々。…
How to Study for the JLPT
How difficult or easy the JLPT is varies widely from person to person. Some people pass without effort, whereas others (like myself) need lots of preparation. This article covers what…
Best and Worst Japanese Novels of 2024
I read a whopping 28 books in Japanese this year! That’s the most I’ve been able to read in a single year. I think this is thanks to discovering audiobooks…
Four Otaku Women in a House Share (オタク女子が、４人で暮らしてみたら。)
オタク女子が、４人で暮らしてみたら。 (Otaku Joshi ga, 4nin de Kurashite mitara) by 藤谷 千明 (Chiaki Fujitani) Author: 藤谷 千明 (Chiaki Fujitani) Japanese Level: JLPT N2 Genre: Non-fiction, slice of life, otaku, anime Pages:…
How Good is the Yotsuba Manga for Beginners?
よつばと！(Yotsuba to!) is often said to be one of the best manga for beginners learning Japanese, but is it really? I wanted to take a close look at the first…