Introduction:

Japan is one of the world’s leading industrial powers and is remarkable for its economic growth since World War II, considering it has few natural resources. Japan is known for its people’s strong work ethic and the high level of cooperation between industry and government. The origin of Japanese is in considerable dispute amongst linguists. Evidence has been offered for a number of sources: Ural-Altaic, Polynesian, and Chinese among others. Of these, the Japanese are most widely believed to be connected to the Ural-Altaic family, which includes Turkish, Mongolian, Manchu, and Korean within its domain. More than 130 million people speak Japanese, making it the ninth most widely spoken language in the world.

During the process of learning Japanese, you will very likely learn all sorts of things about Japan itself. You’ll learn the history of the country and the differences in dialect between one region and another. You’ll also learn to use words specific to Japanese customs and culture. This can allow you to slowly open up and learn more than you ever imagined about Japan, its people, and its rich and interesting history. Although learning any new language can be difficult, you are already at a distinct advantage as a native English speaker. English is actually one of the hardest languages to learn. But any new language can be intimidating simply because it’s so different from what you’re used to. However, after you start learning some Japanese characters, you’ll be surprised by how easy they are to remember with regular practice.

Let’s have a look at some of the great books that will help you get better at Japanese pronunciation, reading, and writing:

1. Genki – Genki is not only the favorite of Japanese classes the world over, but it’s also one of our favorites too. A perfect starting point for beginners, Genki has an easy-to-follow lesson structure that begins with dialogues using target vocabulary and grammar, which are then taught more clearly in the succinct and easy-to-understand lessons.
2. A Guide to Japanese Grammar – This book is fairly complete and does a decent job of explaining grammar concepts in a way anyone can understand. Be advised there are two sections to his site; The Grammar Guide and The Complete Guide. The Complete Guide covers most of the same material as The Grammar Guide, but with extras about the written language.
3. Japanese from Zero – This is one of the most popular textbook series available because it’s approachable and easy to use. It is ideal for beginners and intermediate students. It follows a lesson-based structure that covers grammar, vocabulary, writing, pronunciation, and more. For students interested in extra practice, the series includes workbooks that are sold separately and can work as companions to the textbook.
4. Practice Makes Perfect – As the name suggests, this is a practice-based book. Students learn grammar through a series of lessons that teach all the essentials. It is suitable for beginners, easy to get yourself started, and easy to understand, and also exercises also cover phonetics, writing, and other often-neglected areas of language learning.
5. Random House Japanese-English & English-Japanese Dictionary – This is a reasonably priced dictionary with tens of thousands of entries, ideal for beginner and intermediate students. It’s divided into two sections: a Japanese-English section and an English-Japanese section. The Japanese-English portion orders entries by the English alphabet, so it’s quite easy to find words. It includes the entire Japanese Kana.

Hopefully, this list gets you close to a decision on a go-to textbook and some reference books. After all, choosing the exact right perfect 100% best book is not nearly as important as just getting started.