There are plenty of good reviews on the internet Japanese for Everyone. But since I'm personally using it, I think I should speak a little of what I think of it.
First of all, it is a hard book to use, mostly because the information is so condensed together and there aren't a ton of exercises (though there is a Workbook, which has to be special ordered from Japan, but I don't have it - yet). Some people are put off by the fast pace and I do understand them. The thing is, the book is really cheap, and covers in one cheap book, what other series cover in 2 or 3, each of which a lot more expensive. As such, and because I had a very limited budget when I bought it, I chose this one.
On the other hand, despite all of the downsides it might have, the information is well laid out in my opinion. I like how it builds up on what was taught in previews lessons, and how kanji is introduced. The dialogues are also very natural and I personally find them entertaining. It certainly isn't a book to be taken lightly or for someone just messing around a little bit.
I also have the Kanji Book in this series. While it's helpful to have the kanji all nicely listed by the lessons they're introduced in, and the general idea of the exercises is pretty nice (kind of like the Basic Kanji Book does them, which I like), they are far too little to be of any help. If I had known there would be 2 pages of exercises per 20 something kanji, I wouldn't have bough the book.
One small advice I do have regarding how to use Japanese for Everyone is to pick up A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar. It's a really useful book to use with this textbook. Some grammar points may not have sufficient explanation, and others you just want to see more examples of or a different explanation to help you remember it... this dictionary is absolutely perfect for that. I usually just check every new grammar point the textbook introduces in the dictionary and I'm usually pretty satisfied with the extra explanation.
Well, that's it, I can't think of anything else to add...
Happy studying! がんばって。
I love JFE too! I'm on Chapter 13 right now. Like you said, it is not an easy textbook so I wouldn't recommend it to someone unless I knew they could handle it.
ReplyDeleteI was cracking up while listening to the dialogues and doing the reading comprehension exercise in Chapter 12. Michael drinks too much sake at his welcome party and says: "Well, if I go home with a 'green' face, my wife will worry. But, if I go home with a 'red' face, she won't be upset. So…I went to buy some coffee." The implication being that the caffeine and hot liquid would make him look more lively, I guess? They also teach you the word for "hangover" in that lesson, which literally means "two days drunk", futsu-ka-yoi (二日酔). So far this has been my favorite chapter :-).
Don't worry--JFE isn't a sketchy textbook, but they do have some rather silly things thrown in there that adults will find amusing!
Definitely give JFE a chance if you are looking for a textbook. Since I couldn't find a physical copy of the audio, I downloaded it for free. So if that doesn't bother you, the audio is easily found with some Google searching.