Real Japanese: Learn to speak the same way Japanese kids do!

Content = 3 stars + 1 star for originalityReviewer = Lived and worked in Japan, has studied Japanese for several years, has two children who are half American/Japanese whose primary language is Japanese.Pros:1) Originality - I actually had a similar idea, but unlike the book's author, I'm not particularly organized about those types of things -- so kudos to him for followthrough!2) It roughly mimics the way that we all really learn a language. None of this, "My tailor is rich" nonsense. Nor, layers of semi-formal speech that, while common in business Japanese, won't help you understand the day-to-day Japanese you'll hear all around you in Japan. It starts with simple, common speech phrases and builds slowly in an organic way. japanese don't start with semi-formal speech; they don't think in semi-formal speech; The don't use semi-formal speech in general day-to-day interactions; etc. Plus, "advanced" Japanese actually relies on a solid understanding of casual speech.Cons:1) ROMAJI ONLY - The author provides his justification for this, but I'm sorry, having initial studied Japanese using romaji (japanese written in the western alphabet), and then having to unlearn bad pronunciation patterns that it causes, I am completely anti romaji. Also, using romaji doesn't seem to match the overall premise of the book - to mimic they way Japanese children learn the language. Japanese children don't learn romaji, they learn kana. The basic Japanese alphabet first taught to Japanese children, hiragana, it's not difficult to learn (after all, Japanese children learn it) and it really helps prevent bad pronunciation. *** I strongly feel that actual, written Japanese should have been used - ideally kanji with furigana - as the target audience are people who will have to face actual Japanese some day.2) As children are prone to do, especially when still learning a language themselves, the child mimicked by the book makes mistakes (generally cute ones). The author addresses this by adding footnotes which present the correct way to say the phrase. I would suggest that it would have been better to do it the other way around - have the correct phrase in the primary text, and a footnote with the slightly off original used by the child. The current format makes you bob up and down the page if you want to use the book as a tool for learning proper Japanese.

Here's the deal--this book is an interesting read if you already know Japanese, or at least know some Japanese. But if you think you can start from zero and learn Japanese by reading this book--no. I'm saying this as a person who's been studying Japanese for a long time. Also, do you really want to speak like a kid? Think about it. Probably not.You know, if you read a book about how little kids speak English, would that improve your English? It wouldn't. As a parent or teacher (or just a person who's interested in language), it's fun to read about, but it's not a textbook.

I've been teaching my kids while learning Japanese myself. I've been working on the language intensely for a couple of years. This book has been uniquely useful in the following ways: 1) It gives small pieces of Japanese that I can remember and teach easily and that my 5 & 7 year old can digest as well; 2) The subject matter is useful in the home. At this point in the life of my family, I don't care about business meetings, train schedules, and restaurant menus. But I do want to tell my kids I'm going to work, taking the train and making chicken for dinner. 3) I watch Japanese kid shows because the language is easier for learners and my kids like to join in. I've discovered the characters don't always use "textbook" Japanese. Instead, cartoon kids use the shortened forms in this book and they say things you will find in this book.The book appears to be self-published, but I'm surprised no publisher picked it up. If a second version ever appears, I would like to see all the material presented by topic as well so I could more easily use it as a reference, and with Kanji/Furigana, so I could learn both writing as well. If there were an iPhone App I would buy it. Oh, the cover is cheap and has started to curl. So what. It's a great book. You can buy a cover at Staples.

I recommend this for anybody want to learn Japanese. Simple and fun. Some sentences are strange to me who is Japanese, but some kids may spoke this way (who knows what kids say!). I bought this for my husband who want to retire in Japan. We only read few pages and we like it! I will buy 2 more for my kids to read, so they can start talking to my grand kids. (I hope!).

Marginally useful to flip through; you might pick up an odd word or two that you wouldn't have otherwise. Appreciate the great concept and idea behind the book. The fact that it may be self-published only adds to its personal charm. I may not be keeping my copy as it's not that useful as a reference. It's not a very thick book.

good starting place to learn to speak simple phrases and basic words. repetition is the key to absorbing a new language so this book is probably best when used as supplementary material to a more traditional text book/ language course.

This text is really as a fun source of alternative learning for Japanese The only disappointment is that the book does not include hiragana. I decided that I was going to white-out all of the romanji and insert the hiragana by hand. This has proved to make the text a lot more useful and practical for those who are studying Japanese beyond colloquial purposes. Happy with my purchase overall.

This book is so much more realistic than the many other Japanese language books I have bought. Everyday phrases are what we need to learn, not how to ask for a train ticket to Tokyo. I think this is much more effective than starting from the bottom. We typically learn to speak languages before we learn the technical stuff. Great job, Mark!

I personally really like this book but I recommend Japanese learners look inside before you buy as this book may not be to everyone's style. In essence it's just a book of casual sentences (that kind of build on each other but not 100%) For me this is exactly the book that I want but others may not like it's approach so check it out first. I lived with a Japanese woman and her ten year old son for 6 months in Tokyo 2014 and all that polite Japanese that I'm learning didn't help me at all. To be honest casual Japanese is another language in itself. This book reminds me of hanging out with that ten year old Japanese boy in its tone and style (although the language on offer only goes to age 3.5!) But the Japanese in this book I do recognise as real Japanese (hence the title!) If this book had audio with it, it would be so much better. If the author could have the audio up on You Tube / Soundcloud as an accompaniment to this book then that would make the book great. The audio could simply go page 1 (read sentences) page 2 (read sentences) etc without giving the English explanations which would then not render the book useless. I'm also sure that having the audio online would actually encourage more sales of the book as people would then buy the book to match the audio. (I know I would).Finally I think that this book has hit upon the potential of a great approach to learning Japanese (if the idea is refined and worked upon) to make a full on casual online Japanese training course simply by mimicking how a child learns. However I should warn the author that as I'm currently making online training courses myself at the moment - they are an absolute killer to make that take soooo much time - so if you're going to do it be prepared for a long hard slog LOL!Anyway..nice book!

A very new and interesting take on picking up a language. I'll recommend it for people who are up to try new ways of learning. This book won't teach you advance stuff but will definately give you a way and room get your Japanese sound more native like.