Recommended Reading

Making Sense of Japanese: What the Textbooks Don't Tell You

Jay Rubin

Making Sense of Japanese by Dr. Jay Rubin, renowned for his translations of Haruki Murakami, offers a fresh approach to learning Japanese by focusing on the language itself, rather than comparing it to English. This philosophy has deeply influenced our site.

No prior Japanese knowledge is needed, making it perfect for beginners to grasp fundamental concepts often overlooked by traditional textbooks. With its engaging writing and Rubin’s deep insights, the book is a valuable read for learners at any level. You can buy it on Amazon here.

From the Outside In or The Cosmic Shower

J. Marvin Brown

From the Outside In or The Cosmic Shower by Dr. J. Marvin Brown, former supervisor at the AUA Language Center in Bangkok, is part language learning guide, part autobiography, and part meditation on modern physics. While it only briefly mentions Japanese, it offers valuable insights on language acquisition through Brown’s Automatic Language Growth method, developed from his experience learning Mandarin in the US Navy during WWII and later teaching at AUA.

With its unconventional ideas on language, physics, and cognition, this thought-provoking read won’t disappoint curious minds. As his friends put it, "Marv was one of the most out-of-the-box thinkers we've ever known."

(As far as we can tell this book is not actually published anywhere and can be difficult to find in its entirety online. We have assembled what we believe to be a complete copy and have it hosted on the site here. If anyone would like us to remove this, please contact us.)