The Bridge: From N3 Japanese to Natural Japanese

Bought the book as I've been following Mina for a while on Youtube (highly recommended). I've read it through twice already, and my Japanese friends have all said that I sound much more natural and more relatable recently...not so stiff I guess.I think you have to be willing to put in the effort; I've made flashcards from the book and have memorized tons of sentences and expressions. Definitely the more you put in, the more you get out. You learn by following the story of the main characters to which the content is great and includes a lot useful vocab, expressions and grammar structures. In fact, I used the vocab glossary at the back to help me pass my N3.I would recommend it for people who have a higher level of Japanese also, but want to sound less "textbookish". If you have a basic understanding of some grammar stuctures in Japanese, I think it could be useful for beginner students as well looking to boost their Japanese.

This book is unlike anything else I've come across. It's the perfect resource for refining your existing knowledge and making you sound more natural, rather than like a robot. While reading, I noticed several mistakes that I myself make, which I didn't even realize I was making.It's worth noting that you need to put in the effort with this book. Unlike drill textbooks, which are a rather passive way of learning, you need to more actively engage with the material.Another excellent aspect is that it includes QR codes linking to YouTube videos where you can hear the vocabulary from the book being used in real-life situations. I highly recommend 'The Bridge' to anyone who's tired of repetitive drills and seeing the same type of content over and over again. Mina's italki lessons are also great.Overall, it's a truly fantastic and practical resource.

ありがとうございます

To learn everyday Japanese, I have been following Taguchi sensei’s Tagood Japanese YouTube channel, taking notes and collecting common expressions. This book is the perfect companion to the videos.The textbook collects all the important Natural Japanese sentence inflections, expressions together. It provides dialogue examples that show clearly the many ways that classroom Japanese and everyday natural Japanese differ.There is also an emphasis on building vocabulary, including a katakana word section. The latter is based on the katakana words actually used in the Tagood Japanese YouTube videos. Knowing which katakana words the Japanese naturally use, gives me the confidence to start using them myself.Overall, I believe this is an excellent textbook, with many unique elements.

Filled with fun (and realistic) characters, this textbook is the perfect way to progress from standard textbooks, full of grammar and formal constructs, to a more natural way of communicating. Chock full of useful phrases and expressions that I’d heard spoken but never come across in a textbook before, this book is so helpful for my Japanese studies. Thank you - highly recommended!