Japanese Stories for Language Learners

A great story can lead a reader on a journey of discovery—especially if it's presented in two languages!

Japanese Stories for Language Learners offers five compelling stories with English and Japanese language versions. Taking learners on an exciting cultural and linguistic journey, each story is followed by detailed translator's notes, Japanese vocabulary lists, and grammar points along with a set of discussion questions and exercises.

The first two stories are very famous traditional Japanese folktales: Urashima Taro (Tale of a Fisherman) and Yuki Onna (The Snow Woman). These are followed by three short stories by notable 20th century authors:

• Kumo no Ito (The Spider's Thread) by Akutagawa Ryunosuke (1892-1927)
• Oborekaketa Kyodai (The Siblings Who Almost Drowned) by Arishima Takeo (1878-1923)
• Serohiki no Goshu (Gauche the Cellist) by Miyazawa Kenji (1896-1933)

Hearing native-speakers read these stories aloud helps students at every level deepen their comprehension of the beauty and subtlety of the Japanese language. Learn Japanese the fun way—through the country's rich literary history.