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A Guide to Remembering Japanese Characters
Author Kenneth G. Henshall
Publisher Tuttle
CategoryKanji learning - Joyo kanji
ISBN0804820384 [COPAC, Webcatplus, Wikipedia]

Review of A Guide to Remembering Japanese Characters by Ilya Farber

This one is at the opposite end of the spectrum from Heisig; it's completely devoted to historically accurate accounts, even when they are of little or no use in remembering the meaning or reading of the character. I suspect the title was forced on the author to increase sales, since a more accurate title (something like "The Etymology of Japanese Characters") would probably have appealed to a much smaller audience. Nonetheless, I'm very glad I bought this book. I usually consult it *after* I've learned a kanji from somewhere else, so that I can deepen my understanding and get a better overall feel for the relation between components and meaning (which improves my ability to guess in other cases where I'm not sure, something which Heisig's approach didn't do for me).

☆ See all reviews by Ilya Farber.


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