thanks… i’m looking forward in starting to read this 
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Goodluck to both of us 
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Can anyone who has done a reading group before give some pointers on how to start for the newbies? Should I just sit down with a dictionary and go character by character or kanji by kanji? What is the best online dictionary to use? I want to make sure I am getting the most out of the experience.
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This is my first time in a reading group, and this group has a slow pace, but I think that if you have to go character by character, reading this book might be hell… You might want to wait until you get more Japanese under your belt, because even if you understand the words, the grammar may throw you off so much that you still won’t understand even after spending a lot of time looking things up.
That aside, I would suggest just trying to read what’s assigned first. Spend a very brief time consulting the vocab list/looking things up in the dictionary if it’s necessary, and then come here with any additional questions you have.
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Great question! My Japanese is awful and I’m far from being an expert on learning, but here’s my 2 yen’s worth:
Before you start, it is really important that you can read hiragana. If there is any gap in your hiragana reading, then now is the time to fix that. Then katakana (still working on that one myself!)
Then I would recommend reading the page the group is on, out loud if possible (something I always forget to do) and just see if there is anything you are familiar with. Take some wild guesses as to what it all might mean.
Certainly look up the kanji if you don’t know it already. There are only a few kanji per page (page 10 has just 2 or 3 items) and all of them are good to know.
Then see if you can recognise any vocab, or any grammar. You might spot a か indicating a question at the end of a sentence for example.
There are only a few sentences per page, and this group will very much rely on questions from beginners, so once you’ve seen what you do know (it’ll be more than you think) then, as @17wings has said, come here and ask about what you don’t!
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Hi,
First time joining a reading group but I’m really excited to start reading. Ordered the book from cdjapan and hope it will be here on time.
Thank you very much for making a group for real beginners. Can’t wait. 
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Are we going to have a Google docs vocab / grammar list as we go along?
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If someone makes one! 
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(Though I also wonder if perhaps putting everything on the thread might be better, and encourage more participation?)
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cdjapan sent my book out today! i’m excited and hope it won’t land in customs here in my country TqT
also i am happy, that i am not the only one not able to understand japanese well enough to read a book yet (it sounds awful, but i just wanna express my relief i’m not alone haha). i really look forward to this experience and expect it to be incredibly difficult for me! thank you for motivating me and other beginners to try this out! -
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Thank you! That was extremely helpful! I have hiragana down, but my katakana is pretty weak. I should have time over the next two weeks to make sure it is better though. Excited to get started!
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I like this idea! will probably be easer and clearer than having to search for the vocab in the forum
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Sounds great. I 2nd a google docs page with all the vocab and grammar topics. Then someone could even cross reference the grammar point with bunpro/tae kim, and it’d be quicker to work through.
Are there any native speakers who could read the sentences for us? Then we could even shadow and listen to correct intonation.
Looking forward to starting!
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- I would prefer a Google docs table of vocab and grammar explanations
- I would prefer for all vocab and grammar explanations to be in this thread
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In the event of Google docs having the most support, there would be a link to it in the OP of this thread, as per other reading groups.
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As I said before, I ordered the ebook. I can read it just fine in the browser, and I have also downloaded the iPhone and iPad versions.
In the iPad, when I try to download the book, it says something like it’s not available in that device (I think).
In the iPhone I can download it and read it just fine. The ony things are the controls. Does anyone know how to use the app??? It only moves forward, and I cannot go back. Also, I don’t know how to bring the menu back… 
Oh, of course a Google Docs vocab list is a good idea! So, are you volunteering to set it up Rowena? Thank you! And yes, send me the link as soon as you’ve got it and I’ll put it in the OP!
To make my position clear, I’m 100% not against a vocab list, I know how useful they are! I relied on them a LOT in the Yotsuba threads. I"m happy that there’s going to be one! (I just feel that there will be a lot more participation if everything were in this thread. But, again, let me be clear - I am happy to see a vocab list created! Thank you!)
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I’ve never done it before, but I’m hoping either I can figure it out or someone here knows how and will volunteer…
Ideally, we’ll have both 
- full explanations in the thread, with the Google doc as backup / quick reference so people don’t have to scroll and scroll to find something. I put the poll up to see if there was enough support for a G doc to bother learning how to do it 
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I just got my copy from my local book store last night! It took some searching and some really bad language barriers between myself and the employees but we all managed to find it! I’m excited to start.
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Hi, I’m brand new here but id love to join the book club! I ordered through amazon.jp so I’ll be starting a little late
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So, here’s a link to the beginnings of a vocab spreadsheet.
Is that the sort of thing you are looking for? I haven’t participated in any of these book groups before, so I’m not sure how you usually organize things, especially with grammar.
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