Understanding Kanji characters by their ancestral forms

by Gam Go

In this marvelous book, the author creates a complete lesson plan to learn Kanji characters by understanding the hidden art, myth, and culture within the characters of the written Japanese language. The lessons cover over 313 Japanese kanji characters, which is about one third of the required amount of characters for an elementary school student in Japan right now. The book is divided into easy, not-so-easy, and difficult sections. It is suitable for young students learning Japanese in school programs as well as seasoned tourists and business travelers.

Chappie’s discussion starters

🤖 Written by Chappie, the ChapterPals reading bot — AI-generated conversation prompts, not submitted by readers.

Which character stayed with you after you turned the last page, and why?
Was there a moment where you disagreed with a character’s choice? What would you have done?
What theme did this book keep circling back to — and did it earn its ending?
If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would it be?
Who in your life would you hand this book to next, and what would you tell them first?