[.ca] Remembering the Kanji, Volume 1: A Complete Course on ... (ISBN 0824831659)

really useful:
For me, the best is studying the basics with JAPANESE IN MANGALAND, practicing writing and so with some good workbook, and learning kanji with REMEMBERING THE KANJI. This book is not for learning japanese, as other have said in their reviews, but fot learning japanese kanji only, so it is normal not being able to read japanese only by studying this book. And it is true that constance is needed. But it is impossible to read japanese without knowing kanji, and it is very difficult to learn kanji with a normal textbook. I kept forgetting strokes and stroke orders, and the reason for it was that I didn't see kanji like a logic system, but more like a more or less difficult drawing. There are many kanji that look nearly the same, but once you study this book, these small differences become impossible to mistake. I am studying this book in spanish, but I've seen in english it's just the same, that's why I am reviewing this kanji study book. :) it has helped me so much...

"When Westerners Want to Get Serious about Literacy":
I am a European-American who holds an M.A. from a Japanese national university (Hiroshima University) and a Professional Diploma in Foreign Language Education (Japanese) from the University of Hawaii - Manoa. I have lived for some 11 years in Japan as an adult and have taught Japanese at the secondary level in Hawaii and Oregon. Between 2001 and 2003, I assisted Mary Sisk Noguchi, author of the "Kanji Clinic" column in THE JAPAN TIMES, edit, rewrite and check facts in her columns. (The columns may be viewed at www.kanjiclinic.com.) I mention these credentials in order to give potential consumers of Jim Heisig's REMEMBERING THE KANJI, Volume I (aka 'RTK1'), a more informed basis for their impending purchase. Amazon's customer reviews for RTK1 cover a broad spectrum ranging from near-total rejection to devoted acceptance. This is NOT a book that seems to attract many 3-star reviews. As you, the potential consumer of RTK1, debate whether to buy the book or not, I hope my little review will help push you over the edge into the "buy" mentality. I have given this remarkable book a 5-star rating. RTK1 helps level the "kanji playing field." (Incidentally, you can easily discover if this is "THE KANJI BOOK FOR YOU" by going to google.com and inputting "heisig remembering kanji." Dr. Heisig has convenietly made available his well-reasoned, indeed, history-making introduction as well as downloadable stories for the first 250-or-so kanji that he teaches in his system. If you are 'turned on' by his introduction and his first 100 or so stories, then RTK1 is a good tool for you. You will need the book to build a strong memory foundation for the remaining 1750-or-so kanji used in standard written Japanese.) Good luck. This book gives a solid foundation to serious students of written Japanese, and I dare say Chinese, too. Oh, yes, almost forgot. The book is also available in French and Spanish.

A godsend, but only if you're dedicated to seeing it through:
As another reviewer noted, you've got to be disciplined to go through this book. Heisig states that with full-time study, you could cover this book in something less than 2 months. Studying part-time (job, kids, and a life), I'm through 1600 kanji at the 3 month mark, and can see the finish line. I've been studying Japanese for 7 years, and can speak fluently. I have tried manifold methods for learning the kanji piecemeal, but have never advanced beyond what a Japanese twelve-year old might know. Upon completion of this book, I'm very confident that I can take this acquired visual memory and run with it to become literate. (Can you hear the chorus of angels in the background?) If you are just getting started in Japanese but want to get beyond the spoken, take a season to go through this book. You won't regret it.

Tops for speakers:
I think the diverging views here come from people who are studying textbook Japanese, and those who have learned the language orally, and have never come to grips with the kanji. I come from the latter category, and books like this really do help. At my level of Japanese, if I know the meaning, I can quickly recognize the reading from my spoken vocabulary. Since all languages learned as a mother tongue are transmitted orally, this kind of book (since it is a book) SHOULD concentrate on the meanings of kanji, not the reading (which would be a somewhat gruesome task anyways). For non-native speakers, English reading and writing takes a year or two to grasp, but comprehension (which sits high on my list for communicating effectively) takes years. That's why this book is a great shortcut for some of us. It's not always necessary to have compounds, readings and historical allegories. Personally, I would rather understand what is written than simply be able to read the words like an idiot savant.

This book is useless:
I am sorry I ever bought this book without reading the negative reviews. It seemed like a good idea to base learning kanji on mnemonics. It definitely help to associate mental images with the whole kanji or elements of characters, which Heisig calls "primitives"; however, after trying to stomach the ridiculous as well as sexist anecdotes which are supposed to give you a foolproof recollection of the kanji, I realized I was going nowhere. The last straw for me was the need to make or buy hundreds of flashcards. This is no way to learn kanji.