Easy and Fun Hiragana: First Steps to Basic Japanese Writing

Preface
This book is written for people who wish to have fun while learning how to read and
write hiragana characters. It has many illustrations, but don’t think that it is just for
children—I have included many phrases that are widely used in everyday adult life
so that the reader can learn not only hiragana but also some useful things to use in
conversational Japanese as well.
The Japanese language consists of three different writing systems: hiragana, katakana,
and kanji. Hiragana is learned first in school, followed by katakana and then kanji.
Difficult kanji characters often have their pronunciations written directly above them
to assist readers, a technique known as furigana. This book will show you how to read
the furigana that appears in manga, newspapers, and other text.
If writing hiragana is not a priority for you, try the reading exercises. Being able to
read literature or manga on your own is a great motivator for advancing your Japanese
study. So whatever your immediate goals may be, let’s enjoy learning some hiragana!

 Kiyomi Ogawa