Blue Sea Wordbooks are "ordered glossaries" that provide important vocabulary for corresponding Japanese books. A wordbook allows a person to read the original Japanese book with a minimum of disruptions. By providing meanings for difficult words on a page-by-page basis, the reader can turn to the wordbook to quickly check a word and then keep reading. Delays for checking dictionaries are avoided. The wordbooks are in PDF format--the user must print if desired. See Wordbook Information for details.
 

Adult and Adolescent Reading Levels

The "Adult" and "Adolescent" reading levels indicated above reflect the intended audience for the original Japanese book. Specifically, this signifies that the original book was written for Japanese native adult readers or Japanese native adolescent readers. A second-language learner, even an adult learner, may feel more comfortable reading books offered for the native adolescent level until skilled enough to enjoy books of the native adult level. See "Selection of Wordbook Entries" at Wordbook Information for additional information.

Diamond Ratings

The diamonds presented after each brief wordbook description above give an overall rating for the book. The rating is based on the average of rankings given for three categories listed on the detailed information page for the book. Five diamonds is the highest rating. ♦♦♦♦♦

Original Japanese Books Must Be Purchased Separately

Each wordbook corresponds to an original Japanese book. The wordbook does not provide the text of the original book. In each case, the original Japanese book must be purchased separately. Titles and publisher information is given to facilitate purchase of the original book.

Benefits of Reading Japanese Books

Reading original Japanese books improves learning of the language in several ways: not simplified as can occur with textbook examples; not biased by adjusting language for a "foreigner"; reinforces genuine usage; offers new vocabulary; presents flows of thought; provides an interesting story; and, allows time to fully absorb meaning.