Learn Japanese with Stories: 10+ Beginner (N5) Stories Inside.

So, you want to learn Japanese with stories you say?

Hold up, buddy. Do you already know the Japanese alphabet?

Because if not… you can’t go on to do this.

Oh… you say, you do know your Hiragana and Katakana?

Well, okay, okay, you’re free to get these Japanese beginner stories… I guess. But I better not catch you wondering what this or that Hiragana character is, okay, pal?

Anyway….

How These Stories Work

Below, you’ll find a growing collection of Japanese stories. They are inside PDF files which you will have to download.

The way each story works is…

• You get the Hiragana/Kama only version (no kanji, or some kanji + furigana) + romaji immediately underneath it
• You also get the English version
• And you get the full-on Japanese only version with Kanji (in case the Hiragana + romaji mix is too simple.)
• A list of all vocab
• And a list of all grammar used in the story

That way, you can try reading Japanese with help (romaji) or no help at all (full on Japanese). Or, you can level up from reading with help to reading the Japanese only version. Up to you.

Beginner N5 Stories

Here are the beginner level stories. If you started learning Japanese, know your alphabet, basic grammar, and a bit of vocab, you can start here.

• Click on the links below to download the PDFs.

Stories in Hiragana

This first batch of stories are written purely in Hiragana. Perfect for learners who just started and just learned the Japanese alphabet. These are super short — 3 to 5 paragraphs. Translations and romaji are included.

1. Bobby Who Studies Japanese – A quick story about Bobby and his first attempt to learn Japanese.
2. Jeff Who Studies Japanese – This is a variation with another character, Jeff, who’s 45 and is learning for a trip.

If you’re learning Japanese and want to talk about it, these Japanese stories will useful for you.

Stories with Kanji

This batch of 10 stories is about popular cities and places in Japan. It’s written in Japanese (hiragana and kanji + romanization and translation). Keep that in mind just in case the kanji is too much. But there are readings included as well.

1. Tokyo Tower: The Red and White Tower
2. The City of Tokyo: A Lively and Interesting Place
3. Tokyo and Japan Are Different
4. Japan’s Four Islands
5. Osaka: A Fun City
6. Hokkaido and Sapporo: Cold but Wonderful Places
7. Fukuoka: A Fun and Convenient City
8. Okinawa: A Warm and Beautiful Island
9. Hiroshima: A City of History and Peace
10. Kyoto: An Old and Beautiful City

Stories to help you understand the Japanese language.

1. A Fun and Lively Day — this story uses Japanese adjectives as much as possible to help you get used to them (-i and -na adjectives.)

Other Books

Here are some other books about learning Japanese that you may enjoy!

Back to You

I hope you enjoy learning Japanese with stories.

Also, if you enjoyed this, go ahead and share this link with others.

Let me know if you’re interested in more and leave a comment.

I will be updating this occasionally.