I took my second practice test for N1 this weekend! This time, I bought a Korean collection of 5 practice tests. The book is called JLPT 일본어 능력시험 실전모의고사 and is published by 동양북스. The second volume is for the answers, the scripts, Korean translations and explanations. Even though they devoted an entire book for..
Blog anniversary and new schedule
I am a few days late, but my blog turned two years old! I take the opportunity to announce a change in my blog schedule. I find it very hard to post twice a week as I had planned to in January 😔. Obviously, the preparation for the JLPT is taking too much of my..
Language diary #8: changing things in Anki
My Anki deck for Japanese vocabulary is full of leeches (words you keep forgetting), so I am thinking of ways to remember words better…
Book Review: 『メゾン・ド・ポリス』by Miaki Kato (加藤実秋)
This is the first book of the series 『メゾン・ド・ポリス』. It is a unique detective novel where the protagonists are retired police detectives sharing a house: the maison de police.
JLPT: First Milestone
Time to see if I keep my initial study plan or if I have to review my strategy!
Book review: 『切り裂きジャックの告白』by Shichiri Nakayama
Shichiri Nakayama is a prolific author of crime fiction. 『切り裂きジャックの告白』is the first novel to introduce the police detective Hayato Inukai (犬養隼人). Setting The novel is exactly about what its title refers to: a serial killer who calls himself "Jack", murders similar to those of Jack the Ripper, a police investigation to find the killer. But..
Language diary #7: monthly review
March has been a strange month. I have done my third trip to Japan, and of course, it motivated me a lot. It also slowed down my progression for the JLPT preparation, and it was hard to keep studying the week after my return from Japan. I have been able to find my study rhythm..
JLPT Journal #7: Reading!
In February, I took a practice test (the one that is available for free of the JLPT website), and I found the reading part to be very difficult. I took the JLPT N2 twice in 2017 and got 60 and 59 points in the reading part. I remember that I didn't find the texts to..
Language diary #6: Book haul and reading challenge!
I was in Japan last week for a trip in Tokyo, and of course, I took the opportunity to visit several bookshops and buy Japanese books. (This post is long, scroll down to see the list!) Reading Challenge #2 Last year, I set myself a first reading challenge: read all the 13 books I had..
Blog Holiday!
I am going to Japan tomorrow and I will be back on Sunday! See you next week! 😃
Book Review: 『誓約』by Gaku Yakumaru
Gaku Yakumaru is a well-known author of thrillers and mystery novels in Japan. The Korean translation of『誓約』is a huge hit, it was the top-selling novel of the biggest online and offline bookshops of the country. Setting Satoshi MUKAI lives with his wife and daughter and works in the same bar for 15 years. One day,..
JLPT Journal #6: lack of motivation
It is normal to go through phases of lack of motivation, and if you are studying Japanese for some time, you know that your motivation will come back eventually, even if you don't actively try to restore it. This is what happened to me this last two weeks. I was not as motivated to study..