Meet the kitsune. In Japanese folktales the fox is a shapeshifter. It can turn into a beautiful woman, pay you with money that turns out to be leaves, and make rain fall out of a clear sky. Most foxes are tricksters. One, with nine tails, is something far more dangerous. This fourth volume of Learn Japanese with Yokai carries you through three readings in real Japanese:
- Nine-Tailed Fox: from an old Chinese myth to the court of a Japanese emperor, where a beautiful, clever woman arrives and the trouble begins
- The Legend of the Killing Stone: the plains of Nasu in Tochigi, and a stone said to kill anything that comes near. You can still visit it today
- The Fox's Wedding: the short folktale behind a Japanese name for a sun shower
Every part is taught in seven passes
- Story introduction: a short English preview so you know where you are headed.
- Vocabulary: the key words in Japanese, then English, with room to repeat after a native speaker.
- Slow speed: the full text read slowly and clearly, every word catchable.
- Line by line: each Japanese sentence broken into bite-size phrases with their English meanings, then rebuilt.
- Normal speed: the same text at natural pace. Hear how much more you catch the second time.
- Comprehension questions: hear the question, pause to answer out loud, then hear the answer.
- English version: the whole piece retold in English so you can confirm you got it.
Japanese narration by native speaker Yumi Boutwell, English by Clay Boutwell: the husband-and-wife team behind TheJapanShop.com, helping people learn Japanese since 2002.
What you download
- 24 chapter MP3s (1 hr 15 min) plus an all-in-one MP3
- Chaptered M4B audiobook file for Apple Books, BookPlayer, and other audiobook apps
- 6 bonus tracks: a shadowing practice track and an English-to-Japanese vocabulary review for each of the three parts
- The full PDF of Learn Japanese with Yokai 4: The Fox, so you can follow the text while you listen
- A short How to Listen guide
No textbook needed and no pages to turn. Press play in the car or on a walk and let the repetition do the work.
Perfect for upper beginners (JLPT N5 to N4) ready to move past word lists into real Japanese, and for anyone curious about the creatures that fill Japanese folklore.
Digital download. Your download link arrives by email right after checkout, and your files are always available from your TheJapanShop.com downloads page.
