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Rating: 
Summary: Good All-Around Product
Review: I have used this guide for some years now, and I find it to be the most useful Japanese dictionary that I have. While of course it cannot compete with Nelson on the number of entries, or kanji for that matter, it is a good deal smaller than Nelson and I can take it to work with me without problem. For business uses and the popular press in general I have rarely run across a word that I could not find in here. And it's so durable!Some may balk at the traditional radical order of the Kanji, but it's what I was used to, more or less, so I find it convenient. I'm not so sure why the publishers felt it necessary to put the stroke order in - shouldn't you already know that if you're past Japanese 001? I'd recommend deleting it in the interest of adding more entries, but that's my only complaint.
Rating: 
Summary: SIMPLY THE BEST: FUNCTIONAL, UP-TO-DATE, TIMELY
Review: If you know these 1,945 essential Kanji, you will know more than the average Japanese person. This the standard dictionary, bound in a very durable leather back, with a handy reference for quick, funcatinal usage. The following are list of its good points: 1) Contains the 1,945 most commonly used characters in modern Japanese writing. A judicious selection of general and specialized kanji compounds. 2) Is portable, handy and extremely durable. Pages are a sturdy and easy to read. 3) Access was given first priority, so there are a number of ways of locating the character you are searching for: by radical, by stroke order, or by "on-/kun-yomi" readings. 4) Definitions are given in clear, straight-forward English. 5) Devotes considerable space to the language of the business world: financial terms, business jargon, special business senses of ordinary words, and many standard business abreviations. It is thus indispensible for anyone who wants to enter or do business with the Japanese economy. This is the dictionary you will want to have with you when you travel to Japan, along with KODANSHA'S FURIGANA. With these two books, you've got it all.
Rating:
Summary: Good Reference for Beginners
Review: Kodansha's Compact Kanji Guide is an excellent reference for beginners learning the Japanese written language. It contains all the Jooyou Kanji (the official list of 1,950 essential Kanjis of the Japanese Ministry of Education) and some 18,000 compounds, focussing particularly on those appearing frequently in Japanese mass media. In particular, great emphasis is laid on compounds pertaining to the business world. Beyond this, however, the scope of this book is fairly limited. It contains few literary words, and, in general, too few characters and compounds to be of any use to the advanced learner at all. In fact, the book is surprisingly large and heavy for the quantity of content it contains. The On and Kun readings of the kanji are provided in kana; in particular, the On readings appear in katakana, so the reader must be familiar with this syllabary. Pronunciation of compounds are also given, with multiple or irregular readings indicated. The dictionary makes little use of romaji. Although the definitions provided are fairly useful, few usage notes are provided making the dictionary less useful for Japanese composition. Nevertheless, it is very handy for the beginning student to check the meanings of unfamiliar words. The arrangement of the characters more-or-less follow the traditional Chinese arrangement according to radicals, although, unfortunately, certain variants usually considered to be the same radical are separated into different radicals in this dictionary, and, hence, some characters appear in a location different from that where one would find it in a traditional character dictionary. Three indices provided allows one to locate a given character by radical, stroke-count and pronunciation. Each kanji also has its stroke order displayed for the convenience of the learner. The book is physically well produced, with a vinyl-type soft cover and fairly thick paper of high quality that takes wear fairly well. The print is clear, and the head characters are printed very large (about a centimetre square) so that its composition can be clearly seen. Although the book is by no means large, I would not myself have describe it as 'compact' as its title suggests. A beginning learner of written Japanese could do worse than to acquire this book, although, as an intermediate learner myself, I find that the scope of the book is not really very sufficient, more often than not, the character or compound that I go to look up is not in the book. For those of us who are not businessmen, the Kanji Guide's focus on financial and business vocabulary would be somewhat annoying. In short, then, Kodansha's Compact Kanji Guide is great reference, but for beginners only.
Rating:
Summary: A Mainstay for the Serious Student
Review: This is a sine qua non for any serious student of Japanese. Arranged primarily by radical, the kanji are relatively easy to find (no dictionary has ever provided a truly easy way), stroke order is preserved, and meanings are provided for kanji compounds. The only drawback is that only combinations beginning with the selected kanji are included.
The guide is indexed by stroke count, primary radical and by pronunciation (both kun-yomi and on-yomi).
If you intend to make any real progress in your studies, this is a "must have."
Rating:
Summary: This book is a work of art
Review: This is quite possibly my favorite book. Let me explain what I mean by that. My knowlege of Japanese is so minimal that I rarely make much use of this book, so I can't honestly say much about its content and you'll have to rely on the other reviewers for that. But I had to write this review to say someting about the construction and simple artistry of the way this book is designed. While there's nothing revolutionary about any one aspect, the resulting whole has a perfection akin to that of a traditional Japanese house or a Zen garden. The size of the book is perfect, the quality and color of the paper are wonderful, the way that the pages are cut and assembled, the way that the soft rubbery vinyl cover makes it feel just right in your hand. The design of this book makes it a delightful piece of art, even if you can't read a character of Japanese. It is simply pleasing to hold in the hand and browse through. If you can actually make use of its contents, so much the better. G.
Rating:
Summary: This book is a work of art
Review: This is quite possibly my favorite book. Let me explain what I mean by that. My knowlege of Japanese is so minimal that I rarely make much use of this book, so I can't honestly say much about its content and you'll have to rely on the other reviewers for that. But I had to write this review to say someting about the construction and simple artistry of the way this book is designed. While there's nothing revolutionary about any one aspect, the resulting whole has a perfection akin to that of a traditional Japanese house or a Zen garden. The size of the book is perfect, the quality and color of the paper are wonderful, the way that the pages are cut and assembled, the way that the soft rubbery vinyl cover makes it feel just right in your hand. The design of this book makes it a delightful piece of art, even if you can't read a character of Japanese. It is simply pleasing to hold in the hand and browse through. If you can actually make use of its contents, so much the better. G.
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