Learn Japanese with short stories
Read 5 free graded stories in Japanese, written for beginners at A1 to A2, right in your browser. Tap any word for its meaning in context, listen while you read, and save the words worth keeping. No sign-up, no install, works on any phone.
Stories in Japanese
How it works
The beginner stories here are set in hiragana with spaces between phrases, the way Japanese children's books are, and under three percent of the characters are kanji. That means you can read real Japanese sentences the week you finish the kana, instead of waiting months for enough kanji to unlock anything. There is no romaji alongside, so you are reading the actual script from the first line.
Common questions
Do I need to know kanji to read these?
Almost none. The A1 and A2 stories are written in hiragana with only a handful of kanji, mostly numbers and times. Kana is enough to start, and every word is one tap from its meaning if you get stuck.
Is there romaji?
No. The stories are in Japanese script throughout, because reading romaji trains you to read romaji. Spacing between phrases does the job romaji usually does, showing you where one word ends and the next begins.
Is the Japanese reader really free?
Yes. The browser reader is completely free, with no account, no sign-up and no trial timer. It is a free taste of the full oqou app for iPhone and iPad.
Can I listen to the stories in Japanese?
Yes, every story can be read aloud with follow-along highlighting. The voices come from your browser and device, so the quality of the Japanese voice varies from device to device.
Is this the full oqou app?
This is the free web reader with oqou's Japanese starter stories. The iOS app adds your own books, articles and PDFs, in-context word explanations, and spaced review for the words you save.
Read the guide
- How to Learn Japanese: A Complete Beginner's GuideHiragana, katakana, kanji, and grammar — a clear path through Japanese from your very first day.
- Japanese for Beginners: A Step-by-Step Guide to Starting From ZeroA concrete, week-by-week starting plan for learning Japanese for beginners with nothing memorized yet.
- How to Learn a Language by Reading: The Complete GuideA complete, step-by-step method for turning everyday reading into real vocabulary and fluency — at any level.
Read your own books this way, in the oqou app for iPhone and iPad.