I’ve no idea how to get stuff directly from Japan other than through amazon uk or CD Japan and white rabbit (if it’s still available) though I’ve only really used amazon uk so far.
okay then 
revived my prev post and hopefully u’ll enjoy something out of it
novel wise I can recommend 小説 金の国 水の国
I’ve read the manga so I know the story is absolutely adorable though I haven’t started the novel variation yet and really want to
level wise it’s 「小学館ジュニア文庫」which essentially means it’s a very easy read made for elementary schoolers to do book reports on and etc and has furigana on everything and simple grammar.
I have also previously recommended this one and it’s not fiction but I can’t talk about books with cats without mentioning 猫の浮世絵（a post I made a while back with more detail in the following link）
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Thanks, I have Flying witch full series so far, and Ruri dragon is on my list but has been difficult to get. The voice channel playlist might be helpful in the mean time til I can get the manga. 
I’ll check the others out as I’ve not got those yet.
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Thanks for all the recommendations between manga and novels. A few of those look like perfect add ons for my list and a few I’ve never heard of piqued my curiosity. That night of the living cat looks fun 
definitely adding that to my list.
If they’re too difficult for me just now, they’ll definitely help once I hit those levels 
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I am currently practicing for a study abroad (high school level). I recently completed the average 国語 homework/textbook that I was suggested to practice by my Japanese teacher. I especially took interest in a lot of the ことわざ used. Does anybody have any recommendations that uses a lot of ことわざ? I was tasked to read a sample of 吾輩は猫である but I felt it is too long for me to read the actual novel. I would prefer a shorter novel anything below like 150 pages. Thank you in advance.
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化物語 (上) | L37 is long, but the first chapter is a standalone story around 100 pages long (iirc) so you could see if you want to continue after that. It’s the first thing that comes to mind when trying to think of books that involve a lot of wordplay. There are a lot of moments where characters will use a ことわざ incorrectly to comedic effect, or change them slightly to twist the meanings.
Also in general I’d recommend anything involving 落語（らくご）, as it thrives on wordplay and uses a lot of old ことわざ in traditional stories. There’s a lot of modern media involving Rakugo, like 昭和元禄落語心中 1 | L35 or じょしらく 1 | L28 which both have anime as well. Personally I like to just go through this Wikipedia list and click links to various stories and read the あらすじ sometimes 
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Any recs for high school (or other) romance novels or light novels in mid-upper L20s? Specifically trying to stay below L30s (but happy to add those to my “eventually” list)
Already read:
- クラスで2番目に可愛い女の子と友だちになった | L26
- 不登校の幼馴染が学校に行く条件は、毎日俺とキスすることだった | L27
- 週に一度クラスメイトを買う話 ~ふたりの時間、言い訳の五千円~ | L27 (currently reading… It’s weird)
Possible next reads:
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Looking through my own list, I realized I’ve hardly read anything I would classify as primarily “romance” besides 狼と香辛料 (series) | L35. But I like that series a lot, so maybe I should try more openly romantic stories sometime.
That said, on the manga side of things, 神様がうそをつく。 | L25 is a really good drama with a high school relationship front and center. Plus it’s a one-shot manga so not a big commitment!
For something totally different there’s also 異世界美少女受肉おじさんと 1 | L26, an over-the-top slapstick TS isekai series about two people who are NOT in a romantic relationship, nope, they’re just good friends who are only falling for each other because of magic, that’s it.
Edit: Also a manga, but I can’t believe I forgot about バツイチで泣き虫なおとなりさん KITORA | L26, a super wholesome romantic comedy about two people living in apartments next to each other.
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hmm, 狼 and 神様 both sound cute… added them to my wishlist for now. thx
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Maybe this? All I know is that it’s in my wishlist and approximately the right level. 
雨上がり、君が映す空はきっと美しい | L25
P.S. How do you feel about light novels?
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雨上がり、君が映す空はきっと美しい looks really sweet, but doesn’t seem to be available digitally… Added it to my CDJapan list for the future!
Basically what I’m looking for. I just put “novels” bc I’m open to reading things that aren’t explicitly light novels. Edited my post to make that clearer
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Oh, I loved that anime! Maybe I should read the manga too…
(And I just glossed over the Japanese name initially, but I knew immediately what this is based on your description… 
)
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I am gonna leave my recs here. I hated them both, but they are well liked by male readers (which the books you’ve read are also aimed at, so they might be for you).
High school romance:
Not high school romance, thought he main female character acts like one.
and a high school story that does involve romance but is not the central focus and I actually liked:
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I think that’s the first time someone’s recommended me something they hated
経験済みなキミと、 経験ゼロなオレが、 お付き合いする話。 sounds interesting. Orange has actually been on my list for a while now, not sure why I overlooked it.
Thx!
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Someone’s trash is someone’s teasure. 
Hope you enjoy them. 
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Not sure if you care, but the Orange LN is an adaption of the manga. I did enjoy the manga (read it in English before I started learning Japanese) but I can’t comment on the LN.
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Ohhh. It doesn’t make an immediate difference, but good to know. Just added the manga to my wishlist!
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I’ve been browsing Natively and audiobook.jp looking for nonfiction audiobooks. Lately I’ve had more capacity to listen to audio materials each week than to sit down and read, and I’ve been wanting to branch out into some nonfiction. Haven’t found anything that seems interesting yet (I’m having trouble finding nonfiction that’s not self-help on the app) but I did find this hilarious review for a book about the art of conversation:
Enjoy.
色々な事を学ばせて貰ました
例えば「本は内容が悪くても表紙が良ければ買うマヌケがいる」そして「そのマヌケとは私」と言う事実や、「この本の作者の会話は本当に上手いのか?」や「作者は何故この類の本を書こうと思う自信が湧いたのか」などの疑問点も浮かび上がって面白かったです
適当なスナックに行って酔っ払いに絡まれた方がよっぽど会話上手になると思いますが、読みたい人は読んでも良いと思います
I’d love some recommendations for interesting nonfiction that’s available through audiobook.jp’s 聴き放題 plan. I’m open to lots of things, but anything about Japanese culture, linguistics/languages, tea, or food is especially welcome. I’m also down to check out interesting biographies. Around level 35 or below is probably best for me.
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Check the content warnings I put in my review first, but I found it a very interesting read personally.
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Thanks for the recommendation! That seems like an interesting topic, but the content warnings give me some pause. How explicit are we talking, especially with domestic violence and such?
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