Minimalist language learning

I finished 名探偵コナン 漆黒の追跡者 !  I have to admit that some scenes in the first half were a bit confusing to me, but the final fight was exciting!

I just finished the second volume of 灰原くんの強くて青春ニューゲーム ! The relationships became more complex in this volume, which I really enjoyed. The main character is interested in this one girl, but gets accidentally closer with two other girls. This will probably get him in big trouble! 🙈 So far, I enjoy this series because it's a nice slice-of-life story with an interesting premise I can relate to. But I think I'll focus on another series for a while.   

I just finished the 10th volume of 名探偵コナン! Considering how long this series is, hitting 10 volumes already feels like a small milestone to me. 😃 Originally, I planned to watch the anime regularly so that I could hear the words I’d read in the manga. Well... somehow I didn't manage to keep up with the anime. 😅 I'll try again.    

After 3 volumes of くまクマ熊ベアー I wanted to increase the level of difficulty a bit. 灰原くんの強くて青春ニューゲーム was perfect for that.  Since the story is slice-of-life, it’s easy to follow. I also liked the twist later in the book. The main character’s desire to change the past and reinvent himself felt very relatable to me. It’s interesting to see how he tries to improve his situation and how the outcome differs from his expectations. This series is more difficult than くまクマ熊ベアー but after finishing the first few chapters, I was quite used to most of the authors favorite vocabulary and expressions. I think I'll read the next one or two volumes before switching to something else.     

I just finished volume 2! Some chapters were a little bit more difficult because of trading and finance related vocabulary, but overall it was very easy to understand.  As the series continues, I learned more and more about different side characters, which was really nice. At the beginning, I expected Yuna to travel from one place to another, with side characters only being temporarily relevant. Instead, she revisits these characters and either helps them solve new problems or improves their lives in some way. Occasionally, Yuna reflects on her previous life. This is something I wish she would do more often or in greater depth. I’d like to see how her experiences in this world have changed the way she views her old life. But so far, it seems like it doesn’t really matter to her. To her, she’s just doing whatever she wants (like before), even though her life now is completely different.  She isn’t just sitting alone in her room enjoying games and manga all day anymore, she’s co...

I finished the first volume of くまクマ熊ベアー ! This light novel is often recommended to Japanese learners as their first book because, compared to other light novels, it's quite easy to read and contains a lot of repetition. However, some people say that the story is a bit boring and predictable. I understand these opinions, but I think whether you enjoy it or not really depends on your expectations and preferences. In my case, I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this volume. Difficulty Level  After reading quite challenging material for months, it felt refreshing to read something simpler. This light novel is easy to read (as long as you have some kind of foundation). On Learn Natively, it's labeled around the N3 level. There isn’t as much slang or as many special speaking styles as in other light novels or manga I've read before. Especially the little girl (フィナ) speaks in a very straightforward and basic way. Plus, many words are repeated so often that it's almost imposs...