Although many pedagogical aids to learning the spoken language are available, there is very little to guide students who are trying to master the complexities of the written language. Based on the authors' extensive experience in teaching third- and fourth-year Japanese at American universities, the Reader's Guide to Intermediate Japanese provides student-friendly explanations and examples for phrases that occur with high frequency in written-style Japanese.

Of particular value are the numerous cross-references, which make difficult verb endings much easier to access than do dictionaries, textbooks, or grammar books, where they are often embedded in lengthy grammatical discussions. English renderings, Japanese synonyms, brief structural notes, and example sentences with English translations provide quick access to an alphabetical listing of entries. Readings are provided for all Chinese characters used in the examples so that students can readily understand them without having to consult a character dictionary.