This book is excellent for learning Kanji, but you'll need the Kana de Manga to be able to read all the hiragana and katakana throughout the book. Easy to follow!

Ok to start off this book is simply awesome. It teaches you about 80 kanji (almost enough for JLPT 4 [see back of the book])
and gives you about 2 or 3 compunds per page. Now like many people i was turned off by the slightly kiddy way this book is laid out (this and kana de manga get you strange looks in 8th grade). But nonetheless it is a great book. It teaches you some interesting ways of using the language, it's less like the phrase book for a trip and more like something to help you read overpriced untranslated manga. It's odd look gives it a feel not quite unlike less serious anime (cough FLCL cough). As many people will tell you this book is for the purists (no romaji , just an english translation) This book uses entirely Kana, which is good if you want to improve your vocabualary and reading skills. Which brings us to one flaw i must simply adress: NO GLOSSARY! there is nothing to help people who don't have a dictionary (you should but then again this book should have a glossary or atleast an appendix of translated words). Also without a dictionary you won't get some of the compunds. For example on page 77 there is no indication that ki o tsukeru would mean be careful, Since ki is the Kanji (spirit/gas) most people would be confused since there is nothing about this in the compund section. Still those are only minor gripes wich can be soulved with the purchase of a fairly inexpensive dictionary.