Reddit reviews Japanese, The Spoken Language: Part 2 (Yale Language Series) (Pt. 2)
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Yale University Press
Not really. The closest you could get are the materials from Pimsleur or the Foreign Services textbooks, but the problem is that those are 100% intended to be used with experienced teachers and in-class drills rather than in isolation on their own.
The problem with avoiding the Japanese writing system is that pretty much all of the worthwhile materials will use the Japanese syllabary (hiragana/katakana) from a basic level and then everything at the intermediate/advanced level assumes that you know how to read Japanese.
That having been said, the Japanese: The Spoken Language series by Eleanor Harz Jorden was written for people in your shoes but is very, very dated (30 years old, IIRC) and is very business-oriented. There are three books in the series (which cover about three years of learning at the university level).
They are very grammar-focused and tend to be verbose (to say the least) in the explanations.
If you can find those, they're probably your best bet. The romaji sucks, though.
Edit:
Japanese: The Spoken Language 1
Japanese: The Spoken Language 2
Japanese: The Spoken Language 3
I tested into JAPN201 when I came to UMD.
Um, they don't really do JLPT levels at UMD. As far as I can tell, what they covered in JAPN101/102 was Hiragana, Katakana, and some basic conversations. It was a long time ago. But I don't think they cover that much in JAPN101 and JAPN102. Oh JAPN201/202.
Hmm, okay. If you go here, and click on JPN 09, JSL. It's Part 2 (Lesson 13-24) if memory serves correct. This book basically.
But having gone through the program, I think UMD has a really really good Japanese program. Just be aware while JSL has really good content it's written all in weird romanization (like Fuji is Huzi).
> Hmm, I think that's description of it is a bit too restrictive. Which book are you using?
Japanese: The Spoken Language, part 2. I've only finished part 2, so I may not have learned other meanings of it. In particular, I don't think I've learned the 「というよりは」 construction. But it does make sense in this context, since the 「は」 provides the contrast that allows for what comes after it to be the opposite of what comes before.