Actually, there are a few books that teach characters through mnemonics like this, going through the first 1-2,000 characters. (The mnemonics don't need to be c

Actually, there are a few books that teach characters through mnemonics like this, going through the first 1-2,000 characters. (The mnemonics don't need to be correct - they simply need to give the right general meaning for that character.) Quite a number of learners have already used these systems to learn characters. Learners don't rely purely on this to read - absolutely not. They learn reading and grammar separately, usually starting with everyday conversations and words. This is merely the initial base to develop a knowledge of characters quickly, and I definitely think it's helpful (though I studied Chinese in school and haven't needed to use this mnemonic approach). （难得见到一位中国程序员在HN发帖。）