To: ehume@pshrink.com
Subject: chinese book
Date: Wed, 12 Jun 96

Dear Dr. Hume,

We met in USCPFA's picnic and you mentioned that you know several books in teaching people spoken Chinese and written Chinese.

Would you please give me a list of those book, including title, author name, and publisher? (Introductory level is fine.)

Thank you in advance for your reply.

Regards,

Modern Chinese—A Basic Course
by The Faculty of Peking University

1971, Dover Publications, Inc. ISBN 0-486-22755-3
249-page book package with 3 audiocassettes (box may have different ISBN from book)
available from Borders Books and by mail from Dover

Starts at the absolute fundamental level, teaching how to pronounce each vowel and consonant; then moves on to grammar and vocabulary. Pedestrian but thorough.

Reading and Writing Chinese—A Guide to the Chinese Writing System
by William McNaughton, 1979 Charles E. Tuttle Company; Tokyo, Japan; Rutland, Vermont
available from Borders Books ISBN 0-8048-1583-6

(the dust jacket blurb) This book, based on Prof. McNaughton's experience as a teacher of Chinese at Oberlin College, systematically introduces and defines more than 2,000 Chinese characters. Each character has been selected from lists of essential characters used officially in mainland China for adult education and developed by teachers of Chinese at American universities. Though the study of Chinese characters will always require time and diligent effort, this book has been carefully designed to bring the beginning student as rapidly as possible to a level of written competence that will provide a solid foundation for advanced study in Chinese. For each of the basic 1,062 characters, pronunciation, definition, derivation, and examples of its use are given, along with a chart showing how to write it. Hints for memorization and cautionary cross-references to look-alike characters as well as information that clarifies often overlooked aspects of the writing system are provided here. The remaining characters are organized by phonetic elements to allow the student to learn them by groups, thus mastering a great many of them in a relatively short time. Both sections of characters include the simplified forms that have been officially adopted in mainland China. The book also contains two indexes (alphabetical and stroke count-stroke order), a radical chart, the phonetic symbols used on Taiwan, a table converting mainland pinyin into the more widely used Yale romanization system, and hints for those who wish to use the text in an organized program of study, inside or outside the classroom. Students and teachers of Chinese everywhere will find Reading and Writing Chinese an invaluable textbook and reference tool to which they will want to return again and again.

William McNaughton is both a teacher and a translator of Chinese. As assistant professor of Chinese at Oberlin College in Ohio, he founded one of the best-known undergraduate programs in Chinese. In 1967 he prepared the first videotaped Chinese language course to be used in the United States. He is the editor of Chinese Literature: An Anthology from Earliest Times to the Present Day (Tuttle, 1974), co-author, with Lenore Mayhew, of A Gold Orchid: Love Poems of Tzu Yeh (Tuttle, 1972), and the author of numerous other books and journal articles on Chinese literature and language.

Learn to Write Chinese Characters
by Johan Björkstén 1994 Yale University Press
Available directly from Yale University Press (call 800 directory assistance 1-800-555-1212 for the number).
May be available from Borders Books ISBN 0-300-05771-7

(adapted from the cover blurb) This book may be the only introductory manual for writing Chinese characters prepared specifically for an English speaking audience. The author guides the reader through the fundamentals of writing and introduces the different types of script used in China today, their evolution, their place in Chinese tradition, and the relations among them. The book provides basic instruction in writing with a modern fountain pen. Only commonly used characters—both simplified and full forms—appear as examples and exercises. Also included is an explanation of how to look up characters in a Chinese dictionary.

Johan Björkstén has studied and worked in China for a number of years and has taught Chinese to non-native learners. Currently a resident of Beijing, he has also published a beginner’s textbook of the Chinese language. The calligraphy is by Yan Ruimin, vice-secretary of the Chinese Hard-Pen [fountain pen] Calligraphic Society.

Chinese Character Exercise Book
Sinolingua, Beijing
available from Borders Books and China Books, San Francisco

(adapted from explanatory notes) This Chinese Character Exercise Book, consisting of two volumes, is supplementary material for Elementary, Chinese Readers, Books One and Two. It has been specially compiled to help foreigners master the writing of Chinese characters. The first exercises illustrate the proper way of writing Individual strokes and the basic rules of stroke order for Chinese characters. Then the structure of various characters is analyzed. After the learner has become familiar with more characters, characters similar in meaning are put together to demonstrate some principles of the structure of characters. The methods of practicing the writing of characters are primarily the traditional Chinese methods of tracing and copying as well as some other methods specially devised for foreigners.

Read And Write Chinese—A Simplified Guide To The Chinese Characters (Rev. Ed.)
by Rita Mei-Wah Choy 1990, China West Books, P.O. Box 2804 San Francisco, CA 94126 ISBN 0-941340-11-2 available from Borders Books and from Barnes and Noble

(adapted from the cover blurb) This book will help you to read Chinese signs, menus, and newspapers. It is a handy easy-to-use reference, listing the 3,200 most commonly used characters. Each Entry Contains: · English Definitions · Cantonese Pronunciation in Yale System · Mandarin Pronunciation in Pinyin System · Stroke Order to Aid in Writing · Character Importance Ratings for Prioritizing Study · Background Information about Chinese · The Radicals and How to Determine Them · How to Use a Chinese Dictionary · Four Cross-Reference Indexes · Complete Pronunciation Guide

Introduction This book originated from a course we were giving in Chinese characters. The students, after mastering their first characters, soon found a need for a Chinese dictionary so that they could determine the meaning and pronunciation of new words they were encountering on signs and in newspapers. However, to their dismay they found that Chinese dictionaries are difficult to use. There is too much information for the beginning and intermediate student; words are difficult to locate; pronunciations are not usually given in Cantonese; and often the English definitions are not necessarily correct or appropriate.

To illustrate how cumbersome a Chinese dictionary is for a student, consider that a good one contains 7,000 or more characters, whereas only about 2,400 are commonly used. In a study done by Chen Hegin, it was found that if you were to learn the 800 characters that appear the most frequently in Chinese publications, you would know about 86% of all the characters you will see. Doubling your vocabulary to 1,600 would take you to 95% recognition. Doubling again to 3,200 gives about 99%. The remaining 4,000 characters provide only 1% more comprehension. This excessive number of characters in the dictionary makes it difficult to find the desired character.

The purpose of this book is to provide a handy, easy to use reference that lists the 3,200 most useful characters and gives the English definitions, Mandarin pronunciation in Pinyin romanization, Cantonese pronunciation in Yale romanization, and the writing stroke order for each. In this, the fifth edition, we have added 270 characters so that all of the characters on the official list for adult education in China are included. We have also added three more cross-reference indexes: Chinese by number of strokes, Mandarin romanization and Cantonese romanization, to make it easier to locate the word that you want. And, as an aid to self study, we have indicated the relative importance of each character so that you can prioritize your learning.

The book is laid out in the following manner: first, an explanation of the listings and how to use the book; then, a section of background information on Chinese characters; followed by a pronunciation guide; then the table of radicals; the main text; then finally, the four cross-reference indexes.

Understanding Chinese—A Guide to the Usage of Chinese Characters
by Rita Mei-Wah Choy 1989, China West Books, P.O. Box 2804 San Francisco, CA 94126 ISBN 0-941340-10-4 available from Borders Books at Carousel Centre, and from Barnes and Noble

(adapted from the cover blurb) This handy, easy to use guide will help you to read and understand Chinese signs, menus, and newspapers; it will also show you how to pronounce the characters in both major dialects. A companion to the popular Read And Write Chinese, this book shows how Chinese characters are used in combinations. Cross reference indexes make finding words easy. And, a special section of useful words by subject will make your traveling, even to Chinatown, easier! Included in this book:

* Over 7,000 Character Combinations * 34 Special Word Lists by Category * Useful Everyday Phrases and Questions *Four Cross-Reference Indexes * Chinese Grammar Simplified * Complete Pronunciation Guide

Each entry contains English definitions, Cantonese pronunciation in the Yale system, and Mandarin pronunciation in the Pinyin system.

Read the characters involving adoption in the Chinese language

Back to Chinadopt homepage

ehume@pshrink.com