Age Range: 10 - 16 years
Paperback: 96 pages
Publisher: Gibbs Smith (March 1, 2010)
Language: English, Chinese
ISBN-10: 1423607503
ISBN-13: 978-1423607502
Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.3 x 7.2 inches
Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (64 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #66,951 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #8 in Books > Reference > Dictionaries & Thesauruses > Slang & Idioms #11 in Books > Children's Books > Education & Reference > Foreign Language Learning > Chinese #45 in Books > Travel > Reference > Phrasebooks
I would not count on this for learning Chinese. I would not take this seriously in any way shape or form. Some of the vocabularly choices are odd, some of the translations not quite right, and certainly the pronounciation method will only get you laughed at by native speakers.That said, if you have a mixed group of folks with some native speakers and some non-Chinese speakers, this is hilarious! Amongst our group of native speaker parents and kids and non-Chinese speaking adults, it has entertained for a whole evening. The non-Chinese speakers read an entry, the Chinese speakers look at each other like "what?!" The non-Chinese speaker will then have to repeat it, distort it, repeat it some more, and then the lightbulb goes on amongst the native speakers, who then bust out laughing, say it the correct way, and the non-Chinese speakers then say "but that's what he said!" Which will then set the native speakers rolling on the floor again, because to them what they said is absolutely not "what he said." And so goes the evening, sometimes interrupted by a discussion among native speakers about the choice of word or translation. Totally worth the money for the entertainment in this context.
Okay, so it was silly of me to bring this as my only translation book through China. It's more of a coffee table book than a functioning book. What I really liked about it was that I easily remembered the words I did learn and pronounced things fairly correct because of the book. The downside was it didn't have many words that would have really come in handy (like train station). If this book was expanded it would have been a great book to have on hand. Oh, and the Chinese people really thought it was funny too. :)
I think some of these reviewers are taking the book a bit too seriously. It is not Rosetta Stone, for crying out loud. I speak fluent Spanish, and the Spanish Slanguage book is the best book I've seen to get gringos speaking phrases right away. I don't speak Chinese, but have seen this book (and others in the series) and it is a decent start for people who just want to learn a few phrases. Is it the be-all, end-all when it comes to definitive expertise in the Mandarin tongue? No. But it's $8 bucks! If you are pursuing fluency, go elsewhere. If you need a quick & fun travel guide, this is great.
I am not so sure I would buy this for accuracy, or to impress your Chinese friends. I would buy this if you need to know Chinese and find it impossible to recall words. I would buy this as a fun thing to introduce kids to languages. This is really a novelty item, and can only be taken half seriously for learning. After you learn their way of saying the word, go look it up on google translate and make sure it's accurate. Some words I could not find, so I wonder if it's really all in Mandarin. Anyway, me and my son had a great laugh using this book, and it really broke the ice for him learning about a language. This is a book they will actually look at, there may be better books but if it's not interesting enough for a kid to look at what good is it? I haven't examined the accuracy in great detail, so take this review with a grain of salt. I bought both books and Spanish as well, for the fact that they make learning languages fun and interesting.
One of my students has been saying that he wants to learn Chinese, so I bought this for him. He's actually using it, coming in and telling me the words he's learned. The format is so easy to understand. And yes, it arrived quickly and in perfect condition. Thanks!
I have been trying to learn a little Mandarin and this book helps me more than any other on pronunciation.It would get 5 stars except the print is large (I suspect it was so it could be sold as a book and not a pamphlet). I bought both editions and enjoy learning from them. It won't get you talking to your Chinese friends, but you can exchange a few pleasantries.
Oh did I enjoy this book. I thought it to some of my kids in lifeskills, and always ask me how do you say so and so word. We all had fun learning. They learned at least 4 words. This book is easy to learn.
I felt as if I could learn the basics within a week with this book. Easy to read, understand and speak. I would highly recommend this book for anyone going to China. I would recommend that you practice with the pronunciation of certain words, but that will come with practice.
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