Pros<\/strong><\/p>\n– Straightforward to follow.<\/p>\n
– Includes stroke order of how to write each listed character.<\/p>\n
– In each of the composite characters it also tells you what is the radical of that character.<\/p>\n
– Even though the characters are listed separately if it means a different word when it\u2019s put together with another character (i.e. they are compounds), at the bottom of that character listing all the compounds are listed \u2013 for example underneath the entry for \u2018\u6587\u2019 (which means culture), \u2018\u65e5\u6587\u2019 (meaning (written) Japanese) is listed underneath as \u2018\u65e5\u2019 was already introduced earlier in the book.<\/p>\n
– The book is well laid out, and it is very easy to look up particular characters.<\/p>\n
– Even though this book is focused on simplified Chinese, the traditional form of that character is listed in the entry (when applicable)<\/p>\n
– The archetypes develop personalities in the stories so it\u2019s easier to remember the stories<\/p>\n
– Illustrations of the stories are provided in the early chapters of the book to help you remember the story better<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Cons<\/strong><\/p>\n– Although anyone can use it, it is tailored towards the (now outdated version of the) HSK exam \u2013 as some words, such as \u2018\u6728\u2019 (tree) is listed as it\u2019s building block, but as it\u2019s not officially in the HSK Basic exam, or HSK Level A as the authors call it, there is no story to come with it.<\/p>\n
– Since I have been learning Mandarin for a while already, I thought I could just skip to the characters that I needed to learn at that time. However, as I was not familiar with this it was very confusing to use.<\/p>\n
– It may help you translate from Chinese to English, but it is more difficult trying to apply this method in translating from English to Chinese as you would have to think in reverse.<\/p>\n
– You might find the stories a bit too childish \u2013 especially as they use a giant\/fairy\/teddy\/dwarf\/robot in the stories.<\/p>\n
Verdict<\/h2>\n At first I was sceptical of this book \u2013 I thought I would never remember any of these stories and I would just be creating more work for myself. However, I gave it a try and I am now glad that I purchased this book! I would definitely recommend starting from the beginning and working your way through it rather than skipping to particular characters. However, make sure that you make the time to do so as you will have to commit to it and study at a regular basis. The stories really do help, especially with the pronunciation aspect of it as I\u2019m constantly forgetting with what tones they\u2019re supposed to be in! If you are struggling with your reading skills this is definitely a book worth investing in. \n \nIf you have any other questions about the book or if you have tried using this book and want to share your views on it, please comment below!<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A year into my Mandarin studies and it is becoming harder and harder to remember what each character means and how to pronounce it. The only method that has proven effective for me is repetition, but it is an extremely time consuming method. Therefore I have resolved to find alternative ways to help me remember…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":4266,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[86,92,5,80,94],"post_series":[],"yoast_head":"\n
Chinese Textbook Reviews \u2013 Learning Chinese Characters<\/title>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n