finding suitable graded readers

[markpete]

Hi, all.  I use graded readers (Chinese Breeze, etc.) a lot to improve my reading skills, and sometimes have trouble finding ones that are at my level and actually fun to read.  I got curious and decided to compare some.  Results here: http://www.hskreaders.com/compare_readers.html

 

Along with looking at word and character counts, I also put together a listing of features that the different series have.  I hope this can be useful to folks who are looking for more books to read.

 

(But mostly I wanted to confirm my suspicion that books labeled “800 words level” were written by a bunch of liars. ?)

 

Cheers,

   Mark

[jinbu]

I looked at your series comparison list but for your information, the Rainbow Bridge pleco books does have mp3 audio files. (That’s a big plus if also want to practice your listening skills)

Sure these books introduce a lot of difficult names, but that’s because these books are about Chinese culture. If you wan’t to understand the Chinese culture I think these are really worth reading.

[Geiko]

These books have pinyin above the Chinese characters, which I find distracting. The paper versions come with a card to be used for covering the pinyin, which is a nice option, even if slightly unwieldy. The Kindle versions are images of the print pages, so there’s no way to cover the pinyin. With the Pleco versions, there’s no such issue (characters only, tap to look them up).

 

This particular piece of information is really useful to me! I like Sinolingua's graded readers, but that grid to cover the pinyin was a bit impractical, and not having anything at all to hide the pinyin in the ebook was even worse. But if the Pleco version has no pinyin, that will be perfect! Thank you so much.

[PerpetualChange]

21 hours ago, markpete said:

Results here: http://www.hskreaders.com/compare_readers.html

I've never studied alongside the HSK curriculum, but I did buy graded readers based on what I considered to be an approximation of my level for awhile. 

The zone you mentioned in this post (HSK4-5) is about where I started to get frustrated with my graded readers. I was reading the Sino-Lingua readers, and it felt like they weren't getting much harder, because by that point you know the foundations and there's no good way to cram so much specialized vocab into a short story on a basis that would have enough repetitions to stick. Also, the graded readers were starting to give me a false sense of security, where I was starting to believe that my Chinese was almost perfect because I was understanding these 300 page collections almost effortlessly. Then one day I tried to read non-HSK version of a story in one of the Sino-Lingua readers and was shocked by how hard it was. I put Graded Readers down for good, and haven't looked back since.  

[Polyhistor]

I'm not a fan of graded readers. I would always recommend trying to find children's reading material if possible. Graded readers often have very stunted syntax and vocabulary to make it readable for the novice, but which doesn't really reflect the way the language is actually used and, I believe, may end up painting a false impression in some minds. 

 

However, I did use quite a few when I was starting, reading most of those available on Pleco. They are certainly to be preferred over flashcards, providing some small level of context and nuance, but they should be used briefly until you're able to move on to native material. Children's books can be bought online, but it may take some searching. I still haven't learned much about the children's book industry, other than 曹文轩，墨多多 and a few others. 

[suMMit]

"I'm not a fan of graded readers. I would always recommend trying to find children's reading material if possible. Graded readers often have very stunted syntax and vocabulary to make it readable for the novice, but which doesn't really reflect the way the language is actually used and, I believe, may end up painting a false impression in some minds. "

 

Wow, i could not disagree more. Childrens books are written with native speaker children in mind. I think the vocab, grammar and topics in a graded reader are WAY more useful to me. 

[Polyhistor]

40 minutes ago, suMMit said:

books are written with native speaker children in mind

Exactly. Which is why they should be aspired to. They are not as easy, but that's the point. They represent a much more real version of the language, rather than the simplified version presented at a specific low level. You can learn a lot from them, but it requires that you give your subconscious over to observing and growing a bond with each character and grammatical pattern.

 

Of course, if you're at a low level, then certainly pick up the basics from graded readers so that you can then move on to the real stuff, but don't make the mistake of assuming that what's in a basic graded reader is anything but a very pale imitation of the greatness to be found in native literature. 

[suMMit]

I guess it all depends on what your after. living in china and still being fairly low level, im not after flowery language. I want things i can use. I dont feel like im going to get much use from reading Little Red Riding Hood in chinese. The Chinese breeze books have been very helpful though. 

[markpete]

On 9/7/2020 at 11:52 PM, jinbu said:

I looked at your series comparison list but for your information, the Rainbow Bridge pleco books does have mp3 audio files.

@jinbu, thanks for pointing this out.  What an oversight!  I have used some of those mp3s.  For some reason the downloads take a long time (hours) for me, but the quality of the recordings is high.  Anyway, I've corrected that on the series comparison page. 

 

@PolyhistorI agree that readers for learners have their shortcomings, and probably add less value the more advanced you get. I try out native materials from time to time, but it's always too much of a slog (e.g. up to an hour per page) because there's so much vocabulary I don't have yet.  And I do want to practice extensive reading (ideally with interesting stories) without waiting until I have a vocabulary of 10,000. 

[Aiwangli]

Ive been using The Chairman's Bad for the last 5 months. It has graded news from HSK1- HSK6+  Also comes with comprehensions questions as well as an integrated dictionary, and MP3 audio files. Only downside is it is like 10 dollars a month. But i spend more than that on coffee a month so for me its worth it.

[Moshen]

I have 4 slightly used Level 2 Mandarin Companion graded readers to sell (simplified characters):

• Jekyll and Hyde
• Journey to the Center of the Earth
• Great Expectations, Part I and II

These are classic western stories rewritten with a controlled vocabulary (450 words), illustrations and Chinese settings/characters.  You should enjoy reading them if you're at HSK3 or HSK4.

 

Cover price for each is $12.95.  There are no marks, handwriting or highlighting in the books.  PM me if you are interested in all 4 as a bundle.

[KupGriye]

On 9/9/2020 at 8:58 AM, suMMit said:

Wow, i could not disagree more. Childrens books are written with native speaker children in mind. I think the vocab, grammar and topics in a graded reader are WAY more useful to me. 

It's evident you never tried children books. If I would have defined "useful" vocabulary as words and lines I can use tomorrow at the mall I would have: 1. Bore myself to death with dull graded readers. 2. Unkowingly reach a glass ceiling and get stuck. 3. Quit learning chinese or worse - deceive myself that I'm learning Chinese.

 

The most advanced graded readers use about 5,000 words (hsk 6) which is a 5 years old child's vocabulary level. Will it be "useful" for you to speak like a mentally ill 5 years old Chinese kid? In what capacity will it be of any use? What input will it allow you to consume? If your goal is speaking like a coherent adult, you will need at least 20,000 "unuseful" words to complement those 5,000 graded reader words you call "useful". How will you do it? By more graded readers? Literature seems the only (not masochistic) way. And what Literature? To live? The three body problem? Lu Xun? Definitely, but you cannot jump to there without first reading works for children of different ages. Graded readers are at best an entrance to the world of children literature. "Men read the witches by Roald Dahl in chinese, children read a three hundred characters version of Ulysses" (an unnamed laowai who mastered chinese). 

[Moshen]

Quote

It's evident you never tried children books. If I would have defined "useful" vocabulary as words and lines I can use tomorrow at the mall I would have: 1. Bore myself to death with dull graded readers.

 

To each his own! Quite aside from the vocabulary issue - on which I agree 110% with Summit - I would be bored to pieces reading children's stuff for more than the length of one bedtime story.

[KupGriye]

On 8/22/2022 at 2:12 AM, Moshen said:

To each his own! Quite aside from the vocabulary issue - on which I agree 110% with Summit - I would be bored to pieces reading children's stuff for more than the length of one bedtime story.

Well, if children books are too hard for you... it's really depends on your ambition I guess. 

[jannesan]

On 8/22/2022 at 11:24 AM, KupGriye said:

Well, if children books are too hard for you... it's really depends on your ambition I guess. 

 

Cool that reading children books works for you. No need to be rude to others that don’t get motivated by reading them.

 

I read a bunch of graded readers and then went on to read native literature, starting with authors that use simple language like 余华 and I think many others did the same.

[jaapgrolleman]

I highly recommend Imagin8 Press, I'm reading Journey to the West which has like 20 or 30 parts and starts at HSK3~, ends at HSK5/6. Like Mandarin Companion it's a bit more interesting stories, Chinese Breeze or many graded readers are so dull and childish.