Looking for some great books to start your Mandarin Chinese learning journey?
Understandably, with the arsenal of widely available online Chinese content resources, books have become a distant memory of the past.
You are reading: Books for learning chinese
However, these are invaluable resources that serve as practical and effective tools for language learning. Plus, the good news is that many books are now affordable.
While apps, online courses, and videos are great learning tools, here are 14 books to learn Mandarin Chinese that you might also consider adding to your array of resources.
best books to learn Mandarin Chinese (beginner to advanced)
Books are a multidimensional resource that taps into several facets of language learning, including grammar, vocabulary expansion, writing and character recognition, and sentence structure.
Some of these books are aimed at those who want to learn simplified Chinese, while others are written with learning traditional characters in mind.
Note: You can purchase any of these books online (as an electronic or hard copy). how convenient is that?
Chinese demystified: a self-study guide
Chinese Demystified is a useful and practical self-study guide for beginners to advanced learners.
In the book’s introductory chapters, you’ll review the basics of the Chinese language.
As you work your way through the book, you’ll appreciate how it takes advantage of all aspects of learning the Chinese language, including grammar, sentence structure, tone, vocabulary, and character writing.
The book proceeds at a realistic and natural pace to ensure that lower level students are not overwhelmed by the depth of this rich and beautiful language. however, it is best to have some basic understanding of the Chinese language before diving headfirst into this comprehensive guide.
each topic is broken down logically and each point is explained in a concise, easy-to-digest manner. On top of that, your understanding will be enhanced through short and effective quizzes strategically placed throughout the book.
Overall, Chinese Demystified is highly recommended for those looking for a comprehensive, comprehensive and in-depth resource covering both simplified and traditional character learning.
2000 most common Chinese words in context
This book is packed with some of the most important words that form the core of oral and written communication in Chinese.
The authors have found that learning and practicing 2,000 of these commonly used words will help you understand 92.7% of spoken speech. pretty impressive, I’d say!
Of course, beginners may find this book challenging to digest, but intermediate and advanced students should be able to grasp and understand its rich content reasonably well.
each word is paired with its Chinese pinyin, an English translation of the word, and an example sentence that teaches you how to use it in context.
the emphasis is more on building and expanding vocabulary rather than writing characters stroke by stroke.
Unfortunately, the digital version of this book is plagued with formatting issues. Other than that, no glossary, content list, or word categorization is provided, which can make it a bit difficult to review and review specific words you’ve learned in the print version.
However, those who have a basic knowledge of Mandarin Chinese can review the content to learn new words here and there.
Learning Mandarin Chinese Characters Volume 1
This best-selling book is a boon for beginners or lower-intermediate students who want to strengthen their reading and writing skills.
will guide you through learning and writing 178 of the most essential and foundational Chinese characters. each character is paired with a stroke-by-stroke diagram that clearly shows the correct stroke sequence for each character.
As you progress through the exercises, you will be able to reinforce your writing skills through freehand writing practice and expose your vocabulary by learning to use each character in different combinations of words and phrases.
One of the most important chapters in this book is the introductory section.
This opening chapter effectively explains the composition of various Chinese characters and gives an insight into some of the more common Chinese radicals.
Readers will also learn about the eight basic strokes that make up Chinese characters and become familiar with essential stroke order rules and practices.
Overall, this is a fantastic guide for beginners or those intending to prepare for the HSK Level 1 exam or the Advanced Placement (AP) Chinese Language and Culture exam.
Chinese stories for beginners
reading tales, fables and stories may have been your favorite childhood pastime.
There’s nothing wrong with rekindling that interest now.
According to its title, this book contains a compilation of 20 different thought-provoking and intriguing stories and tales intended for beginners to intermediate learners.
And if you’re still having trouble recognizing Chinese characters, don’t worry! An English translation follows each story paragraph, helping you keep up with the plot and character development of each tale.
Pinyin romanization is also provided, allowing you to slowly learn the pronunciation and tone of various Mandarin characters and work on your reading comprehension.
What’s so impressive about this book? well, it’s not just a storybook for entertainment reading, though it ticks the box in that regard.
More than that, summaries and vocabulary lists are provided at the end of each chapter to help you test your understanding, review the lesson, and refresh your memory of relevant words, phrases, and slang used in that story.
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You’ll be closely following a quiz, along with an answer sheet that will allow you to check how well you scored.
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Of course, absolute beginners may wish to complete some foundational lessons using other resources first.
It may be more practical to understand the basic basics of the Chinese language elsewhere before turning to this book to improve your skills.
Reading and Writing Chinese: Third Edition
If you’re looking for an extensive, all-inclusive guide, this book may tick all the right boxes.
This wonder of a book contains complete activities and lessons for learning hsk levels 1-6 and can complement learning traditional and simplified Chinese characters.
From cover to cover, the latest version comprises over 2,000 different characters, along with their standard pinyin romanization, English translations, and correct stroke order.
This detailed guide will help you expand your vocabulary, become familiar with Chinese radicals, and improve your memorization and character recognition skills.
In addition to that, the book will give some examples of pairs of characters that form different words or short phrases. Unfortunately, no sample sentences are provided to clarify how to use each word in different contexts.
In terms of level of difficulty, this book may best cater to upper level beginners and intermediate learners.
Newbies can give this book a try, though they may have a little trouble understanding and assimilating the content, especially if they start from scratch.
Chinese Grammar Wiki Book: Elementary Paperback
Along with its counterparts, Basics, Intermediate, and Upper Intermediate only, this book is part of the Wiki book series. This series aims to provide you with the most comprehensive learning experience in terms of Chinese grammar.
the level of difficulty is indicated in the title of each book. this book, in particular, is designed for elementary level students.
Each book in this popular series would cover fundamental grammar points and structures and provide a wealth of colloquial and formal sentence examples to help you contextualize the use of different words.
To enhance learning, the pinyin and English definition is provided, along with concise explanations that teach you grammar in a playful, casual, and informal way.
However, it is best to know a little about Chinese pinyin, tone, and pronunciation before working on sentence structure and grammar throughout this book.
Overall, this book will help you form simple sentences using proper structure and grammar with more ease and natural fluency, and hopefully guide you through your everyday conversations.
easy chinese
Learning Chinese is definitely not easy, but this book can help make your journey easier. is an excellent combination for beginners who want to learn to converse in basic Mandarin.
And if you’re starting from scratch, this book offers a pretty impressive and comprehensive introduction to the Chinese language.
While learning Mandarin Chinese using books may limit your learning in terms of tone, pronunciation, speaking, and listening, this book overcomes these barriers in a unique way.
a cd is provided with the book, so you can listen and practice the pronunciation of each character, phrase or sentence and hone your speaking skills.
Also, the book’s attractive, neat and well-organized design is a far cry from overly cluttered, wordy and intimidating textbooks. hopefully this will make your learning experience more enjoyable and engaging.
Warning: You may not enjoy the music that plays between each track. If you can get past that, this book and CD combination is a valuable and practical resource for developing your speaking and listening skills.
the first 100 Chinese characters: simplified character editing
Learning to recognize and write Chinese characters can be an uphill battle, but this book can give beginners the boost they need.
The focus is on learning and mastering 100 simplified Chinese characters that are fundamental to the Chinese language.
As the saying goes, practice makes perfect. This book will lay the groundwork for plenty of writing practice.
Stroke-by-stroke diagrams are provided, along with empty boxes with gridlines to familiarize you with writing Simplified Chinese characters.
While the book emphasizes writing, each character’s hanyu pinyin is provided to help you grasp the correct pronunciation and tone.
Of course, you will need to have some basic pinyin romanization reading skills to use this book effectively.
the first 100 Chinese characters: traditional character editing
Now that we’ve introduced you to a book that focuses on simplified characters, it’s time to get acquainted with one that teaches traditional characters.
This book and the previous one are from the same series and by the same author, so the format, structure and coverage of the content are quite similar. the significant difference between the two is that this book focuses solely on the traditional characters.
will tell you about the breakdown of more complicated characters, the sequence of each stroke, the underlying logic behind the composition of Chinese characters, and how to use characters in multiple word pairs.
Also, this book is very generous with the space and content dedicated to you practicing your writing, which is great news. 😁
To tell you the truth, learning the traditional characters can be a challenge.
Hopefully, learning the top 100 most important characters will be a more enjoyable process for beginners reading this book.
Due to the limited number of characters covered, upper-intermediate and advanced students will be better off with another resource on this list.
chinese for dummies
if you want to learn the ins and outs of conversational Mandarin, you might want to give this book a try.
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This book has you covered, from ordering food at a restaurant, shopping for items, introducing yourself, asking for directions, and having a conversation.
Chinese for Dummies emphasizes the basic grammar and vocabulary necessary for conversational fluency.
Because speaking Chinese relies heavily on your tone and the accuracy of your pronunciation, it’s best to use this book in conjunction with other audio resources to ensure you’re on the right track.
so if beginners use this book as their only learning material, they may find it difficult to keep up.
However, once you’ve learned the basics of speaking Chinese, this handy tool can be an excellent resource for improving your grammar and vocabulary.
Mandarin Chinese picture dictionary
This picture dictionary is a fantastic learning resource for children and adults alike, containing over 1,500 commonly used Chinese words and phrases.
if you’re a visual learner, you might be delighted by the colorful and engaging illustrations found in this book, which will hopefully engage you more in learning.
Romanized pinyin is provided with each word and phrase along with its English definition to enhance learning. In addition to that, example sentences are provided to help you understand and practice using different words and phrases in real-life scenarios.
The content of this dictionary is conveniently organized into different themes and topics to improve your vocabulary on various topics of interest.
for example, you can learn new vocabulary related to festivals, music, animals, food, countries, or learn useful words for talking about the weather, asking for directions, or communicating with a doctor.
In addition, your purchase will include complimentary audio recordings by native Mandarin speakers covering all the words and phrases in the book.
With this, you will be able to listen and learn the precise tone and pronunciation of each word, which would be a great advantage if you intend to work on your speaking and listening skills.
This picture dictionary is an excellent combination for beginner and intermediate level students.
Mandarin Chinese-English bilingual visual dictionary
This book is another picture dictionary with eye-catching illustrations, not to mention that it contains over 10,000 different terms to keep you busy learning.
Because of the rich and massive coverage of this resource, beginning, intermediate, and advanced students can reap the benefits of using this dictionary as a supplemental learning tool.
You will find a mix of commonly used vocabulary and much more rare, complex and very specific terms (some of which you may never use).
Unfortunately, this picture dictionary is only for simplified Chinese learning. in addition, the letters of the words are small and quite difficult to read.
so if you have a magnifying glass at home, it’s finally time for it to shine.
middle tall tales
intermediate tall tales is a fantastic book to improve your reading and character recognition skills. On top of that, you’ll get a glimpse of Chinese culture and folklore.
As you may have guessed from the title, this book is best suited for intermediate to advanced learners who want to enrich their vocabulary.
The book will take you through 10 different stories with captivating plots, each divided into small chapters to help keep you up to date. Topics range from traditional to modern life in China.
You’ll be greeted with a good amount of natural dialogue and various sentence structures used throughout each chapter, and pinyin romanization is provided below each paragraph in case you need it.
In addition, each chapter is combined with an informative guide that summarizes the chapter in English. You will also receive a vocabulary list to review unknown words and new expressions to increase your learning.
If you wish, you can also skim through the English vocabulary list and summary first to get a rough idea of the chapter before attempting to tackle the chapter itself.
Mandarin Chinese for beginners: learn conversational Chinese
Books that reinforce your speaking skills are a rare gem. so here’s one that focuses on conversational Chinese that you might want to try.
For those interested in understanding and conversing in colloquial Chinese, this light-hearted book will guide you through the essential words, phrases, and expressions you’ll need in your everyday conversations.
Recordings produced by native speakers will be included in the purchase and accompanying audio can be found online. Listening to these recordings will guide you to represent the correct tone and pronunciation of the different words you are learning.
covers a variety of topics, such as introducing yourself, ordering food, saying thank you, apologizing, and shopping.
However, you may want to use this book as supplemental learning material in combination with other resources rather than relying on it solely to refine your speaking and listening skills.
Whether you want to travel to China for business or pleasure, this is a valuable tool to help you brush up on your Mandarin speaking skills before you leave.
books are a great resource to explore when learning Mandarin Chinese
While the books on this list largely focus on learning Mandarin Chinese, novels, storybooks, and comics are another set of invaluable resources you may want to dive into.
These books are excellent tools for more advanced students to enrich their vocabulary and knowledge.
However, since the books focus primarily on reading and writing, you may want to use a combination of resources to enhance your learning.
Doing so will allow for a more well-rounded experience, especially if you’re also looking to develop your listening and speaking skills!
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If you’ve tried a book that has given your knowledge of Mandarin a big boost, I’d love to hear from you (especially if it wasn’t on the list).
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