Understanding Chinese: A Guide to the Usage of Chinese Characters [Paperback]

Rita M. Choy (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1989 | ISBN-10: 0941340104 | ISBN-13: 978-0941340106

This straightforward guide explains how Chinese characters are used and expressed in combinations; how sentences are formed; and how to say the same phrase in Mandarin or Cantonese.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English, Chinese

Product Details

• Paperback: 463 pages
• Publisher: China West Books (August 1989)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0941340104
• ISBN-13: 978-0941340106
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,378,995 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Recommended for those with basic spoken knowledge of Chinese, April 4, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Understanding Chinese: A Guide to the Usage of Chinese Characters (Paperback)

I read this book with the intention to learn how to write Chinese and associate the Chinese characters with what I already know in spoken Chinese. After 1 month of practicing, I can see the difference in my knowledge of written Chinese (although my knowledge is still far from complete). And I have only studied less than half the book!! I especially like the fact that the book provides translation in both Mandarin and Cantonese. Because of that, I could learn both the Mandarin and Cantonese pronunciations. Furthermore, the book is very helpful because it also provides phrases associated with each character. Just as in English where phrases sometimes connote different meanings compared the meaning of the sole word (eg.pass vs. pass away), so can be said for Chinese. Therefore, in learning Chinese, it is important not only to know the meaning of a singular word but also to know how the word combines with other words to form a phrase. Also recommended, "Read and Write Chinese: A Simplified Guide to the Chinese Characters" by the same author--published a year later. A more compact guide without the phrase part (mentioned in the last paragraph).

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent for beginners and advanced learners!, September 23, 2002

By 

Jeff Jacobson "JJ" (Taipei, Taiwan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Understanding Chinese 2 Ed: A Guide to the Usage of Chinese Characters (Paperback)

Rita Choy is one of the best writers for Chinese helpers. She has put together several books that I find most useful. I have lived in Taiwan for quite sometime and her books have been very useful in finding meanings. Her cross listed index is a life saver I use it almost everyday. I cannot imagine anyone who is studying Chinese not buying her books. Regardless of the simplifed vs. traditional characters. If you learn simplied first you will have much trouble learning and reading traditional.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, but not a book for the absolute beginner, June 17, 2007

By 

Mr. W. B. Simmonite "gebbeth" (Hove, UK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Understanding Chinese 2 Ed: A Guide to the Usage of Chinese Characters (Paperback)

Learning written Chinese is NOT straightforward, and let me be brutal: there is no easy way out. To quote the old proverb, every time you reach a summit, there's a higher one to climb.

And here's my ten cents for the traditional / simplified debate: if you are at all serious about Chinese and intend to deal with anywhere outside contemporary China, you've essentially got to learn both.

This is a great buy and journeyfriend, but definitely a book for the second stage in the process.

Stage One is learning grammar and individual characters - what the Chinese call "zi". When learning to read and write Chinese, start with anything from the Beijing Languages Institute (their Essential and Practical Chinese Reader series are what got me started) because a) they use Putonghua aka Peking/Beijing Mandarin, on which the modern written language is based, and b) they teach you the traditional form of the written character as well as the simplified one. Use these books in conjunction with Choy's stage one book - Read and Write Chinese: A Simplified Guide to the Chinese Characters - to broaden your knowledge of characters, and to introduce you to Cantonese pronunciation, which is what we come across most in our Chinatowns in the West. There's no problem with the simplified / traditional character form if you follow this method, since you'll pick up the simplified stuff from the Beijing material.

Stage Two is about broadening your vocabulary further through learning character compounds ("ci"), and this is where this work really comes into its own. If you've been down my route, you've got a wodge of grammar and a fair number of characters under your belt by now, and it's time to consolidate and grow your knowledge. This book is excellent for that.

Hope this helps you in your choice!