Peaceful Fight Reviewed Books/Video :

Miscellaneous

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The Cambridge Encyclopaedia of China : B.Hook

The first edition of this book was in Wolverhampton University library when I was studying (Chemistry) there. The book was well worth study, was very incisive and gave a wide range of knowledge to a reasonable depth. In short it gave a taster in a lot of areas to allow any casual reader focus further study. The second version (which is the one I ended up with after ordering it) seemed lacklustre in comparison, almost like it had been sanitised in some way. Couldn't quite put my finger on why it seemed different. as a consequence, I'd recommend Edition 1 but not the 2nd edition. (Note : the 2nd edition of this book routinely turns up in second hand shops and will save you a truck load of money if you buy it there).

The Unknown War : Michael Lindsey

Interesting photojournal type book detailing the hardships which the Chinese endured during the Chinese / Japan wars in the 20th century. The wars are generally not recognised within western culture which leads to the book title. Not worth buying first hand but snap it up as a secondhand bargain if you get the chance.

Chinese at your Fingertips : Routledge (Publisher)

Seems to fall between two stools for its intended use this one. The book is too large to act as an in-pocket phrase book and too diverse to aid the learning of the language. May be useful for advanced Chinese speakers to flick through to get a new "phrase a day" but not much use for the rest of us.

Fun With Chinese Characters (3 Vols) : New World (Publisher)

If you only ever bought one set of books on Chinese ideaographs, this should be the set to get. The radical system of characters is covered (in the main) by humorous cartoons to help memory and there are instructions on correct stroke order and application. The cartoons in Volume 2 get a bit tenuous but by that time getting into the "Chinese" state of mind will have got a lot easier so the cartoons aren't quite so essential. The set is small and costs a fair lump of money so maybe get volume 1 and see how you get on before investing in Vols 2 and 3.

Making Out In Chinese : R.Daniels

Just a bit of fun this one. If you want to be able to do all of the chat required for that all important Chinese chat up line ("Do You Come here Often?" might work in the UK but sounds a bit guttural in Cantonese) then this is the book for you. The text should be able to get you from your home to the club exchanging witty repartee with the taxi driver and still give you sufficient vocabulary to make you sound fanciable to your intended beau. If you still fail after reading this book, don't blame me (especially if the taxi driver takes a shine to you instead of your intended !)