Are there any resources you should buy BEFORE going to China?

[Liebkuchen]

With so many online resources and obviously Chinese textbooks etc being cheaper over in China, is there anything worth buying in the UK before I go?

[xianhua]

Since most Chinese language resources are published in China, I doubt there are many you could buy here which you couldn't in China. I would save your valuable 20-30kg limit for a few luxury items which you'll find hard to locate there. The addded advantage of buying learning resources in China is that you can actually spend a good hour or two in the bookshop looking through them carefully before you make a purchase.

[across]

Well, I've finally settled on a grammar book. Modern Mandarin Chinese Grammar: A Practical Guide. It's been published in the UK, Canada and here in the states. It's the best one I've bought yet. It's one of the more popular options. There's a workbook that accompanies it as well. On the backs of my book and workbook, they both say "Printed in Great Britain." That might be misleading, though, because elsewhere (a couple of pages in), you see something that indicates that it was originally published in the UK. So, perhaps, mine came from the U.S. or Canada and still say "Printed in Great Britain" on the backs of the books. You might easily find them in China, not sure. It's a matter of preference, but I'd prefer my primary, first line of reference learning tools not to be made by native speakers of Chinese. Perhaps for upper intermediate/advanced level stuff, the opposite is true. Anyway, good luck.

[daofeishi]

You will probably be able to cover most your needs through the books you find in China, but if you don't, it is possible to order books from amazon.com/amazon.co.uk.

Titles I used and liked as a beginning student include

Schaum's Outline of Chinese Grammar

Learn to Write Chinese Characters

Oxford Beginner's Chinese Dictionary

You might want to consider buying an electronic dictionary when you get to China. The brands you should look for are "Besta", "步步高(bu bu gao)" and Casio. Try different models and find one that suits your needs. I have tried other brands like Noah and Aiguo, but they have tended to be slow, bloated and easily breakable.

[amandagmu]

For reference, I have not found these books on the mainland, and I highly recommend both:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Modern-Mandarin-Chinese-Grammar-Grammars/dp/0415700108/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293497053&sr=8-1

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Chinese-Comprehensive-Grammar-Grammars/dp/0415150329/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1293497129&sr=1-1

The second one can be downloaded for free on the internet (I did so a little over a week ago) and they have several other books (Essential Chines, etc) that might be worth checking out. I ordered a copy of the first and had it sent home (Berlin for me -- love your CF handle btw ). I found neither of these books in the bookshops in Beijing. Why do I like these books so much? The first provides an excellent practical guide without Chinglish (they're not all terrible in China, but most do not provide explanations I understand). The second provides very comprehensive and coherent explanations of grammar (from people who clearly know their stuff) without just throwing examples at me. I get frustrated with most Chinese grammar books that prefer to throw examples at me rather than fully explain a grammar point.

Also, I don't know what level you're at, but as a beginning/intermediate student in the U.S. I really liked the Integrated Chinese books by Cheng and Tsui, as well as the low intermediate books "A Trip to China." I would bet neither can be found in Beijing, like the above Routledge books, probably in part because of a bias towards mainland-published language books (much like you have with books you might find in the UK being UK-published).

Anyways, just my two cents. The comprehensive grammar book is something I've found useful for reviewing confusing concepts especially.

[amandagmu]

I forgot to add: if you have an iPhone, iPod touch, or another similar device, get plecodict now. I can't tell you how much time that saved me on completing my homework, but let's just say that when I accidentally fried the charger for my Palm OS (which was my original device in 2005) half-way through a summer intensive class in China, I cried.

[roddy]

I would seriously consider getting Plecodict and a device to run it on before you arrive. Any books from overseas publishers are likely to be harder to find here and more expensive, but there may be local equivalents. You can use amazon.cn as an indication of what's available locally.

[Xiwang]

If you like to memorize characters by breaking down the character components (and possibly making stories out of them), then the following well-known books might be useful:

Matthews: http://www.amazon.com/Tuttle-Learning-Chinese-Characters-Revolutionary/dp/080483816X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1293528589&sr=1-1

Heisig: http://www.amazon.com/Remembering-Simplified-Hanzi-Meaning-Characters/dp/0824833236/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1293528543&sr=1-3

Hoenig: http://www.amazon.com/Chinese-Characters-Learn-Remember-Meanings/dp/0982232403/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1293528504&sr=1-1

[Liebkuchen]

Thanks guys!! Exactly the info I was after.

I've actually got the Tuttle character book after stumbling across it in a bookshop in Florence of all places.

Plecodict/smart phones etc are unknown territory for me so I'll need to research it to get my head around it.

Amandagmu- I'd have gone for my all time favourite, schmaltzkuchen but that's getting really obscure

[kkaite2]

How about electronic dictionary?

Is it better to buy electronic dictionary before you arrive or after you arrive in China / Taiwan ? considering the price in amazon is between 260 - 599 USD for some nice electronic dictionary.

Not all people are savvy enough with smart phone

Thanks

[roddy]

Which electronic dictionary would you recommend, and where's the feature comparison with Plecodict?

[abcdefg]

How about electronic dictionary?

I've got a barely-used electronic dictionary that I'll sell you cheap. Very, very, very cheap.

[weregoingunion]

I would recommend avoiding buying an electronic dictionary. It is a waste of money now that smartphones exist. I lived in China for 3 years without a dictionary or smartphone and I really regret that. There were SO many times I would see a word that I wanted to learn and forgot it by the time I got home.

I would highly recommend buying an iPhone and installing Plecodict. Also the Anki program is fantastic! Download the HSK lists and start memorizing. There are tons of semi-useful programs for learning Chinese on the iPhone. Plus you will be able to send messages and save contacts in Chinese. If you have a phone you are bringing over there that doesn't have this option, might as well spend a little extra and get one that does. Plus the iPhone is quad band so you will be able to use it if you return home. I live in the US and the crappy cell phones I bought in China do not work here now.

Anyway, I and many others survived in China and learned Chinese without an iPhone (or other smartphone), but they are SO helpful now that they exist.