trooper Posted October 30, 2003 at 12:27 PM Report Posted October 30, 2003 at 12:27 PM Does anyone know of any that focus on modern (but not necessarily trendy) spoken Mandarin slang? I don't mean more literary things like four character phrases, but current, everyday speech. I've had a look through the idioms and slang thread on this site by the way. No-one mentions any textbook sources. Quote
roddy Posted October 30, 2003 at 12:45 PM Report Posted October 30, 2003 at 12:45 PM Yep. The ones I recommend are produced for the HSK listening exam, and as I just happen to have them to hand . . . Published by the 新世界出版社, one is called HSK 听力关键词 (ISBN 7-80005-696-1) and the other HSK 听力惯用词 (7-80005-695-3) I found these books really good - there's a lot of colloquial / idiomatic stuff you just don't get in a lot of the textbooks around. Opening the book at a random page I find 帮倒忙 (to be more trouble than your worth, more hinderance than help) and 弄 as an informal word for do / make / get - which is something you hear constantly, but I've never come across it in a textbook. If you are in China you should be able to get them easily enough - they're in most bookshops in Beijing that have Chinese for foreigner sections. I first got them in Harbin, so larger provincial cities should have them. There are tapes, though I don't think they add a great deal - if you have a handy native speaker, I wouldn't bother. If you are abroad, I know one forum member has ordered them from this site and been pleased with them. Apart from that, there aren't any I'd particularly recommend. There are a few I've seen around Beijing, but nothing as good as these. What really impressed me about these books is that they really do give you the phrases and words used in everyday speech - they improved my conversation skills no end. Roddy PS - if you do order them from that site, can you mention where you got the link? All publicity is good publicity . . . Oh, and here's a pic to aid bookshop spotting. 1 Quote
trooper Posted October 30, 2003 at 02:18 PM Author Report Posted October 30, 2003 at 02:18 PM Thanks for your help! I'm going to get these books. I can't wait to unleash a few slangy expressions on my Chinese friends. Quote
roddy Posted October 30, 2003 at 02:32 PM Report Posted October 30, 2003 at 02:32 PM Just spent a few minutes typing in some more examples, and then my computer coughed and I lost them . . . You might want to wait a while before ordering - someone else might come up with something better . . . Roddy Quote
beijingbooty Posted October 31, 2003 at 06:12 PM Report Posted October 31, 2003 at 06:12 PM yes, i recommend these two books. They are EXCELLENT. however, do not learn everything in these books blindly. Approx. 10% is very uncommon and if start saying them, chinese will not understand or think it sounds very odd. Make sure you run everything past a local chinese first before memorizing Also, I only recommend learning these phrases after you have a decent grasp of chinese, otherwise it sounds stupid if you speaking all this local, advanced talk without being able to speak normally. Thanks Roddy for these two books. They are very good. Quote
gao_bo_han Posted March 24, 2004 at 08:45 PM Report Posted March 24, 2004 at 08:45 PM Roddy, I tried that website for getting the books from abroad but couldn't find the books. Can you try and let me know how to do it? Thanks, Bo Han Quote
beijingbooty Posted March 25, 2004 at 02:14 AM Report Posted March 25, 2004 at 02:14 AM Hi Bo Han, down the bottom of that website there is a link "lianxi women". Click on that to send a web-based email. Just mention the ISBN or titles of the books and they will trace them from that info. when I was dealing with them, they spoke english as well as chinese. I have used this company 3 times when ordering books from China to be sent to New Zealand and no problems so far. Phil Quote
gao_bo_han Posted March 25, 2004 at 07:21 PM Report Posted March 25, 2004 at 07:21 PM Hi Phil, Thank you for the advice. I will try that method. Bo Han Quote
gao_bo_han Posted June 2, 2004 at 07:29 PM Report Posted June 2, 2004 at 07:29 PM The books cost a total of $12.50 USD, and it will cost $67.50 (at the cheapest) to get them to Texas (Fedex price and wiring fee are about the same)....the shipping will be $55. Anybody know where to find these books in the US where they won't cost an arm and a leg? Or, can these books be found in Gaohsiung? My relatives will go back this summer and can pick them up for me Quote
gao_bo_han Posted June 30, 2004 at 04:11 PM Report Posted June 30, 2004 at 04:11 PM Very excellent. These books are fantastic. Thanks again roddy. Quote
Gaogao Posted June 24, 2009 at 10:50 AM Report Posted June 24, 2009 at 10:50 AM Though it´s a dictionary, not a textbook, I find this one quite nice and sometimes amusing. Comes with both Chinese and Englishe explanations, as well as examples. Organised in ABC order after the pinyins, but there are also "character look-up" pages, if you know the pronunciation of a character, you can look for it in the columns organised in ABC order. New Slang of China 最新中国俚语 Published by 新世界出版社 ISBN 7-80005-564-7 The price is 28 RMB Quote
New Members brianamorgan Posted July 1, 2009 at 08:09 AM New Members Report Posted July 1, 2009 at 08:09 AM Thanks for the book recommendation! Im using it.. Quote
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