A Korean Reader for Chinese Characters (Klear Textbooks in Korean Language) by Choon-Hak Cho (31-Aug-2002) Paperback

KLEAR Textbooks in Korean Language

by Choon-Hak Cho

Korean Reader for Chinese Characters will help students of Korean master basic Chinese characters that are frequently encountered in everyday situations. More than five hundred characters are targeted in exercises that aid in the efficient study of the forms, meanings, and sounds of individual characters and their compounds. Although the primary goal of the Reader is recognition of basic Chinese characters, students are encouraged to learn to write them properly by inclusion of a section on stroke order. The Reader is also designed to reinforce skills in reading and writing in Korean while studying Chinese characters.Forty lessons are preceded by an introductory chapter on the principles of Chinese character formation and reading and writing characters and followed by appendices on stroke order, English translations of the main reading text of each lesson, and an index of characters. The lessons are organized into seven new characters, reading text, glossary, notes, new words in characters, more words in characters, and exercises. After every fifth lesson, there is a section reviewing all the characters introduced in the preceding five lessons.

Genres: Language

Paperback

First published September 1, 2002

Reviews

[Nina]

So. I am nearly halfway through this book and since there aren't many reviews I thought I would leave an interim one for anybody interested in purchasing it. I have been trying to struggle through this book for nearly a year and a half now and here is the main conundrum: This book is incredibly challenging unless you have at least an intermediate level vocabulary, but this book is also a huge help to those people who want to acquire an intermediate level vocabulary.

Speaking personally, learning the chinese roots has been a big kickstart to my vocabulary acquisition and even if you have to struggle for a while I really recommend you start this book once you hit that advanced beginner stage. You're also going to want to purchase Choo's Handbook of Korean Vocabulary, which is the only hanja based dictionary available with English translations. You will be able to look up words without it, of course, but there is no other option out there for looking at word families based around the different characters. Two more recommendations: The Scribe Korean App. Most of the challenging vocabulary I have been encountering in this book is on the Intermediate vocab list in that app. If you don't want to make stacks of notecards, that's the way to go. The second recommendation: If you are curious at all about classical Chinese and want to acquire a basic understanding of its structure, I would take a look at the Archie Barnes' Chinese Through Poetry. Only the first 16 chapters actually have grammar lessons, but it is a great introduction to Classical Chinese. Past chapter 16 is only for more serious students, however. Good luck!

[Michael Gibb · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent intro to Chinese characters used in Korean. You need to be upper intermediate level in Hangeul to freely read the texts otherwise the task might be a struggle. But persevere and the Korean language will fully open up. Fascinating stuff.
I am looking for a book that can take me to the next level. Any recommendations?