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The Journey to the West, Books 4, 5 and 6: Three Classic Stories in Simplified Chinese and Pinyin, 600 Word Vocabulary Level
This book contains the full text of the 4th, 5th and 6th stories in our Journey to the West series for people learning to read Chinese. The three stories told here are unchanged from our original versions except for minor editing and reformatting.
The Young Monk tells the story of Xuanzang, the monk chosen by the Buddha to undertake the dangerous journey westward to India and bring sacred wisdom back to China. The story deals with small, human-scale events and the traditional themes of love, loyalty, treachery and revenge. The Emperor in Hell starts innocently enough, with two good friends chatting as they walk home after eating and drinking at a local inn. This seemingly harmless conversation between two minor characters triggers a series of events that eventually cost the life of a supposedly immortal being and cause the great Tang Emperor himself to be dragged down to the underworld. And in The Journey Begins , the emperor of the Tang Dynasty selects the young monk Xuanzang to undertake the journey. He encounters the Monkey King Sun Wukong, who receives some life-changing advice from The Dragon King of the Eastern Ocean.
The story is written, as much as possible, using the 600 word vocabulary of HSK3. It is presented in Simplified Chinese characters and pinyin, and includes an English version and complete glossary. A free audiobook is available on YouTube’s Imagin8 Press channel, and on our website, www.imagin8press.com.
The Young Monk tells the story of Xuanzang, the monk chosen by the Buddha to undertake the dangerous journey westward to India and bring sacred wisdom back to China. The story deals with small, human-scale events and the traditional themes of love, loyalty, treachery and revenge. The Emperor in Hell starts innocently enough, with two good friends chatting as they walk home after eating and drinking at a local inn. This seemingly harmless conversation between two minor characters triggers a series of events that eventually cost the life of a supposedly immortal being and cause the great Tang Emperor himself to be dragged down to the underworld. And in The Journey Begins , the emperor of the Tang Dynasty selects the young monk Xuanzang to undertake the journey. He encounters the Monkey King Sun Wukong, who receives some life-changing advice from The Dragon King of the Eastern Ocean.
The story is written, as much as possible, using the 600 word vocabulary of HSK3. It is presented in Simplified Chinese characters and pinyin, and includes an English version and complete glossary. A free audiobook is available on YouTube’s Imagin8 Press channel, and on our website, www.imagin8press.com.
369 pages, Paperback
Published May 1, 2020
1 person is currently reading
13 people want to read
About the author
Jeff Pepper
40 books11 followersI'm a writer and publisher living in Verona Pennsylvania, just outside of Pittsburgh. My company, Imagin8 Press, has published over 100 fiction and nonfiction books for people learning to read Chinese. Our best sellers are an innovative English translation of the Dao De Jing and a 31-volume retelling, in easy Chinese, of the classic novel Journey to the West.
I’m also a lifelong science fiction fan, and started writing sci-fi seriously in 2024. I am delighted that my short story, “Spaceship of Fools,” was accepted by Bewildering Stories. My first full-length sci-fi novel, “Ascent to the Sun,” was published in April 2025.
Before embarking on my current career, I was in the software business. I founded and led three successful companies: ServiceWare, which began in my basement and went public on the NASDAQ; Touchtown, which was acquire by Uniguest; and Tunescribers. I have a degree in computer science from Carnegie-Mellon University, where I taught an undergraduate course in computer programming.
When not sitting in front of a glowing screen, you can probably find me playing competitive pickleball.
I’m also a lifelong science fiction fan, and started writing sci-fi seriously in 2024. I am delighted that my short story, “Spaceship of Fools,” was accepted by Bewildering Stories. My first full-length sci-fi novel, “Ascent to the Sun,” was published in April 2025.
Before embarking on my current career, I was in the software business. I founded and led three successful companies: ServiceWare, which began in my basement and went public on the NASDAQ; Touchtown, which was acquire by Uniguest; and Tunescribers. I have a degree in computer science from Carnegie-Mellon University, where I taught an undergraduate course in computer programming.
When not sitting in front of a glowing screen, you can probably find me playing competitive pickleball.
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