In the last couple of months we’ve taken on three brand new book projects. They’re in various stages of development, but I want to share some general info on what’s coming.
First on the list is Chinese Myths and Legends, an easy-to-read collection of nine short stories. These stories will be familiar to every Chinese person, as well as anyone else learning the language. They are Pangu Opens Heaven and Earth, Nüwa Creates Mankind, Nüwa Patches Up the Heavens, Houyi Shoots Down the Suns, Chang’e Flies to the Moon, Kuafu Chases the Sun, Yu the Great Tames the Flood, Jingwei Fills Up the Sea, and Foolish Old Man Removes the Mountains. The book is written at roughly HSK-4 level, comparable to our Learn to Read Chinese series. Look for it in the next month or so.
Next on the release schedule is a fun book (we haven’t decided on a title yet!) based on Chinese chengyu, those 4-character aphorisms so common in everyday Chinese life. For example, 画龙点睛 (Huà lóng diǎn jīng), “Drawing a dragon and dotting the eyes,” refers to adding the final vivid detail to a painting or sculpture to make it come to life. In the book, we tell the interesting backstory behind 20 or 25 of the most common chengyu. It’s written at the HSK-3 or 4 level. Publication date is TBD, probably early 2025.
And the third project, a big one, is the Teacher’s Guide to Journey to the West. Just as the name implies, this will be a terrific tool for Chinese language teachers to use, and will be based on the first six books of our Journey to the West series of 31 graded readers. The class material will be a combination of language instruction and cultural projects, geared towards middle school and high school students. This project is in the early stages of development, but we’re hoping to have it ready for the Fall 2025 semester. Contact us if you’re a teacher interested in being a pre-reader or beta tester for this!
