Ancient Chinese Stories (Second Edition)

王双双Peking University Press · ChinaAug 2025

Rating 3.4
Word count
74 words
Chapters
7
ISBN
9787301292259

Tags

Examinations Chinese TextbookLiteracy TeachingLanguage LearningClassroom TeachingSentence PatternsStep by StepChinese StoriesCultural EnlightenmentOverseas ChineseGraded Reader

Summary

The "New Shuangshuang Chinese Textbook" is the second edition of the "Shuangshuang Chinese Textbook." It is a set of Chinese textbooks specially compiled for overseas students, developed through the joint efforts of Ms. Wang Shuangshuang in California, USA, and experts in China, based on many years of overseas teaching practice. The complete set comprises 15 volumes and a vocabulary of 2,500 characters, covering learning from character recognition, pinyin, sentence patterns, and short passages to preliminary and more systematic study of Chinese culture. In addition to language teaching, the textbooks broadly introduce rich content in Chinese geography, history, philosophy, and other aspects, highlighting the charm of Chinese culture. The textbooks cover a wide range of knowledge, are highly interesting, explain profound things in simple terms, and are easy to teach and learn. This book is the eighth volume of the "New Shuangshuang Chinese Textbook" and is suitable for students who have learned and mastered about 1,000 Chinese characters. The book has 10 lessons, 110 new characters, and 148 new words. The teaching time is 12 to 16 class hours (each class hour is 1.5 to 2 hours). This book introduces representative ancient Chinese stories in simple language. The plots are intricate and legendary, reflecting the living customs and styles of ancient Chinese people as well as their wisdom and humor. By studying this book, students can not only further improve their Chinese proficiency but also feel the breadth of mind and wisdom of ancient sages, broaden their thinking, and gain cultural inheritance. The book also introduces several of the most commonly used punctuation marks in Chinese and adds various exercises on basic characters combining to form characters.

Editor's review

As the eighth volume of the "New Shuangshuang Chinese Textbook," this book is designed for overseas learners who have mastered about 1,000 Chinese characters, naturally combining language learning with cultural awareness. It contains ten lessons, 110 new characters, and 148 new words; the length is well controlled, and the 12 to 16 class-hour arrangement makes it easy for teachers to plan the teaching pace. The selections are mainly ancient Chinese stories with intricate and legendary plots, which can train reading ability while allowing students to perceive the living customs, wisdom, and humor of ancient Chinese people. The textbook also intersperses introductions to common punctuation marks and exercises on basic characters combining to form characters, with solid language points and exercise design. The second edition has been revised on the basis of original teaching practice and is suitable for systematic learning in overseas Chinese classrooms or at home. When reading, it is advisable to prioritize understanding the stories and then consolidate new characters and words, avoiding treating the textbook as a pure storybook to browse.

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Reading tips

  1. First read through the story to grasp the plot, then review new characters and words, avoiding interrupting comprehension by looking up every word.
  2. Advance at 1 to 1.5 class hours per lesson, and after each lesson use the basic character combination exercises to consolidate character forms.
  3. Experience punctuation knowledge in read-aloud practice, paying attention to changes in pauses and tone.
  4. After reading, retell the story in simple Chinese to test reading comprehension and oral expression.

About the publisher

Peking University Press China · Founded in 1979

Peking University Press is a comprehensive university press whose publishing areas cover classical literature, popular science, social culture, world history, Western philosophy, and culture. Its catalogue contains 6,031 titles, with representative books including A Dream of Red Mansions, Relativity: The Special and General Theory (15th Edition) (with Einstein's classic papers on unified field theory and other topics), Elements, Conics, The Aristocratic Families of the Eastern Jin, The Philosophy of Mythology (Volume I), The Philosophy of Mythology (Volume II), and The Origin of Continents and Oceans. Representative authors include Cao Xueqin, Zhou Ruchang, Albert Einstein, Euclid, Apollonius, Tian Yuqing, Schelling, and Xian Gang. The press has developed distinctive strengths in classical Chinese literature and in the translation of Western philosophical classics, while also covering scientific classics and social and cultural studies. As public information is limited, this description is based only on the books in the catalogue and offers no further extrapolation.

Contents

  1. 版权信息
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FAQ

What Chinese proficiency level is this book suitable for? It is suitable for students who have learned and mastered about 1,000 Chinese characters. The book has 10 lessons, 110 new characters, and 148 new words, belonging to the stage of transition from character recognition and sentence patterns to short passage reading. If the character vocabulary is clearly insufficient, it is advisable to supplement the basics before using this book.
How many class hours is appropriate for teachers to arrange? The textbook specifies a teaching time of 12 to 16 class hours, each class hour being 1.5 to 2 hours. It can be advanced at 1 to 1.5 class hours per lesson, leaving time to handle new characters and words, punctuation, and character combination exercises; it is not advisable to discuss only the story plot.
Are the ancient stories in the book difficult for overseas students? The textbook introduces representative ancient Chinese stories in simple language; the plots are intricate but the language difficulty is controlled, and new characters and words are provided for study. For students who have mastered about 1,000 Chinese characters, the main difficulties lie in cultural background and individual vocabulary rather than overall length.
Besides stories, what other content does this book train? In addition to reading ancient stories, the book introduces several of the most commonly used punctuation marks in Chinese and adds exercises on basic characters combining to form characters, balancing reading, punctuation use, and character structure training. It is suitable for use with classroom instruction and after-class exercises.

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About the author

王双双 Author

Wang Shuangshuang is an author about whom limited public information is available; details such as nationality, dates of birth and death, and educational background have not been clearly recorded. Judging from the eight works held in the collection, Wang Shuangshuang is mainly active in compiling Chinese-language textbooks and readers. Representative works include Chinese Idiom Stories, Chinese History (Volumes 1 and 2), Ancient Chinese Philosophy, and titles in the Shuangshuang Chinese Textbook series such as Ancient Chinese Science and Technology, Chinese Myths and Legends, and Ancient Chinese Stories. These works focus on Chinese language and culture, history, and philosophy, combining informative content with storytelling. Their common categories involve language and writing, examinations, and inspirational growth, suggesting that they serve Chinese-language learning and the popularization of traditional culture. Presented in volumes and series, the works are suited to progressive reading and classroom use and are representative within the field of Chinese textbook publishing.