Hide & Speak Chinese

Gr 1—3—Featuring an ethnically diverse cast, this book goes beyond the standard picture dictionary to introduce children to Mandarin Chinese vocabulary. The versos feature a large, bright watercolor picture of a family dinner, a party, the zoo, the classroom, the beach, and more. Parts of the scene are numbered and described in sentences that appear in Chinese characters, Pinyin, and an English translation. The facing pages have two columns: one with pictures of key vocabulary words, and the other with the words in characters and Pinyin. The back cover features two "wipe clean" flaps so students can cover one column to test their language skills and write their answers with a water-based felt-tipped pen or marker. The Pinyin system is briefly explained, as are the characters, but the book incorrectly refers to them as the "Chinese alphabet." Some entries would benefit from some cultural explanation, such as the fact that there are different words for older brother and younger brother. Although this title will be most beneficial to supplement more formal Mandarin instruction, kids wanting to learn some vocabulary will easily pick up key words and will enjoy using the flaps to test their new skills.—Jennifer Rothschild, Prince George's County Memorial Library System, Oxon Hill, MD