Book Recommendations | Say Goodbye to a "Mundane" Holiday

The holidays are here, what plans does everyone have? Due to the impact of the epidemic, this year everyone may still have to stay at home, so why not use this time to read some books and enrich your empty mind! Today, I will recommend several books that are helpful for learning English, hoping to provide a little help in choosing your holiday reading list.

1. A Guide to Chinese-style English

"Chinese-style English" can be said to be a major pain point for many students in the process of learning English. This book is aimed at Chinese native speakers, helping them distinguish and overcome Chinese-style English in order to write more authentic English expressions.

The author of this book, Joan Pinkham, worked for ten years at the World Health Organization United Nations Headquarters as a bilingual secretary. Later, she worked as a freelance translator, translating many articles and important works with high praise; moreover, the author has also worked on translation editing at the China Foreign Languages Press and Central Compilation and Translation Bureau, participating in the review and proofreading of works by Chinese leaders such as * and *. Her Chinese proficiency level is also very high.

As a native speaker, the author categorizes many examples of Chinese-style English accumulated over many years of work in the book and corrects and analyzes them one by one to correct errors that English learners may make in their expressions.

While reading this book, you may find that many habitual expressions learned since primary school or even those you take pride in using advanced vocabulary have made mistakes in "Chinese-style expressions," while truly authentic English expressions often emphasize "conciseness." For those who want to improve their English level and see where they may have stumbled in English expression, it might be helpful to read this book during the holiday.

2. English Course of Southwest Associated University

Everyone must have heard of Southwest Associated University, which was formed by National Peking University, National Tsinghua University, and Private Nankai University. It preserved important scientific research capabilities during the Anti-Japanese War, trained a large number of outstanding talents, and made outstanding contributions to the development and progress of China and the world.

The book "English Course of Southwest Associated University," originally titled "Freshman English Textbook," contains the study content of freshman English textbooks during the teaching period of Southwest Associated University. The selected articles have interdisciplinary and multi-level characteristics, diverse genres, classic pieces, and embody the educational philosophy of the university's Department of Foreign Languages emphasizing "general education" and nurturing cultured individuals. It still has great reference value for modern foreign language teaching.

The book not only includes all English texts but also invites several professors from prestigious schools to translate them into Chinese, editing them into an English-Chinese bilingual reader for the convenience of readers' reading and self-study.

As a popular English reading material, many students may have already read this book. However, it doesn't matter, as in January of this year, "English Course of Southwest Associated University: Sophomore English Reader" has been published, which has a richer selection of articles compared to the previous book, suitable for extended reading and is a good choice for English reading during the holiday.

3. Selected Translations of Chinese Modern Essays

For students majoring in English, the name Zhang Peiji must be familiar, and every student majoring in English must have read his "Selected Translations of Chinese Modern Essays." In fact, whether or not you are majoring in English, this series of books is a must-read for English enthusiasts and provides excellent materials for learning English translation.

This series consists of four books, with Mr. Zhang Peiji carefully selecting Chinese modern essays and providing authentic English translations, enabling readers to read classic Chinese essays and helping them accumulate wonderful expressions in English translation, improving their translation abilities. The essays included in this book come from famous modern writers including Lu Xun, Hu Shi, Ye Shengtao, etc., which are worth reading on their own. At the same time, by reading masterful translated works, you can learn many authentic phrases and sentences. If students have time to analyze text translations in detail, summarize certain translation techniques, they can further enhance their translation skills during the holiday.

Of course, original English works are also essential reading materials. Reading original works not only improves English reading ability but also allows you to understand other countries' social cultures, authors' writing methods, and so on. Interesting storylines can also have an entertaining effect. Students can choose original works that suit their level and interests. I won't recommend specific ones here.

It is said that reading enriches people. Make good use of the holidays, don’t waste your time in vain, and read more to enrich yourself.

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