Hello All! Welcome back to “Book Recommendations from SK101″ ~
Today I have a very special book in mind that I want to share with you:
Traditional Folktales in Korean and English: Korean Stories for Language Learners [언어 학습자를 위한 한국 전래동화]
I use this book religiously to practice my reading. I also use this for reading comprehension when I tutor! It is the perfect book for intermediate* learners! Here’s why I love it so much!
1. MINIMAL ROMANIZATION
~ unfortunately, I would like it to be ZERO, however, the only romanization you see is in the vocabulary section between the Korean and English. If you know me well, you know that romanization is my arch-nemesis. I hate it with a burning passion and strongly urge and recommend everyone to learn the alphabet asap. Even though this book has some romanization in it, it doesn’t rely on it; the stories and their translations are in Korean and English.
If you need help with pronunciation, you can go to HiNative and ask for help. Or you can type the word you want help with into Papago and press the “listen” button (even though it’s an automated voice, it’s better than romanization).
2. Comprehension Questions
~ I. Love. Comprehension. When I tutor for the Korean Culture Group at my university, the biggest thing I do is reading and comprehension. It’s one thing to be able to read what’s on the page, and it’s another thing to understand and put it into your own words. I think the biggest step to fluency is actively thinking about the language and not just the translations. This book gives you writing and reading exercises after every story - with the option of writing it in Korean or English.
3. Helpful Tips at the Back of the Book
~ if you are a beginner, they have a helpful guide to pronouncing Korean sounds in the back - as well as writing help and creating Korean syllables.
4. The Glossary
~ I have never seen a more efficient glossary in my entire life. The first portion of the glossary is dedicated to the stories. So, if you’re looking for more specific story-related vocabulary, that section is perfect. However, if you want more wide-spread vocabulary and a broader spectrum, then there is a separate section for that. It is split alphabetically (A-Z) with the English before the Korean. It helps because there are also grammar points in the back (only con: it doesn’t tell you 100% how to use them).
5. Audio of the Stories
~ a big part of learning is listening. As one of the four pillars (reading, writing, listening, and speaking), being able to listen in Korean is crucial for fluency. The book comes with an audio CD and a tracklist at the front of the book!!!! You can listen and follow along or just listen, however you choose to use the audio, it’s entirely up to you! And don’t worry!!! If you purchase the ebook, you can find the audio here.
The book is relatively cheap. $14USD ($18.50CAD, ₩16671, € 12) and can be found on Tuttle’s website for $18USD (go to Amazon or the Indie Publishing - it’s cheaper).
I will be doing more book recommendations in the future for my followers! I hope that you found this useful and that if you purchase the book, you love it as much as I do!! Happy Learning Everyone :)
*intermediate: this book shows a wide range of difficulty in stories. The first few stories are extremely easy (for intermediate learners). It progressively gets more challenging towards the end, which is good for intermediate learners as it will be a challenge. I recommend this book to people who are in the intermediate stage, however, if you are a beginner or advanced, you might also learn something with this book too.
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