 | The Oxford Picture Dictionary: English-Chinese by Norma Shapiro
Buy new: $11.45 / Used from: $7.30 Covers an extremely wide range of topics, very flexible & useful for teaching. However, this book is in traditional, not simplified characters.
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 | Mandarin Phrasebook (Lonely Planet) by Charles Qin
Buy used from: $48.41 Learn Mandarin! I love this phrasebook. (You'll need the Cantonese version if going to Guangdong/Hong Kong)
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 | Iron and Silk by Mark Salzman
Buy new: $10.04 / Used from: $0.01 A very enjoyable read about a teacher in Changsha in the 80's. Things have changed a lot since then, but you will still love this book.
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 | River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze by Peter Hessler
Buy used from: $0.01 Another very enjoyable read, this time a Peace Corps teacher in the 90's. You will love this book, too. Trust me.
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 | Dear Alice: Letters Home from American Teachers Learning to Live in China
Buy new: $19.95 / Used from: $4.48 This one is more educational than entertaining. Kind of like an insightful guidebook. I especially like the section on culture shock.
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 | Lonely Planet China
Buy used from: $0.28 You should take a basic guidebook. But remember that many things will be wrong/out of date. If you can, get one for the individual city to which you're going.
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 | Chinese Characters: A Genealogy and Dictionary (English and Mandarin Chinese Edition) by Rick Harbaugh
Buy new: $17.08 / Used from: $18.58 You'll need a good dictionary. I like this one, but it uses traditional characters.
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 | Concise English-Chinese / Chinese-English Dictionary (Chinese Edition) by Martin H. Manser
Buy used from: $14.49 A small, English-Chinese, Chinese-English dictionary with simplified characters. To get a great version for your PDA, check out www.pleco.com.
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 | Integrated Chinese, Level 1, Part 1: Textbook (Simplified Character Edition) (C&T Asian Languages Series.) (English and Mandarin Chinese Edition)
Buy used from: $3.16 Begin the long journey of learning Mandarin. I used this text. Also comes with a workbook/character workbook.
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 | How to Teach English (How to...) by Jeremy Harmer
Buy used from: $16.00 Of course you need to know what you're doing. If you get only one TESL book, get this one.
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 | Katherine by Anchee Min
Buy new: $17.00 / Used from: $2.97 Learn what NOT to do while teaching in China. Read it if you have some extra time and want to read some good fiction. An excellent critique of cultural imperialism, among other things.
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| Teaching English in Asia: Finding a Job and Doing It Well by Galen Harris Valle
Buy used from: $2.92 This guide looks pretty good. I don't own it yet.
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 | Longman Chinese-English Visual Dictionary of Chinese Culture (English and Mandarin Chinese Edition) by Roderick S. Bucknell
Buy used from: $95.95 Just got this picture dictionary....it is as amazing as it sounds. Wow.
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