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Usually ships in 1-2 business days | | Only 1 left in stock, order soon! | | | | | | Be a part of the world's most widely spoken language with this essential language tool for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Includes Pinyin phonetic system to help travelers translate Chinese characters into English, pronunciation guide, extensive two-way dictionary, user-friendly sentence builder, and cultural tips. | | | |
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| | Product Details | | Author: | Anthony Garnaut | | Paperback: | 256 pages | | Publisher: | Lonely Planet | | Publication Date: | September 01, 2006 | | Language: | English | | ISBN: | 1741042305 | | Product Length: | 5.44 inches | | Product Width: | 6.36 inches | | Product Height: | 0.5 inches | | Product Weight: | 0.33 pounds | | Package Length: | 5.43 inches | | Package Width: | 3.78 inches | | Package Height: | 0.55 inches | | Package Weight: | 0.31 pounds | | Average Customer Rating: |  based on 35 reviews |
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| | Customer Reviews | Average Customer Review: ( 35 customer reviews )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
26 of 27 found the following review helpful:
 Surprisingly poor Mar 06, 2006
By Brian Asquith
Over the years I've been a strong advocate of the Lonely Planet series of books - they've usually been pitched at just the sort of level of travel that suits my budget and interests. This was the first phrase book I bought by them and found it to be very, very disappointing. Not only is their pronounciation system a waste of time learning, many of the translations were found to be incorrect by my chinese friends in terms of sentence structure and word order. A number of key phrases weren't provided and the "strokes" dictionary in the back is also a waste. Also many words used in the phrases were not the same as the ones provided in the dictionary. Basically a lack of consistency throughout...a very, very poor effort and a very disappointed customer. LP should offer a refund.
21 of 21 found the following review helpful:
 PINYIN IS BACK IN 6TH ED May 25, 2007
By Christopher H. Pang
Please note that the product sold on this page is the 6th edition September 2006. This edition marks REINTRODUCTION OF PINYIN.
Best phrasebook on the market though not perfect. Issues with format, not really with content.
Front grammar section is useful, but compartmentalized format in relatively newer editions makes it harder to follow. Questionable advice claims no tones are more understandable than bad tones.
Very thorough coverage of situations, including those never encountered (e.g. drugs, expressing interest in indigenous issues). As a 5 years student of Mandarin, I find the phrases accurate if sometimes stilted, but colloquial expressions given are still current.
I only wish the color coded category tabs were more effectively used. It is hard to find phrases quickly, as it is hard to find specific situations within the five categories of tools, practical, social, food, safe travel, and dictionary.
Anyhow, I will take this book along on upcoming trip to Beijing. (Have studied mostly modern literature and newspaper in Chinese, still don't know word for can opener!)
29 of 32 found the following review helpful:
Very un-intuitive phonetic system used in this book Mar 19, 2005
By David Harris
I want to add my voice to the chorus who have bemoaned the move away from Pinyin in this edition. This system is anything but better. Because it's so un-intuitive, I found myself constantly having to refer to the table of sounds and spellings at the beginning the book to decipher the correct pronunciation of a word or phrase.
In some cases, the transcriptions are inconsistent in that they don't follow the system described at the front of the book. For example, the spelling sequence 'ow' occurs several times throughout the book but is not in the reference table. Presumably, it represents the sound 'ao' as heard in the English word "couch", but that's only a guess. It could just as easily refer to the diphthong 'ou' as heard in the English word "dough".
That said, a book like this is a useful one to have along when traveling in China. It contains a 40-page grammar section with lots of information about how Chinese works. In typical phrasebook fashion, it also contains several sections organized by subject where one can quickly locate specific words or phrases. It also contains a two-way dictionary, the Chinese-English section being ordered by number of strokes in the character so as to allow Chinese speakers to find English translations.
But do get the previous edition if you can get your hands on it!
13 of 13 found the following review helpful:
 5th edition is horrible Aug 10, 2005
By Sebastian F.
I own the 4th edition of Lonely Planet Mandarin Phrasebook and think it is kinda useful. (Despite a large amount of typoes). So I was quite happy when I saw the new edition on sale and assumed that it would be an improved and corrected version. However, when I opened the book I could not believe my eyes. Instead of Pinyin the author uses some weird romanization system that is often totally inaccurate.
My advice is to get a copy of the 4th or wait for the 6th edition (which hopefully uses Pinyin again)
15 of 16 found the following review helpful:
If you've bothered to study pinyin ... then this book sucks Oct 31, 2005
By Jim Hanlon
If you have no experience with pinyin, then this may well be a fine phrasebook. But if you have studied pinyin (or are planning to) this book will be hopelessly confusing.
What were they thinking of?
My 2 cents: like it or not, pinyin is the standard for transliterated Chinese. I recommend spending a little time to understand pinyin pronounciation and get a pinyin phrasebook. You'll be happier in the long run
See all 35 customer reviews on Amazon.com
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