1 comments about The Traditional Literature of Cambodia: A Preliminary Guide (London Oriental Series).

1. No khmer script. There are 282 pgs, but 1/3 of this is the bibliography. Summaries of stories and poems are all in english. Too bad, it would have been better if Ms. Jacob include the khmer scripts.

No comments about Response: shifting biographies, shifting temporalities.(Chinese painting; art historian Jonathan Hay): An article from: The Art Bulletin.

2 comments about Pocket Oxford Chinese Dictionary: English-Chinese, Chinese-English = Ying-Han, Han-Ying (Dictionary).

1. In my experience traveling and living in China for two years, having arrived in the country with this dictionary and no prior experience in the language, I have become competent in Mandarin with the great help of this little 'friend'.
   
   Although certainly not concise, it is missing a great deal of (usually) less practical words, it is small enough to carry in your pocket as you wander the streets trying to self-study or translate. It explains grammatical terms with amazing clarity in a tone that an amateur in language studies can understand. Often if will give 4 definitions for a word, but will explain the application of each definition. Moreover, it will give example sentences to help with grammatical and further vocabulary retention. It also uses both PINYIN and Characters in the Chinese definitions.
   
   Basically it is a huge communicative aid and learning tool but should accompany another source to fill in the vocabulary blanks.



2. This was my very first English-Chinese/Chinese-English dictionary, and it has helped me many times. I bought it in my first year in university (I was a Chinese major)and I found it to be quite helpful.
   
   Back then my vocabulary was very limited, so I used it quite a lot, and learned a lot.
   
   Now however, as I've progressed I don't really think this is that good a dictinary. First of all, it's a pocket dictionary, which means, that the vocabulary (extensive as it might be) is a bit limited. I actually don't use this book at all anymore, because I find, that the words I seek are often not in there. Also there are no countries, no places or names. There is also a problem with the fact, that it may tell you the translation of a word, but it dosen't tell you how to use it. If it gives you 3 different translations to a word (all of which have a different use) you wouldn't be the wiser to which is the word you're seeking. That is quite a bit annoying.
   
   So, in summary, I'd say it's good for beginners, seeing it's got all the words you're bound to use in everyday conversation and it's fairly cheap, but there's a lot missing for the more advanced learner.

No comments about Building Bridges, Carving Niches: An Enduring Legacy.

No comments about Chinese Historic Sites and Pioneer Families of Rural Oahu.

No comments about Chapters From a Floating Life The Autobiography of a Chinese Artist.

No comments about Chinese for Christ: Futher missionary advance in the Far East.

No comments about Cao Zhi: The Life of a Princely Chinese Poet.

2 comments about A Life of Science: Wisdom from Conversations with 11 Distinguished Chinese American Scientists.

1. I enjoy reading general science books by authors like Matt Ridley, who wrote Genome: The Autobiography of a Species or Bryan Sykes, who wrote Adam's Curse. While searching Amazon to continue my recent glut of such gems, I came across A Life of Science.
   
   I was instantly intrigued by the driving force behind the book. The authors delve into the lives of 11 prominent Chinese-Americans scientists (most of whom are based in the U.S.) while listing out the things that make them tick, as this book is tailored for students who are interested in getting into a science-related career.
   
   This book is an enormously interesting and informative read and "profiles" each scientist by writing a detailed biography before each conversation, which is presented in a Q&A format.
   
   The real soul of this book lies in the 'What We Can Learn' sections at the end of each profile, which lists out the principles/characteristics that influenced the scientists to succeed.



2. James Watson once said his book, The Double Helix, was intended to instruct students what a career in science is like. This book, A Life of Science, fulfills the same ambitions in a thorough and very interesting way. This book contains "sage wisdom", as one of the reviewers on the back of the book states - it's like having an experienced scientist-advisor on your shoulder.
   
   Oh, by the way, this book is very easy to read. The writing was taken from actual conversations from the scientists, so the language is simple and straightforward - no funky syntax like in Arrowsmith.
   
   There's a Chinese proverb that I read somewhere and find pretty appropriate. It goes "To know the road ahead, ask those coming back." A lot of scientists "coming back" - eleven of them, to be exact, respond to many insightful questions and give great advice. If you're at all interested in science, you should read this book. Stick with this book and it may very well change your life.

No comments about Chronicle of the Tom Young family =: Tan Yang jia pu.