New (800) Number

In our desire to serve customers better, ChildBook finally has a toll-free number.

Our new 800 number is :


(800) 689-1218

Customers can use this number to ask product details or if you post orders.

Hope this feature will be helpful for you. We look forward to hearing from you.

Learning Chinese Game outside the classroom

Neat article with a lot of great ideas for Games you can play outside the class room for Learning Chinese.

Look and Find: Learning words in uncommon places makes learning interesting.

Dim Sum is full of fun Chinese words, the problem is the Cantonese servers vs. Mandarin that most people want to Learn :-)

Some games I carry:

				Games for Learning Chinese, Traditional Characters, Practical Chinese
				Our Price: $20.00 Sale Price: $17.99 You Save $2.01!
				Games for Learning Chinese Traditional Characters, Practical Chinese

China retreats on Internet Filtering Software

Surprising... I did not expect this.

China backs away from Internet filter Washington Post

There were some good reasons to back away:

1. Filtering software had copied code from a US application and a lawsuit has been filed. Translation - bad publicity.
2. Lots of complaints within China on this.
3. US and EU outside of China were very vocal on this.

Iraq + Oil = China's Partner...

As Iraq Stabilizes, China Eyes Its Oil Fields - NY Times.

Interesting, but not surprising. China is very worried about making sure of a secure energy supply to keep their economy going.

Why Learn Chinese - Job Security

I had breakfast with a supplier this morning and she mentioned another reason on why to Learn Chinese. Her husband works in the Financial Industry and speaks Chinese, and because of this has kept his job while other people around him have not.

Only negative is now my wife may be expecting me to improve my Chinese beyond the good enough to be laughed at by native Chinese speakers :-)

Chinese Bookstore, Retail Location for ChildBook?

I have been from time to time asked if ChildBook.com has a retail location, since we are a Chinese bookstore. Or if there are future plans to open a store.

At this time, no plans to open a store. Web stuff I understand, but a physical store I don't have the background/experience for. I would rather put my energy into improving the web site, than getting a bookstore going.

My warehouse is not made for visitors (and I don't have the right type of insurance). I am open to meeting customers at the beautiful Rowland Heights Post Office, but once I mention I have free shipping for orders over $25 the need for the meeting usually disappears.

Chinatown Chicago and LA - Both used to be Italian?

This story in the Chicago Tribune, Chinatown: a hidden jewel worth seeking mentions that it used to be heavily populated by ethnic Italians. So was the LA Chinatown. There is still a Catholic Church down there and there used to be an Italian restaurant, Little Joe's. The original LA Chinatown was where Union Station is now, and then moved into Little Italy when the train station was constructed. More on the history of LA's Newer Chinatown.

References:

• Chinatowns of the United States and Canada

• Exploring Chinatown: A Children's Guide to Chinese Culture

U.S. Objects to China’s Web Filtering

U.S. Objects to China’s Web Filtering - NY Times.

Not sure how much good this will do. There is a lot of uproar within China on this issue. And it seems the software that is being used was also pirated from a US company (that is suing).

Yeh Shen - China's (More Original?) Cinderella

One of the books that people ask for regularly is Yeh-Shen, a Cinderella Story from China, the version of Ai-Ling Louie and illustrated by Ed Young.

Yeh-Shen's story is about an orphan girl who is overworked to serve her stepmother and sister. She befriends a fish, which her stepmother cooks and eats. Nobody knew the fish was magical and Yeh-Shen soon found out that the fish's bones can be asked wishes from. Yeh Shen also gets to attend a big party while her stepmother thinks she was at home doing housework. Yeh Shen leaves behind one shoe that somehow gets into the king's possession.

All sounds familiar? While Yeh Shen may sound like a copycat straight from the plagiarism department of Cinderella, guess again. Yeh Shen was written around the 850 A. D., about a cool thousand years older than the earliest version of Cinderella. So definitely, mo plagiarism case in court for this one.

Anyway, I'm sharing this because I know how Cinderella-crazy little girls can get. Admit it, when you were younger, you liked Cinderella much better than the other fairy tales (Or if not you, then someone you know.)

Little girls will surely also like Yeh Shen, so please do take a peek over at the Yeh Shen Page and get a copy for your little girl.

California Schools

My daughter's school will no longer offer students the ability to take 7 classes, so there goes Orchestra for my daughter. The secretary of Education made an excellent comment, that California Schools have lost their way. They used to be first in the nation, and now on average on achievement they are 47th. And it is not all funding related... A great documentary to watch, or just read the synopsis - First to Worst

Good article from the Washington Post - Budget Crisis Forces Deep Cuts at Calif. Schools

Two students, two schools -- 20 miles and a world apart

Two students, two schools -- 20 miles and a world apart - LA Times. Excellent read.

There is a poem called a tale of two schools that was mentioned in the movie Walkout that chronicles the demonstrations of 1968. I would so like to read that poem, I have not found it online. Paula Christomo (Senior Director of community and government relations at Occidental College) wrote this after visiting Palos Verdes High School and comparing it to her school, Roosevelt High School of LAUSD in East LA with the difference in facilities. Palos Verdes High School is located in one of the richest areas of California.

What was mentioned in the LA Times article comparing Jefferson High School to La Canada High School seems like deja vu. What was talked about here was not the differences in facilities, but the attitude. When I went through my student teaching in LAUSD I saw the same thing, very nice students, but the lack of motivation was so frustrating! Missing the PSAT because there were friends visiting. Another student missed class time because she had to take care of her baby sister, so she flunked the class and had to retake it in intermission (school was year round). And the La Canada School seems so similar to my daughters High School.

Chinese Harry Potter in "The Adventurous Prince"?

Oh my, accusations of plagiarism in children's books do abound today. After the string of financial successes in children's books, especially of Harry Potter, people seem more suspicious of everybody else lifting somebody else's work.

A Chinese book due for release this month is said to have copied 18 details from the Harry Potter books. The author denies this and finds the accusation "ridiculous". He says he has never heard of JK Rowling and Harry Potter. A 100,000 copies are being tested in schools and it is said The Adventurous Prince is being received warmly by the children.

My 2 cents on the plagiarism: Harry Potter, though wonderfully woven and told, doesn't have 100% super out-of-this world details that will make it impossible to be totally unique. When you follow a story writing formula, similarities will definitely surface between two characters of the same age/ status/ whatever. This is why Ms. Rowling also has a problem with the accusation of plagiarism. Similar basic characteristics of a hero will tend to produce similar contexts sometimes.

I also find it odd for an author to copy something that is currently hot around the world. Easier to be found out. Copycats ought to copy from totally obscure, under the rock pieces to be not found out *wink wink*. Why copy something so popular?

We'll see how The Adventurous Prince fares, and if general feedback will claim it as the Chinese Harry Potter?

I wish Ray will be able to get his hand on The Adventurous Prince so children outside China will also be able to enjoy it. But of course this will be subject to availability, so let's wait and see...

Swine Flu & China Travel

If you sit within 3 rows of somebody found with Swine Flu on your flight, you are automatically quarantined (great way to ruin a vacation , business trip, etc). The Chinese partners I was with at the trade show are each doing a voluntary 7 day quarantine at their homes.

H1N1 flu has Beijing taking a hard line on safety precautions - LA Times.

An example of a trip gone wrong:
Carlsbad students, teachers home after quarantine in China

Beijing Olympic Pollution

I find it exciting that this was measured at all, results are interesting and I hope they spur China's government for more efforts that are effective on cleaning up the pollution there.

Pollution of Olympic proportions - SF Gate

Beijing air pollution was up to 3.5 times higher than at Summer Games in Athens, Atlanta and Sydney.

Happy Father's Day!

We can't resist but greet the father of ChildBook on this special occassion.

Happy Father's Day, Ray!

Ray is like a father to us (he might contest with the age basis though, heehee), he patiently teaches us and listens and yep, he's funny too.

One of the roles he prizes the most is being a dad to his daughter, so he most deserves a warm greeting on this special day.

Hope you have a great day ahead, Ray!