Recommendation in order to improve his English level.

Icey · 12-01-2009, 10:30 AM

Hello.
I want to improve my level in English. I'm not fluent but I can understand a conversation and see movies in English.
So, i'm looking for a boks with a "basic" vocabulary, without complex words...
I like books like 1984, Kafka ( The metamorphosis ) ( which i read in my native language ), or good thrillers...

I wait your suggestions,
Thanks,
Icey.

Katti's Cat · 12-01-2009, 10:39 AM

Hm - how about starting off with books that you have already read in your native language. Might be a tad boring, but you have a book to go back to as well as a basic idea to the context.

Have you tried Douglas Preston, James Rollins, Robert Ludlum? - fairly easy to read books in the adventure / adventure / spy genres.

Oh, and keep reading on the forum - heaps of easy to follow english here.

nikkie · 12-02-2009, 01:10 AM

What a great question. I also speak Japanese and German, though poorly. What is your native language? If it's one of those two, I'd love similar recommendations.

Sounds like your best bet would be young adult books. They tend to have lighter themes but are a fairly quick read.

Here is the progression I would take, though it's very much light on "thriller" you will have a bit of a hard time trying to find thrillers with a simple vocabulary. If you make it through this stack though, you could go wherever you wanted.

Tintin, an easy read. There are lots in this series and it's a good start to English lit. If you can follow a conversation, you ought to be able to read these.
Terry Pratchett wrote a whole series of fun and easy reads.
The Chronicles of Narnia is another easy read meant for children, but with enough story to keep an adult interested.
Snow Crash, an easy read, though I'm not sure why. A lot of Stephenson's other stuff was much more difficult. This one read like an action movie. This would be the first book I consider written for adults.
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. I'd be remiss not to recommend it, and if you can make it through the predecessors, you can definitely take this one on.
Ender's Game reads easy but has a lot to it. Besides it's a classic.
Brave New World is a relatively easy read but definitely leaving happy teenager world.
Dune is not a children's book. It's a great read, and will test your growing vocabulary.
The Sirans of Titan. By the time you've got this far you can really read whatever you want. I just think this is a great book to end the list on.

Afterwards you can hit up Tom Clancy, C.S. Friedman, Stephen King, or whatever you like. Enjoy!!!

jbjb · 12-02-2009, 12:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nikkie

What a great question. I also speak Japanese and German, though poorly. What is your native language? If it's one of those two, I'd love similar recommendations.

Sounds like your best bet would be young adult books. They tend to have lighter themes but are a fairly quick read.

Here is the progression I would take, though it's very much light on "thriller" you will have a bit of a hard time trying to find thrillers with a simple vocabulary. If you make it through this stack though, you could go wherever you wanted.

Tintin, an easy read. There are lots in this series and it's a good start to English lit. If you can follow a conversation, you ought to be able to read these.
Terry Pratchett wrote a whole series of fun and easy reads.
The Chronicles of Narnia is another easy read meant for children, but with enough story to keep an adult interested.
Snow Crash, an easy read, though I'm not sure why. A lot of Stephenson's other stuff was much more difficult. This one read like an action movie. This would be the first book I consider written for adults.
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. I'd be remiss not to recommend it, and if you can make it through the predecessors, you can definitely take this one on.
Ender's Game reads easy but has a lot to it. Besides it's a classic.
Brave New World is a relatively easy read but definitely leaving happy teenager world.
Dune is not a children's book. It's a great read, and will test your growing vocabulary.
The Sirans of Titan. By the time you've got this far you can really read whatever you want. I just think this is a great book to end the list on.

Afterwards you can hit up Tom Clancy, C.S. Friedman, Stephen King, or whatever you like. Enjoy!!!

That's a great list!

Considering a couple of them (Pratchett and The Hitch Hikers Guide) - these two quite often rely (it seems to me, at least) on linguistic cleverness and/or quirkyness for a lot of their pleasure. I'm not sure whether this would make them less useful in this case or more so.

On the same lines, the language of P.G. Wodehouse is a real joy.

/JB

MickeyC · 12-02-2009, 03:42 PM

The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy

Bilbo1967 · 12-02-2009, 03:51 PM

Given that you like thrillers, how about some of the young adult thrillers witten by the likes of James Patterson (Maximum Ride series) or Anthony Horowitz (Alex Ryder series).

My son reads them and I have read a couple. They are proper thrillers, but, because they're written for older children, they are less diffficult reads for people who have English as a supplementary language.

Ea · 12-03-2009, 01:18 PM

Don't have any great book suggestions myself - but at the moment, I'm myself trying to read a bit of German to improve my vocabulary, and I've found the dictionary in my Kindle a great help. So much easier to use than a paper dictionary. So if you at some point are looking for a device, it might be worth it to consider one with a translation dictionary.

Quote:

Originally Posted by nikkie

What a great question. I also speak Japanese and German, though poorly. What is your native language? If it's one of those two, I'd love similar recommendations.

I've just started with this one:
Der Dunkle Speigel by Andrea Schacht. It's a historical mystery, taking place in 14th century Cologne (Köln). It's written in the light, humourous style of the Roman Marcus Didius Falco mysteries by Lindsey Davies. I haven't gotten that far yet, but it doesn't come across as too difficult. I'm only just into ch. 3, but I'm already finding myelf more comfortable with reading German than when I started. I chose it because beside having decent reviews at amazon.de, it appeared short and light - something I wouldn't get stuck in.

alrob · 12-03-2009, 01:41 PM

I think the best way to improve your vocabulary is to read with a dictionary nearby.

Ea · 12-03-2009, 01:46 PM

Edit: deleted - nevermind

Latinandgreek · 12-03-2009, 02:38 PM

I am reading the first book in the Percy Jackson series. It is geared towards children and the writing is simple, but the plot is interesting. Is is a fantasy series with a lot of action and adventure thrown in the mix, as well as some revisioning of Greek myths.

astra · 12-04-2009, 07:20 AM

Unfortunatelly, I don't know any thrillers.
I might recommend fantasy, The Belgariad series (starting with Pawn of Prophecy) by David Eddings. Very easy English.

Or The Fingerprints of Gods by Graham Hancock if you like non-fiction anthropology type of books. It will improve your vocabulary a lot*.

* been there done that

P.S. definitely don't try Times or Astronomy magasines (like I did...it helped but was not the easiest way)

Alexander Turcic · 12-05-2009, 12:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bilbo1967

Given that you like thrillers, how about some of the young adult thrillers witten by the likes of James Patterson (Maximum Ride series) .. .

I know they are meant for younger folks, but I have loved reading the Maximum Ride series. They also make a wonderful beach reach!!!

Ea · 12-05-2009, 01:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by astra

P.S. definitely don't try Times or Astronomy magasines (like I did...it helped but was not the easiest way)

In my experience, what helps the most, is that you really want to read it. I read my first 'real' English novel at 16 because it wasn't translated. It was E. M. Forster and quite tough going - but I wanted to read it, and after that, it got a lot easier.

pilotbob · 12-05-2009, 01:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alexander Turcic

I know they are meant for younger folks, but I have loved reading the Maximum Ride series. They also make a wonderful beach reach!!!

+1 ... good books, fun and a quick read.

BOb

astra · 12-05-2009, 01:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ea

In my experience, what helps the most, is that you really want to read it

Could not agree more.

12-01-2009, 10:30 AM	#1
Icey Connoisseur Posts: 63 Karma: 10 Join Date: Oct 2008 Device: Onyx max	Recommendation in order to improve his English level. Hello. I want to improve my level in English. I'm not fluent but I can understand a conversation and see movies in English. So, i'm looking for a boks with a "basic" vocabulary, without complex words... I like books like 1984, Kafka ( The metamorphosis ) ( which i read in my native language ), or good thrillers... I wait your suggestions, Thanks, Icey. Last edited by Dr. Drib; 12-02-2009 at 03:19 AM. Reason: "English" capitalized in thread title / spell check initiated

12-02-2009, 01:10 AM	#3
nikkie Guru Posts: 614 Karma: 73700 Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: WA, USA Device: Android, Kindle Paperwhite, lots of ancient readers	What a great question. I also speak Japanese and German, though poorly. What is your native language? If it's one of those two, I'd love similar recommendations. Sounds like your best bet would be young adult books. They tend to have lighter themes but are a fairly quick read. Here is the progression I would take, though it's very much light on "thriller" you will have a bit of a hard time trying to find thrillers with a simple vocabulary. If you make it through this stack though, you could go wherever you wanted. Tintin, an easy read. There are lots in this series and it's a good start to English lit. If you can follow a conversation, you ought to be able to read these. Terry Pratchett wrote a whole series of fun and easy reads. The Chronicles of Narnia is another easy read meant for children, but with enough story to keep an adult interested. Snow Crash, an easy read, though I'm not sure why. A lot of Stephenson's other stuff was much more difficult. This one read like an action movie. This would be the first book I consider written for adults. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. I'd be remiss not to recommend it, and if you can make it through the predecessors, you can definitely take this one on. Ender's Game reads easy but has a lot to it. Besides it's a classic. Brave New World is a relatively easy read but definitely leaving happy teenager world. Dune is not a children's book. It's a great read, and will test your growing vocabulary. The Sirans of Titan. By the time you've got this far you can really read whatever you want. I just think this is a great book to end the list on. Afterwards you can hit up Tom Clancy, C.S. Friedman, Stephen King, or whatever you like. Enjoy!!!

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12-01-2009, 10:39 AM	#2
Katti's Cat Wizard Posts: 2,259 Karma: 175640 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Brisbane Australia Device: Sony PRS-600	Hm - how about starting off with books that you have already read in your native language. Might be a tad boring, but you have a book to go back to as well as a basic idea to the context. Have you tried Douglas Preston, James Rollins, Robert Ludlum? - fairly easy to read books in the adventure / adventure / spy genres. Oh, and keep reading on the forum - heaps of easy to follow english here.

12-02-2009, 03:42 PM	#5
MickeyC Grand Sorcerer Posts: 16,731 Karma: 12185114 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Florida Device: iPhone 6 plus, Sony T1, iPad 3	The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy

12-02-2009, 03:51 PM	#6
Bilbo1967 Not scared! Posts: 13,424 Karma: 81011643 Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Midlands, UK Device: Kindle Paperwhite 10, Huawei M5 10	Given that you like thrillers, how about some of the young adult thrillers witten by the likes of James Patterson (Maximum Ride series) or Anthony Horowitz (Alex Ryder series). My son reads them and I have read a couple. They are proper thrillers, but, because they're written for older children, they are less diffficult reads for people who have English as a supplementary language.

12-03-2009, 01:41 PM	#8
alrob Junior Member Posts: 4 Karma: 262 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Canada Device: Sony Pocket Edition	I think the best way to improve your vocabulary is to read with a dictionary nearby.

12-03-2009, 01:46 PM	#9
Ea Wizard Posts: 3,490 Karma: 5239563 Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Denmark Device: Kindle 3\|iPad air\|iPhone 4S	Edit: deleted - nevermind

12-03-2009, 02:38 PM	#10
Latinandgreek Warrior Princess Posts: 5,038 Karma: 9724231 Join Date: Sep 2009 Device: PRS-505; PRS-350, PRS-T1, iPad, Aura HD	I am reading the first book in the Percy Jackson series. It is geared towards children and the writing is simple, but the plot is interesting. Is is a fantasy series with a lot of action and adventure thrown in the mix, as well as some revisioning of Greek myths.

12-04-2009, 07:20 AM	#11
astra The Introvert Posts: 8,307 Karma: 1000077497 Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: United Kingdom Device: Sony Reader PRS-650 & 505 & 500	Unfortunatelly, I don't know any thrillers. I might recommend fantasy, The Belgariad series (starting with Pawn of Prophecy) by David Eddings. Very easy English. Or The Fingerprints of Gods by Graham Hancock if you like non-fiction anthropology type of books. It will improve your vocabulary a lot. been there done that P.S. definitely don't try Times or Astronomy magasines (like I did...it helped but was not the easiest way)

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