Reading Thai Books?

[Dara]

I'm wondering if there are posters here who are reading Thai books. Last night I started on a new book and thought it would be a relatively easy reading for language learners to start on. The book is "Puean Non" by Keukrit Pramoj - a collection of delightful short stories that contain his bits of sarcasm........

[Bryan in Isaan]

and thought it would be a relatively easy reading for language learners to start on.  ........

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

So, It is easy?

I am looking for some good, easy books, probably kids story books in regular language (not dialects, royal language or other non standard). Since I am way up in the Isaan it would have to be something very common and available at the small SE-ED bookstores we have up here.

Bryan

[Totster]

small SE-ED bookstores we have up here.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The one with the coffee shop attached is my favorite ...

totster

[Bryan in Isaan]

The one on the main road going through Kalasin. I think that is the biggest one this side of Khon Kaen. Those cheap hamburgers at the coffee shop aren't too bad .... for the price.

Bryan

[Mr. Farang]

and thought it would be a relatively easy reading for language learners to start on.  ........

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

So, It is easy?

I am looking for some good, easy books, probably kids story books in regular language (not dialects, royal language or other non standard). Since I am way up in the Isaan it would have to be something very common and available at the small SE-ED bookstores we have up here.

Bryan

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

There is an excellent book of Thai short stories for beginning Thai readers. The author is 'Mary Haas".... I highly recommend this book:

Here is the link:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0006YGM5C

Yours sincerely,

Mr. Farang

/editorial note - all the Thai textbooks by Mary R. Haas are excellent! Check them out!

Edited September 23, 2005 by Mr. Farang

[Mr. Farang]

Here is the link to Thai language books by Mary R. Hass:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-h...5167415-7278544

Edited September 23, 2005 by Mr. Farang

[Dara]

and thought it would be a relatively easy reading for language learners to start on.  ........

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

So, It is easy?

I am looking for some good, easy books, probably kids story books in regular language (not dialects, royal language or other non standard). Since I am way up in the Isaan it would have to be something very common and available at the small SE-ED bookstores we have up here.

Bryan

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Bryan - I think the reading in this book is realtively easy, but it is not children's book level - just short stories with the story lines that I think just about anyone can appreciate.

Mr. Farang - I am not familiar with Mary Haas's books, and I'm sure that they are good. I thought, however, if foreign speakers read books that are written by Thais, they will: 1) get a more natural language usage, 2) get a less filtered cultural observation, 3) can perhaps gain a good topic for conversations. Thank you for your input, however - I will check Mary Haas books out one of these days.

The book that I recommended should be available in a regular Thai book store - I can't remember where I got it from, but I usually go to the Chula University Bookstore and other bookstores at Siam Square, another bookstore with a B2 or something in its name (a chain with many locations, I think) and I look at books at magazines and newspapers stands and at grocery stores like Villa and Tops as well. At any rate, M.L. Keukrit Pramoj is a well known and a prolific writer - his books shouldn't be hard to find....

[Mr. Farang]

Mr. Farang - I am not familiar with Mary Haas's books, and I'm sure that they are good.  I thought, however, if foreign speakers read books that are written by Thais, they will: 1) get a more natural language usage, 2) get a less filtered cultural observation,  3) can perhaps gain a good topic for conversations.  Thank you for your input, however - I will check Mary Haas books out one of these days.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Dear Khun Dara,

Mary Haas' writing is very cultured. Her books are available in Thailand. I purchased all of my copies in the Kingdom. There are a few Farangs who understand Thai language and culture quite well -and are teachers. Mary Haas is certainly one of them.

I provided the link to Amazon so you could see her work and the scope and depth of her teachings. You can purchase most, if not all, of her work in Thailand (or at least one could many years ago). I am not sure now, as I have not purchased her books in a few years.

Yours sincerely,

Mr. Farang

Edited September 23, 2005 by Mr. Farang

[meadish_sweetball]

Mary Haas is a demigod in the world of Thai language studies, her contributions can not be praised enough.

Although printed in 1964, her Thai-English Student's Dictionary (Stanford) in my opinion remains the most accurate (although not the most comprehensive) dictionary available on the market from Thai into English. It is a definite must for the serious learner of Thai. It should be stressed that the book is Thai to English only, and the only way to look up words is by the Thai characters, so it will not be much good to those who do not read, or do not plan to learn how to read Thai.

At any rate, M.L. Keukrit Pramoj is a well known and a prolific writer - his books shouldn't be hard to find....

He was also once the Prime Minister of Thailand, a truly erudite man with an international outlook.

[Tywais]

Mary Haas is a demigod in the world of Thai language studies, her contributions can not be praised enough.

Totally agree about Mary, her books were the baseline of my private studies when I was preparing my move to Thailand. Also used at several universities in Thai studies in the US.

[Dara]

Mary Haas' writing is very cultured.  Her books are available in Thailand. I purchased all of my copies in the Kingdom.    There are a few Farangs who understand Thai language and culture quite well -and are teachers.  Mary Haas is certainly one of them.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Mr. Farang - thank you for the additional information on Mary Haas. I will definitely check her books out.

As for recommending readable Thai authors, my intention is to introduce an option to discover local thoughts and flavors. As we all know, how we all look at the world is through a filter based on our background.

Another option for those learning to read Thai - you may want to check out Edward Anthony's "A Programmed Course in Reading Thai Syllables". I know poeple who think it's a great instruction book on learning to read Thai - the latest testimonial came from a Brit friend who had given up trying to learn to read, who, after working through half of this book, found that it's not all that hard after all. The book was written in the 1960's and has gone through several printings, now still available through Amazon - don't know about bookstores in Thailand - a guess would be that if available in Thailand, DK (Duang Kamol) Bookstroe would likely carry it.....

[withnail]

Just noticed this on another site Bilingual Winnie the Pooh

[Dara]

Just noticed this on another site Bilingual Winnie the Pooh

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Good site - thank you! I looked at a few pages of it and liked the fact that the simplicity of children's book language helps make the translation into Thai less awkward. The story line which is more familiar should help with comprehension. ...

[ProfessorFart]

May I give you some of my personal tips here which may be of some use in the daunting face of working on written Thai.

Personally I'd avoid Bi Linguals to be honest, especially English - Thai Bi Linguals as you will not be translating in this direction. Work on making your own translations from 'pure' Thai Passages of you can or if you can find them, use Thai to English. However if you feel comfortable with them then by all means use them to familiarise yourself with written Thai but don't become dependent upon them. There won't always be a nice translation on the facing page. A good idea could be to buy a translated Thai novel and the original Thai version and work through the Thai version using translation as a guide. However I always feel that there is no better place to start once you are ready for 'real' Thai texts than in at the deep end.

As we all learn languages differently, a passage of Thai that I find easy to translate may not be so easy for another and vice versa therefore I won't recommend any particular book to use as I don't want to be beaten with well thumbed books should we ever meet.

My advice is that once you are dealing with specially prepared texts for learners of Thai with reasonable proficiency, check out books of short stories or a novellas until you feel you have found something to your liking and work your way through that tooth and nail.

Don't lose heart if it all seems like dribble at first. Be prepared to work through the same passage 10/20/30 times if you have to. This way, and only this way do you iron out the kinks. Cutting corners will leave you with holes in your Thai which will leak badly further down the line.

As with all language learning be prepared to hit peaks and troughs. You could sail through one paragraph with ease, get a great big chufty head and think 'I've cracked it now' only to spend two weeks on the next paragraph.

Do you work in small doses; little and often. Maybe an hour or two a day. Sweating over a dictionary for 8 hours a day is only going to force out what you may have learned earlier and is counter productive in the long run.

Remember that there are three key areas of benefit to be gained from Thai texts: 1) Vocabulary 2) Grammar and 3) an understanding of how written Thai works and the pitfalls which lie within.

In the early days if you are only picking up on Vocab and Grammar don't worry. The pitfalls will become recognisable quickly enough.

The most important asset you can have is reliable feedback from a Thai. Theres no point in trying to trawl through on your own if you just aren't getting it. Even if they can't translate for you, ask them to rephrase the sentence you are stuck on or explain the context then go away and work on it again. Don't be afraid to make sure you get every point explained.

Your best freinds in the often murky depths of Thai texts will be your dictionarys. Namely (as Meadish mentioned) Mary Hass' Dictionary, and if you are really serious George Macfarland's Dictionary. Hass is getting dated now and could do with a revision but remains the best around for the non Thai learner. MacFarland is good for some of the more obscure words you may well come across. Take time out before you get stuck into Thai texts to familiarise yourself with using dictionaries as you will spend many hours of your time face deep in them.

Hope this is useful.

[withnail]

Thanks for the advice Prof, In your opinion then is the Thai language used in bilingual books unnatural i.e. a direct copy of the English text into Thai words or is some attempt made to make it sound more like a Thai speaker?

Edited September 30, 2005 by withnail

[meadish_sweetball]

In my experience withnail, you will find both, but the problem you are stuck with as a learner, is the difficulty of telling what is natural Thai and what is a too-literal translation.

[Bryan in Isaan]

Don't forget that there are several million Thai kids who are also trying to learn how to read. If you have some basic reading skills consider turning to the same books the Thai children use. Most bookstores have a large textbook section which will have part of that devoted to ภาษาไทย. I recently found part of a series going from 1st grade through 3rd grade. ปีที่ ๑ through ปีที่ ๓. The first grade book has about a dozen short stories which are entertaining. It even has spaces between the words as an aid to the students. Each chapter has a picture dictionary section, and every page has full color cartoon type pictures. My wife, who is bilingual says they are well written. As I read the first grade book, I still use my dictionary, but much less. It is actually easy. These books cost from 35 to 60 baht each.

Just an idea. Good luck.

Bryan

[withnail]

I'm aware that there are a large number of Thai books available in Thai book shops. However, as Meadish stated it's difficult as a learner to tell the difference between the good and the bad. So perhaps somebody could give the names of some decent children's books.

[Neeranam]

I just finished "Johnathan Livingston Seagul" a truly great book.

I picked it up at one of the BTS stations.

I used to read those Aesop ones, which were ok. They had a little dictionary at the back. They had the English too on the same page, but not translated very well.

They were only 12 baht!