Read Chinese stories

Pinyin above every character, a tap on any word for its meaning, a translation when you want it, and the story read aloud as you follow. From your very first pages to full-length tales.

Level 1 Starter

Very short stories for your first weeks: a line or two at a time, mostly HSK 1 words.

Level 2 Elementary

Short stories in everyday words, with a few new ones — every word is explained.

Level 3 Intermediate

Folk tales and longer stories. Tap any word you do not know.

山羊、野狗、和水牛 shānyáng, yěgǒu, hé shuǐniú Goat, Dog and Buffalo Story · 213 characters · 2 min · 🔊
山精和水精 Shānjīng hé Shuǐjīng The mountain god and the water god Vietnamese folk tale · 405 characters · 5 min
西瓜的故事 xīguā de gùshi The story of the watermelon Vietnamese folk tale · 445 characters · 5 min
还剑湖 HuánjiànHú The Lake of the Returned Sword Vietnamese folk tale · 447 characters · 5 min
为什么河马没有毛发 wèishénme hémǎ méiyǒu máofà Why hippos have no hair Story · 330 characters · 4 min · 🔊
鸡和千足虫 jī hé qiānzúchóng Chicken and Millipede Story · 439 characters · 5 min · 🔊
诺孜贝儿和三根头发 Nuòzībèi'ér hé sān gēn tóufa Nozibele and the three hairs Story · 597 characters · 7 min · 🔊
阿南西和智慧 Ānánxī hé zhìhuì Anansi and Wisdom African folk tale · 406 characters · 5 min · 🔊
萨可满的歌声 Sàkěmǎn de gēshēng Sakima's song Story · 702 characters · 8 min · 🔊
母鸡和老鹰 mǔjī hé lǎoyīng Hen and Eagle Story · 606 characters · 7 min · 🔊
一粒小种子：旺加里·马塔伊的故事 yī lì xiǎo zhǒngzi: Wàngjiālǐ·Mǎtǎyī de gùshi A Tiny Seed: The Story of Wangari Maathai Story · 639 characters · 7 min · 🔊
离家进城的那一天 lí jiā jìnchéng de nà yī tiān The day I left home for the city Story · 630 characters · 7 min · 🔊
驴孩子 lǘ háizi Donkey Child Story · 732 characters · 8 min · 🔊

Level 4 Upper intermediate

Full-length stories with a rich vocabulary.

Most stories are openly licensed (CC BY) children’s stories from the African Storybook project, translated into Chinese and recorded by Global Storybooks; Idiomer added the pinyin, the word meanings and the Vietnamese translations. The fables and the Vietnamese folk tales are retold by Idiomer.