Reading Strategies and Book Suggestions for English Learners

 Reading is a powerful tool for English learners. While there are different types of materials learners can use, reading books are one of the best types of materials. This article gives some advice on how to improve your English by reading books, and also gives a list of some good books for learners of different levels.

• Read what you love: Motivation is essential for learning. Choose books with topics and stories that are interesting to you.
• Get the book in your native language: If possible, get the book in your native language as well. This allows you to more easily check words and parts, which you don’t understand.
• Listen and read: Many books have audio versions. Reading the text while listening to the audiobook is an excellent way to get reading and listening practice together. Listening as you read also helps with pronunciation, rhythm, and intonation.
• Shadowing: You can also get some speaking practice though reading. Practice "shadowing" – repeating what you hear immediately after the speaker. This builds fluency and natural speech patterns.
• Discuss what you read: Talk about the book with a teacher or language partner. This helps your understanding and provides valuable speaking practice.
• Something is better than nothing: Don't feel the need to read large amounts at one time. On days with more time, read more. On busy days, even just a page or a paragraph is better than nothing. The main goal is consistency.
• Free online resources: Remember, many classic books are available for free online. Most classic books are in the public domain (anyone has the right to copy and read them), and there are some good online libraries for works in the public domain. Three of the best are Wikisource, Project Gutenberg and Open Library.
• Prepare before reading the book: For some more challenging books, it can be helpful to prepare before reading the book. You can do this by reading a summary of the story and the main characters.
• Watch the movie: After you read the book, you can watch the movie adaption of the book. This can be good listening practice and can provide a topic for speaking practice.  For example, what are the differences between the movie and the book? If the book is more challenging, it might be useful to watch the movie even before you read the book, to help you get a better idea of the story and characters.

Book Recommendations

To help you get started, here's a list of suitable books for English learners at different levels, from the easiest levels (A0-A1) to more difficult and challenging levels (B2 to C2).

This list also highlights excellent graded reader series specifically designed for English language learners, which are highly recommended for structured progress.

I. Beginner (A0 - A1):

Dedicated Graded Reader Series: These are excellent resources for beginners. They are specifically written with vocabulary and grammar for each level.

Penguin Readers: Easystarts (A0) & Level 1 (A1)

Oxford Bookworms Library: Starter (A1) & Stage 1 (A1)

Cambridge English Readers: Starter (A1) & Level 1 (A1)

Macmillan Readers: Starter (A1) & Beginner (A1)

Very Simple Children's Books/Picture Books:

The Cat in the Hat (Dr. Seuss) - Simple, repetitive language, rhyming.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar (Eric Carle)

Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? (Bill Martin Jr.)

Aesop's Fables - Short, clear moral stories (often adapted for A1).

"I Can Read" Books (various authors/series) - Leveled readers for native-speaking children, perfect for ESL beginners.

Simple Non-Fiction Picture Books (focus on basic concepts).

Simple Fables from Around the World.

Others:

The Happy Prince and other stories (Oscar Wilde - often adapted for A2).

II. Elementary to Low Intermediate (A2 - B1):

Dedicated Graded Reader Series:

Penguin Readers: Level 2 (A2) & Level 3 (B1)

Oxford Bookworms Library: Stage 2 (A2) & Stage 3 (B1)

Cambridge English Readers: Level 2 (A2) & Level 3 (B1)

Macmillan Readers: Elementary (A2) & Pre-intermediate/Intermediate (B1)

Classic Children's Novels (often adapted for this level):

The Little Prince (Antoine de Saint-Exupéry)

Peter Pan (J.M. Barrie)

Charlotte's Web (E.B. White)

The Wizard of Oz (L. Frank Baum)

Just So Stories (Rudyard Kipling)

The Jungle Book (Rudyard Kipling)

The Adventures of Pinocchio (Carlo Collodi)

Winnie the Pooh (A.A. Milne)

The Secret Garden (Frances Hodgson Burnett)

James and the Giant Peach (Roald Dahl)

Young Adult Series (generally lighter language):

Goosebumps (R.L. Stine)

The Giver (Lois Lowry)

The Outsiders (S.E. Hinton)

My Side of the Mountain (Jean Craighead George)

A Wrinkle in Time (Madeleine L'Engle)

Others:

Adapted short story collections for Learners (Hans Christian Anderson, Anton Chekhov, Leo Tolstoy, O Henry, Jack London)

Simple Biographies of Famous People

The Arrival (Shaun Tan)

III. Intermediate to Upper Intermediate (B1 - B2):

Dedicated Graded Reader Series: Move up to the more advanced levels of these series, tackling more complex vocabulary and longer sentences:

Penguin Readers: Level 4 (B2)

Oxford Bookworms Library: Stage 4 (B2) & Stage 5 (B2+)

Cambridge English Readers: Level 4 (B2)

Macmillan Readers: Upper Intermediate (B2)

Popular Novels with Accessible Language (original versions):

The Old Man and the Sea (Ernest Hemingway)

Animal Farm (George Orwell)

The Pearl (John Steinbeck)

Of Mice and Men (John Steinbeck)

Jonathan Livingston Seagull (Richard Bach)

Selected stories by Anton Chekhov (Joy, The Lottery Ticket, The Boys, Fat and Thin, The Doctor’s Visit, The Bet)

Selected stories by Leo Tolstoy (21 Tales, God Sees the Truth but Waits, What Men Live By, How Much Land does a Man Need?)

Selected stories of O Henry (often adapted)

White Fang (Jack London)

 The Call of the Wild (Jack London)

The Hobbit (J.R.R. Tolkien)

The Witches, BFG, and other Roald Dahl books (original versions) B1 to B2

The Alchemist (Paulo Coelho)

Graphic Novels (e.g., Persepolis, Maus).

IV. Upper Intermediate (B2 - C1):

              Dedicated Graded Reader Series: For those pushing towards advanced fluency:

Penguin Readers: Level 5 (B2+) & Level 6 (C1)

Oxford Bookworms Library: Stage 6 (C1)

Cambridge English Readers: Level 5 (B2+) & Level 6 (C1)

Macmillan Readers: Advanced (C1)

       Classic Novels with more complex language/themes:

Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen)

1984 (George Orwell)

Fahrenheit 451 (Ray Bradbury)

The Lord of the Rings (JRR Tolkien)

Works of Ernest Hemingway (In Our Time, The Sun also Rises, For Whom the Bell Tolls, A Farewell to Arms, Men Without Women, The Snows of the Kilimanjaro and Other Stories)

Siddhartha (Hermann Hesse)

Candide (Voltaire)

The Prophet (Kahlil Gibran)

The Great Gatsby (F. Scott Fitzgerald)

The Hunger Games (Suzanne Collins)

Lord of the Flies (William Golding)

The Catcher in the Rye (J.D. Salinger)

Black Boy (Richard Wright)

Narrative of the Life of Fredrick Douglass (Fredrick Douglass)

Little Women (Louisa May Alcott)

The Color Purple (Alice Walker)

The Joy Luck Club (Amy Tan)

American Born Chinese (Gene Luen Yang)

House on Mango Street (Sandra Cisneros)

Short Stories of Jack London (To Build a Fire, Love of Life)

To Kill a Mockingbird (Harper Lee)

Life of Pi (Yann Martel)

The Bible (New International Version)

Tuesdays with Morrie (Mitch Albom)

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (Betty Smith)

Harry Potter series (J.K. Rowling)

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (C.S. Lewis)

Anne of Green Gables (L.M. Montgomery)

A Christmas Carol (Charles Dickens - consider adapted version if original is too hard).

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Robert Louis Stevenson)

The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius (Marcus Aurelius)

The Time Machine (H.G. Wells)

The War of the Worlds (H.G. Wells)

Dracula (Bram Stoker - often adapted).

Frankenstein (Mary Shelley - often adapted).

The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde

Our Town (Thornton Wilder)

          Other Short stories

                         "The Story of an Hour" Kate Chopin

                         "The Lottery" Shirley Jackson

                         "The Umbrella Man" and "Lamb to the Slaughter" Roald Dahl

          More Challenging Short Stories:

Isaac Asimov (Science Fiction)

                        Going to Meet the Man (James Baldwin)

                        Dubliners (James Joyce)

                        Short stories of Leo Tolstoy

“The Sound of Thunder” (Ray Bradbury)

Works of H.P. Lovecraft "The Cats of Ulthar", "The Music of Erich Zann", "The Terrible Old Man", "From Beyond"

Works of Edgar Allan Poe "The Tell-Tale Heart", "The Cask of Amontillado, "The Black Cat"

Works of Philip K. Dick "Beyond Lies the Wub" "The Defenders" "Second Variety" “Adjustment Team”

In Dark Winter, Chekhov Brings Comfort and Joy

Listen to Story

Transcript

Audio Time: 3 min 44 sec

Level: Upper Intermediate and up

Vocabulary:  To help learners fully understand the audio and transcript, most vocabulary that might be unknown for this lesson’s level is provided. Vocab in bold is more useful for learners at the lesson’s target level. Try to choose 8 to 10 new words to learn from the story (in general, it’s best to try to learn no more than 8-10 new words a day).

Definitions are written with the help of various sources including Merriam-Webster’s Learner’s Dictionary

Dreary: causing unhappiness or sad feelings: not warm, cheerful, etc.

To take something personally: interpret a remark or action as directed against oneself and be upset or offended by it, even if that was not the speaker's intention.

Pewter: a dull gray metal that is a mixture of tin and usually lead.

Dread: to fear something that will or might happen.

Coax: to influence or persuade (a person or animal) to do something by talking in a gentle and friendly way.

Plunge: to push (something) into (something) quickly and forcefully.

Gaze: to look at someone or something in a steady way and usually for a long time.

Exile: a situation in which you are forced to leave your country or home and go to live in a foreign country or distant place.

Jaded: feeling or showing a lack of interest and excitement caused by having done or experienced too much of something.

Inhumane: not kind or gentle to people or animals: not humane.

Broken family: a family in which the parents have divorced.

Depict: to show or describe something or someone. 

Luxurious: very comfortable and expensive: richly appealing.

Drab: not bright or colorful: too plain or dull to be interesting.

Flip: to cause (something) to turn or turn over quickly.

Frown: a serious facial expression that usually shows anger, displeasure, or concentration.

Sleigh: a large, open vehicle that is usually pulled by a horse over snow or ice.

Call on: to make a brief visit to someone.

Dispense: to give or provide (something).

Snowed in: unable to leave a place because a lot of snow is falling or has fallen.

Discussion questions:

1. What are some books that have brought you comfort and joy?

2. Who are some of your favorite writers?

3. Is there a book or books that you often read for comfort or inspiration?

4. What makes an author able to write a good story?

5. How can reading literature help us live better and happier lives?

In the new few posts, you’ll be able to read original and adapted short stories of Chekhov. You can see the full list of original and adapted short stories on this blog here.

Change Your Habits And You'll Be 'Better Than Before'

Listen to Story

Transcript

Audio Time: 4 min 50 sec

Level:  Upper intermediate and up

Vocabulary:  Vocab probably unknown to intermediate speakers is provided to help with comprehension of the text. Vocab in bold is more useful for the intermediate to upper-intermediate level. Try to choose 8 to 10 new words to learn from the report (in general, most learners should try to study no more than 8-10 words per day for optimal learning).

Definitions are written with the help of Merriam-Webster’s Learner’s Dictionary

Building blocks: an important piece of something that is used to form something larger.

Meditation: 1. the act or process of spending time in quiet thought; the act or process of meditating; 2. Specific mental exercises to help clear and calm the mind and to reach greater spiritual insight.

To Uphold (Upholder): to support or defend something.

(New Year’s) Resolution: a promise to yourself that you will make a serious effort to do something that you should do.

Arbitrary:  1. not planned or chosen for a particular reason; 2. not based on reason or evidence; 3. done without concern for what is fair or right.

To Oblige (obliger): to do something that someone has asked you to do: to do a favor for (someone).

To let down: to fail to give help or support to (someone who needs or expects it); to make someone unhappy by not being as good as expected.

‘cause: (informal) because.

Rebel: a person who does not obey rules or accept normal standards of behavior, dress, etc.

Resist:  to fight against (something): to try to stop or prevent (something).

To turn out: to happen, end, or develop in a particular way.

Tendency: a quality that makes something likely to happen or that makes someone likely to think or behave in a particular way.

To keep track (of) something:  to watch or follow the progress of (someone or something).

Treadmill: an exercise machine that has a large belt that moves around while a person walks or runs on it.

Flexible: capable of bending or being bent; 2. easily changed; 3. able to change or to do different things.

Tip: to give useful or secret information to (someone).

Trade off: a situation in which you must choose between or balance two things that are opposite or cannot be had at the same time; 2. something that you do not want but must accept in order to have something that you want.

Goof off: to spend time doing silly or playful things.

Grammar Tip: everyday and every day

“The book is called "Better Than Before: Mastering The Habits Of Our Everyday Lives.”

The words everyday and every day are often confused in English, even by native speakers. Everyday is an adjective that describes a quality of something done daily. We place this word before the noun.

Everyday life is filled with great wonder and great sorrow.

She removed her everyday clothes and put on the beautiful new dress for the party.

Every day is used for something done each day. Placement is usually at the end of the sentence.

I try to study English every day even if it’s only for 5 minutes.

“May you live every day of your life.”― Jonathan Swift

Discussion questions:

1. How important are habits in your life?

2. Do you have any habits that you would like to change?

3. What are some habits that you want to keep?

4. In the story, the author says there are four types of people: upholders, questioners, obligers and rebels. Which of these types are you?

5. Which of the strategies mentioned in the story do you find most effective for making good habits?

6. Are there any strategies for forming good habits not mentioned in the story that work best for you?

7. Would you buy this book? Why or why not?