Chinese Picture Books with Audio CDs by Heryin Publishing (VIDEO)
I’m excited to share these wonderful Chinese children’s books with audio CDs! 和英文化 Heryin Books is a bilingual publishing company with picture books in simplified Chinese, traditional Chinese, and English accompanied by narrations in Mandarin and English.
This post has affiliate links. Please see our disclosure policy for further details. Please note that I have no relationship with the Heryin publishing company. I have purchased all books, and the opinions here reflect that of my own and of my children.
Heryin Books in Simplified and Traditional Chinese
Heryin children’s books are available in simplified AND traditional Chinese! The Simplified Chinese books have an added bonus of a small insert with an English translation.
Chinese Picture Books with Audio CDs
Some books are narrated by a gentleman and others are narrated by a woman.
Each bilingual CD from Heryin Publishing has 2 tracks: Track 1 is Mandarin Chinese, Track 2 is English. The classical music in the background is soft and does not distract from the spoken storyline.
Many of these Chinese children’s books with CDs are written by Chinese authors and some are Montessori-friendly (eg realistic illustrations and/or storyline).
Related: Realistic (Montessori-friendly) Chinese stories
Benefits of Chinese Children’s Books with CDs
Due to my limited Chinese speaking and reading ability, my family relies on audiobooks for native Mandarin exposure.
Even if your family is fluent in Chinese, audiobooks are still helpful for passive language exposure.
When you are not available to read to your child, he or she can play audiobooks in a CD player. You can listen to stories on car rides and during meals!
In addition, since we live in a small town, my children have mainly spoken Chinese with women. However, it’s important to be exposed to all types of speakers.
Although Heryin audiobooks have bilingual narration, we only listen to the Mandarin track, because Chinese is a minority language at home.
Examples of Chinese Children’s Books with CDs from Heryin publishing
Please take a look at the video samples in this post for samples of the first pages of each book!
The audio CDs are all clear like the first video. Sorry for not realizing that I turned the volume down for the rest of the videos! In actuality, the quality of each CD is consistent.
Try this: How Kids And Parents Can Learn Chinese From Audiobooks
Chinese children’s book: 妈妈外面有阳光 (Mom, it’s sunny outside)
Author: 徐素霞 (Hsu Su-Hsia)
Language / ISBN:
- Simplified Chinese / 9787537636087
- Traditional Chinese / 9789867942388
Where to Buy
This reality-based story is about a little girl who wants to play with her mother outside. She asks her mother repeatedly to take her out to play, but her mother is too busy with work.
This is a sweet story that touched me and my daughter, because I am often busy and saying “等我忙完! (Děng wǒ máng wán / Wait for me to be finished!)
The first time my daughter heard this story, she did not like it. She said that it made her sad, because she does not like it when I tell her that I’m busy.
After we finished the story, we talked about how it relates to life. We discussed that many children feel sad when their parents are busy, but it’s a part of life.
Parents have to finish their work diligently, and they try to play with their kids when they can.
She later grew to like this story, and I recommend this book as a gentle way to discuss family matters.
Chinese children’s book: 没毛鸡 (The Featherless Chicken)
Author: 陈致元 (Chi-Yuan Chen)
Language / ISBN:
- Simplified Chinese / 9787537636186
- Traditional Chinese / 9789866608964
- English / 9780976205692
Where to buy:
This anthropomorphic story is a twist on the classic “Ugly Duckling” story.
A featherless chicken longs to play with beautiful feathered chickens, but they ridicule him for his appearance. The chicken figures out a way to camouflage and join the other chickens.
Later, he accidentally surprises the other chickens about his true appearance, and everybody has a change of heart.
This book is helpful for discussing kindness to others who may look different and learning about the need to “fit in” with peers.
Chinese children’s book with CD: 熊爸爸去另一个城市工作 (Papa Bear Goes to Work in Another City)
Author: 陈致元 (Chi-Yuan Chen)
Language / ISBN:
- Simplified Chinese / 9787537636070
- Traditional Chinese / 9789869522618
Where to Buy:
Papa Bear has to work out-of-town for 6 months. This is the first time he will be away from his wife and children.
Therefore, Papa Bear surprises the kids by leaving each of them something special before his trip. To Papa Bear’s surprise, the kids always prepared a loving gift which he discovers when he feels lonely at work.
When reading anthropomorphic stories like this, I explain to my kids that the story is pretend and that bears in “real life” do not wear clothes or go to work. But animals, like people, feel the need to be with family.
Since my daughter is often sad that she does not get to see my husband on the days that he works late or works on the weekend, this story was helpful in explaining that some children have to wait months to see their parent due to work or other reasons.
Chinese Picture Book with CD: 踢踢踏 (Clip Clip Clogs)
Author: 余光中 (Yu Guangzhong)
Languages / ISBN:
- Simplified Chinese / 9787537683371
- Traditional Chinese / 9867942833
Where to buy:
This book not exactly a story but rather a song about the sound of clogs while children are dancing. The words are simple, and the watercolor illustrations are poetic.
The orchestral music is upbeat, and both of my kids like to dance to it!
Chinese children’s book with CD: 我和我的脚踏车 (Me and My Bike)
Author: 叶安德 (Ye Ande)
Language / ISBN:
- Simplified Chinese / 9787537636070
- Traditional Chinese / 9789869522687
- English / 9780978755027
Where to Buy:
This is a meaningful story about a little boy who wishes for a new bike. His grandfather says he has a magical lamp, so the boy takes it and hopes that it will give him a new bike.
The boy rides his grandfather’s old bike, but he feels that it has many problems causing him to lag behind his friends, and he is envious of his friends’ new bikes.
However, his mother told him that when she was young, she was sad that she had no shoes until she saw a beggar with no legs. The boy appreciates the story and decided that he will be happy with his old bike!
As you can see in the video, this book was bound incorrectly and I will have to fix the order. I purchased this at China Sprout months ago and am not sure if they will let me exchange the book since I have had it for so long already.
Chinese children’s book with CD: 吃六顿晚餐的猫 (Six Dinner Sid)
Author: Igna Moore (Translated by 王林)
Language / ISBN:
- Simplified Chinese / 9787537638128
- Traditional Chinese / 9789866608933
- English / 9780671796136
Where to Buy:
This is a translated Western book about a mischievous cat named Sid who lived in many homes so that he could have many dinners. Each family thought that the cat was their own and didn’t realize that Sid was sneaking around to other homes!
However, one day he was sick, each of these families took him to the veterinarian. Sid had to take the same medicine multiple times! But then the veterinarian realized that this was the same cat…
Eventually, the neighbors understood what Sid was doing, and Sid learned that he could be honest and still be part of each family!
Chinese children’s book: 小蝾螈睡哪里？(The Salamander Room)
Author: Anne Mazer (Translated by 王林)
Language / ISBN:
- Simplified Chinese / 9787537638135
- Traditional Chinese / 9789579753494
- English / 9780679861874
Where to Buy:
This is a sweet story about a boy who takes in a salamander and imagines creating a nature wonderland in his own home to take care of his new friend.
The illustrations are beautiful, and the language in this book is rich and thoughtful!
I love this story because it reminds me of when my children create forts with chairs and pillows for their toys and pretend to take care of them. I think many children can relate to this story in trying to protect an animal or toy!
Chinese Christmas Story: 一个不能没有礼物的日子 (The Best Christmas Ever)
一个不能没有礼物的日子 is another great picture book by 陳致元 (Chih-Yuan Chen)! Please see this post for review and pictures of the book!
There are many other Chinese children’s books with CDs by Heryin publishing that you may want to explore on their bilingual website.
I have some other Chinese books with CDs that we have not yet read, but I will try to share them in the future!
Chinese books for kids
- For all book recommendations, explore our favorite Chinese books for kids!
- If you’re wondering where to buy children’s books, click here for the best online Chinese bookstores!
Recommended articles about how to teach kids Chinese
If you need tips on how to teach your child Chinese, these posts are for you!
- Teach Your Child a Second Language at Home with 5 Key Steps
- How To Get Your Child To Speak the Minority Language
- Raising Multilingual Children as a Non-Fluent Parent
- 10 Ways to Get Your Child to Read Throughout the Day
- 6 Fun Ways to Assess Reading Comprehension With Kids!
hi, if my daughter is not reading chinese yet, but can speak, do you have any recommendations on how i may allow her to listen to the audio cd and read the book on her own (since she may not realised when it is time to turn the page)
Hi! Thank you for your question; I’m so sorry for the late reply. If she is not yet reading, you can have her first look the illustrations on her own and/or with you and discussing what she sees in the illustration. Let her take her time with them. Then listen to the CD while flipping through the pages at her own pace. Depending on her comprehension level, she might be able to figure out which page she should be on based on context, especially if she’s already familiar with the illustrations.
Even though if my daughter can read the books, often times the audio reading goes too fast because she is still analyzing the illustrations. You can try to teach her to pause the CD player if she thinks it is going too fast. I think that’s the main downside with audiobooks versus real-life reading with a caregiver – sometimes it rushes kids to move on before they’re ready. But they are excellent for native Chinese exposure. Hope that answers your question, and please let me know how it goes!