As a non-fluent Chinese-American parent trying to teach my kids Chinese at home, I am grateful for the best free Chinese audiobooks on 喜马拉雅 Ximalaya FM!
We use the Ximalaya app almost daily to listen to children’s stories in Chinese.
Ximalaya is a main source of exposure to native Mandarin Chinese speakers. This Chinese app has improved our listening, speaking, and reading comprehension skills by leaps and bounds.
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Free Chinese audiobooks on Ximalaya 喜马拉雅
What is 喜马拉雅 Ximalaya?
喜马拉雅 Ximalaya FM is a popular web- and app-based podcast and audiobook platform based in China.
According to China Today, the company holds approximately 70% of audio copyrights to the most popular titles in Chinese bookstores.
Therefore, if you are looking for a narration of your favorite story, you have a good chance at finding it on Ximalaya.
When we first tried Ximalaya a few years ago, I was completely overwhelmed with the abundant content.
The entire platform is in simplified Chinese (no English except for English book titles!!), and the narrators seemed to speak so quickly!
However, over the past half year, we began to use Ximalaya regularly, and it’s allowed us to enjoy so many physical books that we otherwise could not have read independently.
Ximalaya has also introduced our family to many Chinese books that had I never heard of before!
Many books from my Taobao orders were chosen based on my daughter’s favorites on Ximalaya. There are also many that we won’t buy. Some have a captivating plotline but strange illustrations. And others we can simply enjoy like old fashioned storytelling.
Audiobooks are a great way for images to be up to the child’s imagination – kind of like how we adults try to read novels before a movie so the cinematography doesn’t “spoil” our notions about a narrative.
Related: 10 Ways to Encourage Your Child to Read
How to use Ximalaya 喜马拉雅 for free Chinese Audiobooks
Please refer to this guide for a detailed overview of how to use the Ximalaya 喜马拉雅 app and website.
This post has our favorite narrators as well as a list of popular children’s books that you can bookmark for reference.
I will update this list periodically as we discover more wonderful Chinese audiobooks!
You can click on the links below to hear stories on Ximalaya. Clicking the links will open a new tab on your desktop computer. On mobile, you will have to click on the red 打开 APP button [see blue arrow].
Favorite Chinese narrators on Ximalaya 喜马拉雅
Narration and audio quality are quite variable on Ximalaya. Some narrators are dynamic and engaging and speak with clear diction; others are dull or have nails-on-chalkboard voices.
In addition, audio quality varies from professional (no static or background noise) to home recordings with young children or distracting background music.
Although I would like our kids exposed to a variety of native speakers, I am very selective of quality. With limited time in a busy schedule, we need to make sure that we are listening to the best narrators.
Here are 6 favorite channels with a variety of popular children’s stories in Mandarin Chinese:
- 艾玛读绘本 (Teacher Emma reads stories)
- 小猴子讲故事 (Little monkey reads stories)
- 村长讲故事 (The Village Chief reads stories)
- 世界经典获奖绘本故事 (World Classic Award-Winning Picture Book Stories)
- 小天FM (Little Sky FM)
- 甜甜阿姨讲故事 (Sweet Auntie reads stories)
艾玛老师 is currently the favorite of my kids. My 24-month-old son will actually ask for her by name!
Although most of these narrators are female, I have also included male storytellers since my kids have met only a handful of guys that speak Chinese.
Some of these narrators do have children involved, but the adult – not the child – is reading. In any case, my daughter likes to hear the adult making brief small talk with the featured child!
Popular free Chinese audiobooks in Mandarin on Ximalaya 喜马拉雅
- 棕色的熊、棕色的熊，你在看什么 (Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See?) – 1 track
- 猜猜我有多爱你 (Guess How Much I Love You) – 1 track
- 花格子大象艾玛 (Elmer the Elephant Series) – 11 tracks
- 大象巴巴 (Babar the Elephant Series) – 5 tracks
- 奇先生妙小姐系列 (Mr. Men and Little Miss Series) – 83 tracks
- 贝贝熊系列 (The Berenstein Bears Series) – 81 tracks
- 可爱的鼠小弟系列 (Little Mouse Series) – 22 tracks
- 玛德琳系列 (Madeline Series) – 6 tracks
- 不一样的卡梅拉系列 (Different Carmela) – 46 tracks
- 彼得兔的故事 (Peter Rabbit) – 30 tracks
- 长大我最棒 (Learn to Get Along Series) – 15 tracks
- 林明子 books – 5 tracks
- 彩虹鱼系列 (Rainbow Fish Series) – 7 tracks
Free Chinese bridge & chapter books in Mandarin Chinese
- 亲爱的小熊系列 (Little Bear Series) – 17 tracks
- 青蛙和蟾蜍系列 (Frog and Toad Series) – 20 tracks (Frog and Toad review here)
- 一片叶子落下来 (The Fall of Freddie the Leaf) – 1 track
- 玛蒂娜故事书系列 (Martine Series) – 60 tracks
- 神奇校车系列 (Magic School Bus Series) – 22 tracks
- 夏洛的网 (Charlotte’s Web) – 31 tracks
- 海蒂 (Heidi) – 15 tracks
- 小王子 (Le Petit Prince) – 27 tracks
- 父与子全集 (Father and Son) – 89 tracks
- 克雷洛夫寓言 (Aesop’s Fables) – 42 tracks
- 米小圈上学记：一二三年级 (Genuine Rice Circle School Series) – 257 tracks
- 杜利特医生航海记 (Dr. Dolittle) – 59 tracks
- 哈利波特 (Harry Potter Series) – 13 tracks
- 三毛流浪记 (The Wanderings of SanMao) – 35 tracks
Free Audiobooks about Chinese Festivals in Mandarin Chinese
- 中国传统节日系列 (Chinese Festivals) – 10 tracks
- 中国记忆, 传统节日系列 (Chinese Festivals) – 12 tracks
- 团圆 (Reunion) – 1 track
Discover more: Chinese Lunar New Year Books and Audiobooks for Kids!
How we use 喜马拉雅 Ximalaya for reading practice
We often listen to the story without the book to encourage concentration with listening and imagination of the described scenes.
After hearing the story several times, my daughter memorizes most or all of the narration.
Then, she is able to remember new Chinese characters by recalling the recording.
Read more here: 5 Ways My Child and I Are Learning Mandarin Chinese from Audiobooks
Does your family use Ximalaya?
Do you have other favorite stories on Ximalaya that should be added to this list?
Please share in the comments below!
Where to buy Chinese books for kids
For all book recommendations, please explore our favorite Chinese books for kids and follow my Instagram book account @chalkacademybooks for special highlights!
If you’re wondering where to buy kids’ books, please click here for a list of the most popular online Chinese bookstores!
Lea says
Thanks for this list! We enjoyed some of the stories very much. Just wondering about the physical book editions of some of these audio books, as we would like to get the physical copies too, so that the kids can match the words to the stories, if they so prefer.
Would you happen to know the physical book editions of for instance, Peter Rabbit, Father and Son and Aesop’s?
Thanks!
Betty says
Hi Lea! I’m so glad that your family has been able to enjoy the Chinese audiobooks! Here are the main online Chinese bookstores that you can explore for these books. I organized the list by simplified versus traditional Chinese. Hope it helps!
Lea says
oh thank you so much, Betty. will go check them out!
esmeralda teo says
hi Betty, could I ask if it is possible to see the pages of the book on ximalaya as it reads, or does the picture only show the cover of the book on the mobile app?
thanks
Betty Choi says
Hi Esmeralda! Ximalaya only features audio narration with the book cover; the inside of the books are copyrighted and not included. We bought many of our Chinese books based on Ximalaya favorites, and you can find ISBN information in our Chinese book reviews here!
Victoria Ekstrom says
Hi Betty,
Do you play it directly via your phone or are you able to cast it to a speaker like Google Home?
Betty says
Hi Victoria! Sorry for the late reply. I usually play the audiobooks on my phone, but if your speakers have Bluetooth, I think you might be able to play the stories through that.