Specs
Reviews
(4.73/5)A great first book
A somewhat short (~45 pages) graded reader from the 다락원 series. The rest of the book is mainly composed of comprehension questions and grammar exercices. It's supposed to be A1, but I feel like the grading here (lvl 8 currently) is a lot more accurate. Grammar sticks to TOPIK I, and there are a lot of explanations for grammar as well in the form of little bubbles and notes throughout the text. The sentences are also rather simple and straightforward. Some vocabulary is added at the bottom of each page, with overall a great choice of vocab as those will often be the more uncommon words. The audiobook is great as well, along with some voice acting which makes the whole thing pretty funny to listen to (but also slightly harder to understand for certain characters like the rabbit).
I've found that Darakwon publish really high-quality learning materials for Korean language learners, such as Korean Grammar in Use, and judging by this first volume, this graded reader series seems to be another great resource.
The book has two main parts: the story itself and the appendix, which includes comprehension questions and answers, and an English translation. The story itself is a traditional Korean fairy tale about a rabbit who is tricked into visiting the dragon king's palace under the sea, as a rabbit liver is required to make medicine to cure the king.
The vocabluary and grammar are well-suited for beginners, and there is help in the form of select vocabluary definitions at the bottom of each page, as well as grammar explanations (including example sentences) in helpful little notes accompanying the text. Personally, I like this kind of format the best, rather than having notes at the end of the chapter or the back of the book.
The comprehension questions are organized by chapter, so you can choose to complete them after reading each chapter or after finishing the whole story. There are several different types of exercises, including questions which ask you to share your thoughts, which is a good opportunity to practice writing.
I have mixed feelings about the inclusion of an English translation of the text. On one hand, I can certainly understand why it would be useful to check your understanding of what you have read, especially for those who are self-studying. On the other, I can see it being detrimental if the reader jumps straight to the translation when they come across something they don't understand rather than thinking about it themselves.
Personally, I think the vocabulary and grammar help provided alongside the text should be enough to help the reader understand the story, so the translation just seems redundant. Some might find it useful at the early stages of reading, even if just to boost their confidence, but it's something I hope isn't included in higher levels.
The accompanying audio is very good: the voice actors are entertaining, and the story is read at a slow pace, which is suitable for this level as it enables beginners to more easily follow along. I would have liked audio of the story being read at a natural speed too, as TTMIK does with some of their books, as I don't think the slow reading lends itself well to rereading / relistening.
The only real issue I have is that I feel a third of the volume is wasted on the appendix. I don't use the supplemental material because I find comprehension questions too easy, I don't care about practicing writing as I'm only interested in input, and I feel the translation is unnecessary. Obviously this is due to my own preferences and language learning goals, rather than being a shortcoming of the reader itself.
In conclusion, this is a well-designed, high-quality, enjoyable graded reader that I would happily recommend to beginners.
Great resource for those who have a good grasp on TOPIK I grammar and want to kickstart their reading. This has a good balance in the vocabulary being taught, with the context-specific words that might not be useful incorporated into very relevant expressions filled with grammar pattern reviews.
Highly recommend listening to the audio alongside the book to practice shadowing and also getting to hear lots of sound change rules.