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English for the Masses

(Printed: September 2008, Volume: 3,000, Price: 17,000 kip. Sold out December 5th. Second edition 10,000 2/20/09)
The Lao PDR is moving steadily to a market economy, but the masses are still alive and well. This book introduces basic phrases and patterns in both English and Lao. It targets high school level students, but has been popular among all ages. Those who find the title cumbersome call it the “Frangipani” book, easily recognized as the national flower.


 

Lao Essence: Essential English for Laos

(Printed: September 2008, Volume: 3,000, Price: 17,000 kip. Sold out December 18th. Second edition 10,000 3/1/09))
I promote this book as homegrown; made in Laos, about Laos and for Lao. The book is especially popular in Luang Prabang where tourism creates tremendous revenue. It focuses on phrases used in hotels, restaurants and tourist agencies as well as general information about Laos. I tried to capture the essence of Laos with a cover photo of a stupa in Si Saket Temple, Vientiane.
 

Japanese for Laos

(Printed: December 2008, Volume: 3,000, Price: 22,000 kip)
This book was made in response to popular demand. Some students who are bored of English like to study Japanese, Korean or Chinese. One reason the Japanese language is so popular is because of the high presence of Japanese aid agencies. There is already an excellent book on the market produced by a company with similar intentions, but nonetheless, this book has been selling well in the niche market of Japanese language learners.
 

ABC for Laos

(Printed: January 2009, Volume: 10,000, Price: 6,000 kip)
Starting at the very beginning. The next generation is the hope of Laos so it’s a very good place to start. This is the first book printed in color and with a volume of 10,000. The images are taken from the glass mosaics of Xieng Thong Temple in Luang Prabang, a UNESCO world heritage site and one of the cultural jewels of Laos. Apples are imported from China, so in this book, “A” is for Animal, “E” is for Elephant, “M” is for Monkey and “N” is for Novice.
 

grammawow 1

Many Lao students love grammar or are at least trained to believe it’s very important. Of course grammar is important, but it should be immediately useful too. Students should understand how grammar is used in real situations. That’s why I model grammar points in little stories. Many students like the exercises and the answer keys too.
 

grammawow 2

Most grammar books end with the passive, reported speech and perfect past tense as the most difficult lessons. The challenge is to teach the passive in a way that’s actually used. For example, “My car was stolen” as opposed to, “The hamburger was eaten by me.” For the past perfect, I used the feeling of regret. “If I hadn’t eaten that raw meat, I wouldn’t have gotten sick.” The feeling of regret is something most people can relate to.
 

Fabulao 1

I feel sorry for students who have to use conventional texts. I think some of the dialogues are offensive for the average Lao. “Jenny, I can’t decide whether to vacation on the French coast or the Swiss Alps.” My Lao version is about an alien that drops down on Luang Prabang. The Lao girl Noi becomes the alien’s tour guide and introduces the wonders of Laos. Students can learn a bit of reading and grammar and conversation in the comfort of a Lao context.
 

fabulao 2

Noi of course is a good student and gets a chance to visit the alien’s planet as well as Tokyo. She is impressed by the advanced technology, but decides that her heart is in her home in Laos and returns to develop Laos to its own fabulous standards.
 

english for the universe: for laos

This book is based on the thousand tears of managers in Laos. I found out through interviews what they want from their staff. English didn’t even come up. More important were things like motivation, self-direction, responsibility, accountability, honesty and problem solving skills. In this book, I present simple phrases that if used in an organization should iron out many problems. For example, “I just want to confirm…..” “So you mean…..?” “When can you finish this by?”
 

thumbs up

This was a killer book to make, but I am very satisfied with the results. I know a deaf guy whose new hearing wife learned Lao sign language from it. I don’t think there’s any other book that she could have used. Learning Lao Sign Language is not only for the deaf, but for the hearing too. I’m using it when teaching English with wonderful results. Some people are asking for a book II
 

writing 1

This book turned out to be too difficult for most students. I didn’t even dare to print “Writing III”. The approach in this book is to present sentence patterns and have students think of their own examples. This is difficult and it would take a trained teacher to guide students through it. Nonetheless, it sells slowly but steadily in Vientiane mini-marts. I’d like to meet these customers.
   
 

writing 2

Writing is a real challenge for most Lao students. It doesn’t seem to be taught in schools, as it’s very rare to find periods used correctly. Most students think the purpose of writing is to hand something in to the teacher, rather than as a vehicle for self-expression. That’s why I designed this book to encourage students to write about their own lives.



 

english for health professionals

(Printed: September 2010))
T his book was made in collaboration with HLI (Health Leadership International) and the Ministry of Health. Though English is considered essential for medical student, there is no curriculum at the moment. Medical students who want to learn English have to go to private schools where they may end up learning English for cocktail waitresses. Building an English based medical curriculumis an enormous project, but why not at least get started?