Grimms’ Fairy Tales (ESL/EFL Version with Audio)


Book Description

This is Book 7, Collection I, of the Million-Word Reading Project (MWRP) readers. It is suitable for learners with a basic vocabulary of 1,500 words. Million-Word Reading Project (MWRP) is a reading project for ESL/EFL learners at the elementary level (with a basic vocabulary of 1,500 words). In two years, for about fifteen minutes each day, an ESL/EFL learner can read one million words, and reach the upper-intermediate level, gaining a vocabulary of about 3,500 words and a large number of expressions. Text Information Readability | 85.7 Total word count | 28023 Words beyond 1500 | 1262 Unknown word percentage (%) | 4.5 Unknown headword occurrence | 3.23 Unknown words that occur 5 times or more | 70 Unknown words that occur 2 times or more | 207 Synopsis It is safe to say that almost every child has read or heard Grimms’ fairy tales read to them. Every child knows Snow White and the seven kind dwarfs, the poor Cinderella who is treated badly by her stepmother and many more. For over one hundred years, Grimms’ fairy tales have been popular with children all over the world. These stories, collected by the Brothers Grimm (Jacob Grimm and Wilhelm Grimm), have been translated into more than 100 languages and made into many films.




World Famous Stories (ESL/EFL Version with Audio)


Book Description

This is Book 5, Collection II, of the Million-Word Reading Project (MWRP) readers. It is suitable for learners with a basic vocabulary of 1,500 words. Million-Word Reading Project (MWRP) is a reading project for ESL/EFL learners at the elementary level (with a basic vocabulary of 1,500 words). In two years, for about fifteen minutes each day, an ESL/EFL learner can read one million words, and reach the upper-intermediate level, gaining a vocabulary of about 3,500 words and a large number of expressions. Text Information Readability | 84 Total word count | 32308 Words beyond 1500 | 1511 Unknown word percentage (%) | 4.68 Unknown headword occurrence | 3.21 Unknown words that occur 5 times or more | 91 Unknown words that occur 2 times or more | 260 Synopsis The stories are rewritten from “Fifty Famous Stories Retold” and “Thirty more Famous Stories Retold” by James Baldwin (1841-1925), famous American educator and author. These include short stories about famous heroes and their romantic tales, as well as many other interesting tales. These stories have been enjoyed by people and many of them have been used in TEFL (teaching of English as a foreign language) in many countries.




The Little Prince (ESL/EFL Version with Audio)


Book Description

This is Book 6, Collection III, of the Million-Word Reading Project (MWRP) readers. It is suitable for learners with a basic vocabulary of 1,500 words. Million-Word Reading Project (MWRP) is a reading project for ESL/EFL learners at the elementary level (with a basic vocabulary of 1,500 words). In two years, for about fifteen minutes each day, an ESL/EFL learner can read one million words, and reach the upper-intermediate level, gaining a vocabulary of about 3,500 words and a large number of expressions. Text Information Readability | 82.6 Total word count | 16260 Words beyond 1500 | 1013 Unknown word percentage (%) | 6.23 Unknown headword occurrence | 2.98 Unknown words that occur 5 times or more | 40 Unknown words that occur 2 times or more | 151 Synopsis The narrator, an airplane pilot, crashes in the Sahara desert. His plane is badly damaged and he has very little food or water. At this time, the little prince comes to him. He is a very serious little boy who asks the narrator to draw him a sheep. The narrator agrees, and the two become friends. The pilot learns that the little prince comes from a small planet. The little prince passes by neighboring asteroids and meets various people, a king, a vain man, a drunkard, a businessman, a lamplighter, a geographer and so on. After staying on the earth for a year, the little prince decides to return to his planet, so he asks the poisonous snake for help…. This book is rewritten from “Little Prince” by the French author Antoine de Saint Exupéry (1900-1944). It is the third most-translated book in the world and one of the best-selling books ever published.




The Jungle Book (ESL/EFL Version with Audio)


Book Description

This is Book 2, Collection II, of the Million-Word Reading Project (MWRP) readers. It is suitable for learners with a basic vocabulary of 1,500 words. Million-Word Reading Project (MWRP) is a reading project for ESL/EFL learners at the elementary level (with a basic vocabulary of 1,500 words). In two years, for about fifteen minutes each day, an ESL/EFL learner can read one million words, and reach the upper-intermediate level, gaining a vocabulary of about 3,500 words and a large number of expressions. Text Information Readability | 84.2 Total word count | 11138 Words beyond 1500 | 579 Unknown word percentage (%) | 5.2 Unknown headword occurrence | 3.45 Unknown words that occur 5 times or more | 25 Unknown words that occur 2 times or more | 65 Synopsis When Mowgli is a man-cub, Shere Khan, a tiger, wants to catch him and eat him. He is saved by a wolf and becomes a member of the wolf family. Mowgli learns how to live in the jungle with the help of all of his animal family, but he still watches the people in the nearby village who are living normal human lives. Can Mowgli return to human civilization? The original book was written by Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936), an English writer and winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature. The book was published in 1894 and has been made into films several times.




The Call of the Wild (ESL/EFL Version with Audio


Book Description

This is Book 1, Collection II, of the Million-Word Reading Project (MWRP) readers. It is suitable for learners with a basic vocabulary of 1,500 words. Million-Word Reading Project (MWRP) is a reading project for ESL/EFL learners at the elementary level (with a basic vocabulary of 1,500 words). In two years, for about fifteen minutes each day, an ESL/EFL learner can read one million words, and reach the upper-intermediate level, gaining a vocabulary of about 3,500 words and a large number of expressions. Text Information Readability | 86.7 Total word count | 11362 Words beyond 1500 | 430 Unknown word percentage (%) | 3.78 Unknown headword occurrence | 2.59 Unknown words that occur 5 times or more | 15 Unknown words that occur 2 times or more | 64 Synopsis Buck, a powerful dog, is living a good life in California when he is stolen and sold to dog traders. They teach Buck to obey by beating him and send him to Alaska to pull sleds. Life is very hard for Buck. He pulls a heavy sled through miles and miles of frozen ice with little or nothing to eat. He begins to get used to life as a sled dog and learn from the other dogs. He learns to fight, hunt for food, and sleep beneath the snow on winter nights. At the same time, he becomes the enemy of the lead dog in the team. He wants to be the lead dog himself. Can he succeed? The original book was written by Jack London (1876-1916). It was published in 1900 and has been made into several films.




The Secret Garden (ESL/EFL Version with Audio)


Book Description

This is Book 5, Collection I, of the Million-Word Reading Project (MWRP) readers. It is suitable for learners with a basic vocabulary of 1,500 words. Million-Word Reading Project (MWRP) is a reading project for ESL/EFL learners at the elementary level (with a basic vocabulary of 1,500 words). In two years, for about fifteen minutes each day, an ESL/EFL learner can read one million words, and reach the upper-intermediate level, gaining a vocabulary of about 3,500 words and a large number of expressions. Text Information Readability | 86.6 Total word count | 22614 Words beyond 1500 | 593 Unknown word percentage (%) | 2.62 Unknown headword occurrence | 3.2 Unknown words that occur 5 times or more | 31 Unknown words that occur 2 times or more | 93 Synopsis Mary Lennox is a nine-year-old British girl. She grows up in India and is spoilt and selfish. Her parents die and she becomes an orphan, so she is sent to Misselthwaite Manor to live with her uncle. There is a secret garden at the manor, which has been locked up for 10 years. And with the help of “magic”, Mary finds the key to the garden door that has been buried in the earth. With the help of kind Dickon, Mary begins secretly working in the garden to bring its many roses back to life. Mary also discovers the secret of the Manor one night: her uncle has a son. The boy, Colin, is even more spoiled than Mary. He’s weak and is not allowed to go out. What is the secret about the garden? What other miracles can “magic” bring about? This book is rewritten from “The Secret Garden” by Frances H. Burnett (1849-1924). It was first published in 1911. It is now one of Burnett’s most popular novels, and is considered to be a classic of English children’s literature. Several stage and film adaptations have been produced.




The Thirty-Nine Steps (ESL/EFL Version with Audio)


Book Description

This is Book 8, Collection II, of the Million-Word Reading Project (MWRP) readers. It is suitable for learners with a basic vocabulary of 1,500 words. Million-Word Reading Project (MWRP) is a reading project for ESL/EFL learners at the elementary level (with a basic vocabulary of 1,500 words). In two years, for about fifteen minutes each day, an ESL/EFL learner can read one million words, and reach the upper-intermediate level, gaining a vocabulary of about 3,500 words and a large number of expressions. Text Information Readability | 85.4 Total word count | 26104 Words beyond 1500 | 847 Unknown word percentage (%) | 3.24 Unknown headword occurrence | 2.44 Unknown words that occur 5 times or more | 40 Unknown words that occur 2 times or more | 151 Synopsis The year is 1914 and Europe is close to the First World War. Mining Engineer Richard Hannay is staying in London and is finding life in the city boring. One night, he is surprised to find Franklin Scudder at his door. Scudder is a spy and has information about a plan by German spies to steal the British plans for war. Hannay later finds Scudder killed in his flat and decides he must carry on Scudder’s work. With both German spies and the police after, Hannay must solve the riddle of the thirty-nine steps alone…. This book is rewritten from the novel “The Thirty-Nine Steps” by British writer John Buchan (1875-1940), which has been made into films several times.




The Secret Seven (ESL/EFL Version with Audio)


Book Description

This is Book 1, Collection V, of the Million-Word Reading Project (MWRP) readers. It is suitable for learners with a basic vocabulary of 1,500 words. Million-Word Reading Project (MWRP) is a reading project for ESL/EFL learners at the elementary level (with a basic vocabulary of 1,500 words). In two years, for about fifteen minutes each day, an ESL/EFL learner can read one million words, and reach the upper-intermediate level, gaining a vocabulary of about 3,500 words and a large number of expressions. Text Information Readability | 86.5 Total word count | 16587 Words beyond 1500 | 890 Unknown word percentage (%) | 5.37 Unknown headword occurrence | 2.95 Unknown words that occur 5 times or more | 46 Unknown words that occur 2 times or more | 151 Synopsis This book is rewritten from Book 1 of Enid Blyton’s THE SECRET SEVEN collection. The Secret Seven are Peter and his sister Janet, Jack, Barbara, Pam, Colin and George. They form the Secret Seven Society - ready to solve any mystery, any time. They have a secret password, a badge, and a secret meeting place in a garden shed. This is the first adventure of the Secret Seven. The Seven have been making snowmen in the field opposite a lonely old house. When Jack returns home, he finds his badge gone. As he is not allowed to go out after lunch, he decides to steal out of the house at night and go and see whether he can find his missing badge. That is when he discovers a mystery worth investigating.... Enid Blyton (1897 - 1968) is one of the world’s best-loved children’s authors. Her books have been translated into over 90 languages and are still enjoyed by children and adults all over the world.




The Young Adventurer (ESL/EFL Version with Audio)


Book Description

This is Book 4, Collection III, of the Million-Word Reading Project (MWRP) readers. It is suitable for learners with a basic vocabulary of 1,500 words. Million-Word Reading Project (MWRP) is a reading project for ESL/EFL learners at the elementary level (with a basic vocabulary of 1,500 words). In two years, for about fifteen minutes each day, an ESL/EFL learner can read one million words, and reach the upper-intermediate level, gaining a vocabulary of about 3,500 words and a large number of expressions. Text Information Readability | 82.9 Total word count | 21514 Words beyond 1500 | 790 Unknown word percentage (%) | 3.67 Unknown headword occurrence | 2.58 Unknown words that occur 5 times or more | 33 Unknown words that occur 2 times or more | 145 Synopsis Mark Nelson’s farm is mortgaged to Squire Hudson for two thousand dollars. The farm is not making enough money to support the family, so his son Tom shows his wish to go to California to raise money in the gold mines. Fortunately, he finds the Squire’s wallet and returns it at once. So the Squire offers to lend Tom the money to get to California, and the debt is added to the mortgage. His parents agree, and they borrow the money from Hudson. Then Tom heads for Pittsburgh. On the train, Tom meets a young man who calls himself Milton Graham. They stay in the same room in a hotel in Pittsburgh that evening. When Tom wakes up at night, he finds Milton standing with his back turned to him, searching his pockets…. This book is rewritten from “The Young Adventurer, Or, Tom’s Trip Across The Plains” by Horatio Alger, Jr. (1832 – 1899), a 19th-century American author, most famous for his novels about the adventures of poor boys who succeed through hard work.




Stories of Robin Hood (ESL/EFL Version with Audio)


Book Description

This is Book 2, Collection III, of the Million-Word Reading Project (MWRP) readers. It is suitable for learners with a basic vocabulary of 1,500 words. Million-Word Reading Project (MWRP) is a reading project for ESL/EFL learners at the elementary level (with a basic vocabulary of 1,500 words). In two years, for about fifteen minutes each day, an ESL/EFL learner can read one million words, and reach the upper-intermediate level, gaining a vocabulary of about 3,500 words and a large number of expressions. Text Information Readability | 82.5 Total word count | 19099 Words beyond 1500 | 1029 Unknown word percentage (%) | 5.39 Unknown headword occurrence | 3.19 Unknown words that occur 5 times or more | 52 Unknown words that occur 2 times or more | 162 Synopsis Robin Hood is a hero of English folk tales. He is believed to have lived in Nottinghamshire about 700 years ago. He lost his home and ran away into the Sherwood Forest. There, he gathered together a band of merry men. They robbed the rich to help the poor. Robin Hood appears in songs, plays, games, novels, musicals, films, and TV series. This book is rewritten from “Stories of Robin Hood Told to the Children” by H. E. Marshall (1867– 1941), English author of children’s historical stories.