With thousands of characters to learn, beginning to read and write Chinese is a daunting task. Aimed at learners, this book takes you through 250 of the commonest characters in a clear and accessible way. The meaning of every character is explained along with information about its radical, the compound words it can form, its history, and more. There is a practice grid on every page, showing how the character is written, with space for you to practise writing the character for yourself.