Advanced Spoken Chinese,as the title suggests,is an advanced Chinese Textbook for use by students of Chinese who have reached a relatively advanced level.This book contains thirty-six lessons .The contents include short stories,folktales,traditional comic dialogues.and selected scenes from outstanding stage plays.Moreover,the text provides a great amount of practice in spoken Chinese language.Students not only can improve their ability to express themselves in Chinese,but they also can evhance their knowledge through understanding the customs and sentiments of the people in Chinese society. Chen Ru,was born in the city of Tinjin.In 1965 she graduated from Beijing University's Department of Russian Language and Literature.After graduating she worked in foreign language teaching for nine years at Beijing University.Since 1965 she has been engaged in teaching Chinese to foreigners.Currently she is an associate professor at the Beijing Universyty Center for Teaching Chinese to Foreigners.She is one of the authors of the two-volume work entitled Spoken Chinese.