In this globalized 21st century, Chinese and western people are getting closer day by day both in work and in their daily experiences. The cultures are interacting and influencing each other. Gateway to the World was born out of this reality.

Gateway to the World is a different type of cultural reader. It includes news articles, readers' letters, jokes, short stories, songs, interviews with famous people, conversations in Internet chat rooms, and advertisements. These are the kinds of short texts that western people read every day. They are full of shared cultural knowledge about marriage, relationships, money, recent social history, child education, tensions between the generations, etc. Gateway to the World offers Chinese readers unusual insights into the daily realities of westerners. It expands cultural awareness in a light-hearted way.

Asher Skowronek: Teacher at Centre for English Teaching, University of Sydney