About Bamboo Bilingual
The home of Chinese books and resources for your language journey.
With Bamboo Bilingual, we hope to bring the joy of language learning to everyone in the UK and beyond. We believe that languages add dimension: bringing colour and building bridges in a world that is as diverse as the languages in it! That's why we're committed to expanding the resources available in the UK, and building up a community of language learners.
Bamboo Bilingual will always be here to support and encourage you on this language journey!
Our Story
Where did it all begin?
Making a new home in the UK
Hailing from Sabah, Malaysia — some of us still speak English, Malay and Mandarin! — we discovered that languages gave us fluency, expression and flexibility in our school days and beyond. When we migrated, we found ourselves in a whole new cultural environment. Language enabled us to adapt despite all the hardships we face and gave us the ability to blend in and out of different communities while also remembering our heritage and culture.
"I just don't want her to hate Chinese."
Some 20 years later, some of us are starting new families. When Michal's eldest was born, she was painfully aware of how few books and resources were available. At the time, she thought: "I'd much rather her be monolingual, than to be bilingual but end up hating Chinese because she found it too boring."
The Peppa Pig moment
Things started to change when she saw how her daughter was beginning to speak to her Ah Gong and Ah Ma in Mandarin Chinese, even though she wasn't taught the language. But when speaking with anybody else, she would only use English! She found out it was because Ah Gong and Ah Ma were letting her watch Chinese-dubbed cartoons and songs and speaking to her in Chinese. It was at this moment, she decided to pursue bilingual parenting with renewed energy!
De Ziremi 禧西利米 is born
We wanted to find books and resources that children would enjoy. We wanted to see families all across the UK and more embracing the Chinese languages and cultures. But we couldn't find the books and resources that we wanted.
So we decided to opened our own bookshop. And just like that, from a little bedroom in the outskirts of London, we started De Ziremi 禧西利米.
So we decided to opened our own bookshop. And just like that, from a little bedroom in the outskirts of London, we started De Ziremi 禧西利米.
Now, Bamboo Bilingual 竹林書屋
As we marked our 4th birthday, we decided that we wanted to refresh and renew our commitment to our mission and vision. And we needed a brand that could reflect our passion for Chinese and our love for the bilingual community.
After much debate and deliberation, pondering and planning, we finally launched Bamboo Bilingual!
After much debate and deliberation, pondering and planning, we finally launched Bamboo Bilingual!
Meet the Sisters
We're proud to be a family business, started by four sisters with a passion for sharing bilingualism with the world.