At some point during our travels, we’ve all resorted to comical gestures and weird hand motions in fruitless attempts to communicate with a local. Even more so in regions where symbols accompany the language.

Enter the “Me No Speak” series.

A clever (and creative!) series designed by Cheryn Flanagan and Benjamin Kolowich,  the Me No Speak guides are picture books for adults with drawings of common, day-to-day items like cash, water, and transportation.

They also provide common phrases that will “help you eat, sleep, & get around… without bumbling your way through a hard-to-speak language” in a handy little pocket-sized book.

Why didn’t I think of this idea first?!

Price: $9.95 | Mandarin Chinese, Japanese, and Thai.