Since 1979 CPLI has been publishing world language and ESL materials used by language learners and teachers the world over. Our comprehension-based readers, methodology books for instructors and other products employ the extraordinarily effective TPRS (TPR Storytelling—Teaching Proficiency Through Reading and Storytelling) and TPR (Total Physical Response) approaches to language acquisition—both based on CI (comprehensible input). We publish the key teacher guides for both approaches—Fluency Through TPR Storytelling (TPRS) by Blaine Ray, the originator of TPRS, and Contee Seely and TPR Is More Than Commands by Contee Seely and Elizabeth Kuizenga Romijn, as well as the Guide to Reader's Theater by Karen Rowan.

Our Spanish, French, German, Russian, Italian and English graded readers for 1st through 4th year (and AP) students are top sellers. In 1998 we published the very first of this genre, Casi se muere by Blaine Ray, in Spanish.  (Command Performance no longer publishes those books. TPRS Books established its own publishing company in 2016.)

Headquartered in Berkeley, California for 40 years, we now ship from Denver, Colorado. On October 1, 2019, Command Performance was sold by Contee Seely, who remains a freelance editor, to Karen Rowan, a former and current author of comprehension-based novels.  

We envisioned a new kind of distributor partnership with teacher-authors.  In 2019 we began adding comprehensible readers to our collections from a diverse array of authors.   These authors tackle LGBTQ topics, immigration, Dreamers, authentic culture in the words of authors from the countries they write about, environmentalism, la Negritude, diverse voices of the Diaspora, conservation of the Earth and animals and a variety of other compelling topics.  Our collaboration has brought 30 new comprehension-based authors to classrooms in our first 2 years. 

Prolific author Adriana Ramírez writes fictional stories set in Colombia.  Her new book La Marimba de mi Abuelo rivals El Camino del Café as her best ever.	A.C. Quintero is the author of many readers in Spanish.  Her Trilogy is a binge read!	Pablo Ortega López, also known as POL, has illustrated many of our books and is the author of En busca del monstruo. For information, see his website: www.polanimation.com

Command Performance Books (CPLI) products are in use at elementary schools, middle schools, high schools, colleges and universities throughout the world as well as at the U.S. Defense Language Institute, the Canadian Ministry of Education, the Malaysian Ministry of Education, the University of Kentucky, Middle Tennessee State University, military academies in Turkey and in many other places.

Contact us at 510-524-1191 or info@cpli.net.

 English books are now available through our partner, Spring Book Center.

We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, ethnic or national origin, ancestry, age, sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, religion, creed, political beliefs, or disability.  We welcome everyone, are conscious in our curation of book titles and are inclusive in our hiring practices.  Our mission requires the emphatic rejection of discrimination.