Book Description
Comprehensive Spanish (L.A.) I includes 30 lessons of essential grammar and vocabulary -- 16 hours of real-life spoken practice sessions -- plus an introduction to reading.
Upon completion of this
Level I program, you will have functional spoken proficiency with the most-frequently-used vocabulary and grammatical structures. You will be able to:
* initiate and maintain face-to-face conversations,
* deal with every day situations -- ask for information, directions, and give basic information about yourself and family,
* communicate basic information on informal topics and participate in casual conversations,
* avoid basic cultural errors and handle minimum courtesy and travel requirements,
* satisfy personal needs and limited social demands,
* establish rapport with strangers in foreign countries,
* begin reading and sounding out items with native-like pronunciation.
Customer Reviews:
Quick learn!.......2007-09-17
I bought this to bone up on whatever Spanish I could before taking a trip to South America. I learned quite a bit in a short period of time, enough to get by.
5 stars for the product, not the format.......2007-08-07
I share the collective view that using Pimsleur is the best first step/giant leap into learning a language. I was surprised by how much I retained after this one course and by my level of confidence in the Spanish language. In addition, I feel very enthusiastic about heading into Pimsleur Spanish 2 (con mucho gusto). While it does not offer a plethora of vocabulary, if it did, it would miss the point of Pimsleur's teaching style. As someone who took four years of French in high school, I would say, this course gives the grammatical equivalent of the first year in only a month's worth of passive learning. WOW!
That being stated, DON'T BUY THE CDs. You will only waste your money. I would suggest going on eBay and looking for Audiofy's Pimsleur Chips which plug into your laptop and even more importantly allow you to upload the program into your MP3 player. Again, WOW! Also, I spent about $300 for THE ENTIRE COURSE (I, II, III, and Plus) on eBay versus spending $200 just for Spanish I.
this deserves 100 stars.......2007-04-08
I am at the end of this course. I can talk with people who only speak Spanish and get along at a basic level. I can discuss basic ,daily things like eating, going to the bathroom etc.
I will say that I really listen alot . I enjoy it so it does not seem like work to me.
However, the upshot is that I love,love ,love this program and I am amazed at how I can communicate.
I wanted to pass this along,as I rely on other's opinions when I decide what to buy. It saves me alot of time and money
Not Just For Gringos, Pimsleur Even Taught This Mexican-American how to speak Spanish.......2007-03-08
I have completed all of the Spanish lessons in the Pimsleur series.
I am one of those rare Latinos that did not learn Spanish from my parents. My Mexican parents felt that it would be easier to "assimilate" if I only spoke English. After going to my grandparents' s home for holidays and being the only one there that did not speak Spanish, and after having Latino strangers speak to me in Spanish and then look at me in astonishment when I told them I didn't know Spanish, I felt that it was time for me to learn how to speak my language.
The Pimsleur series has really helped me to learn Spanish. Although the course did not teach me much a great deal of vocabulary, it has taught me concepts. By teaching me concepts, I have really retained the material. Not only have I retained what I have learned, but by learning concepts, I am able to take my own thoughts and form sentences.
The only downside of this course is that the vocabulary is not the same Spanish words that are most commonly used by Mexicans in regular conversation. Pimsleur vocabulary is a little more formal. We say "mucho gusto" but Pimsleur teaches "encantado." The entire series also does not cover too much vocabulary. For learning conversational Spanish I recommend Learning Spanish Like Crazy over any other course. You will also learn a lot more vocabulary with Learning Spanish Like Crazy than you will with this entire series. LSLC is also the course that has probably me helped me the most in my journey to learn my language. After finishing the entire Pimsleur series and Learning Spanish Like Crazy Level 1 and 2, I am now doing Rosetta Stone Spanish. But if you want to grasp concepts in Spanish and retain those concepts, then Pimsleur Spanish will really help you.
False Sense Of Security.......2007-01-20
I went through all three levels of Pimsleur and had it all down pat. Man! I was sure I would be able to go out and just jabber away like gangbusters once I was put into a situation where I had to speak. Well, the first time a native speaker started yapping at me I realized that I really had no clue what the hell I was doing and that three levels of Pimsleur were woefully inadequate. You WILL NOT be able to do anything more than communicate at a very basic level and anything approaching a "real" conversation will not be possible. For that, you will need much, much more.
Book Description
At last a Mandarin CD course which requires no reading and which teaches you to actually speak Mandarin Chinese in a minimum of time and effort. Designed by the experts at Language Dynamics, 'Behind The Wheel Chinese For Your Car' takes the learner from basic to intermediate level Mandarin without the guesswork and pain usually associated with language learning. An expert English speaking instructor talks you through these tapes in English while 2 trained professional native Mandarin speakers teach you Chinese the way it is really spoken! Behind The Wheel Chinese For Your Car is the ideal way to learn Mandarin Chinese while you drive because there is no confusion, no reading, no looking up meanings, and no guessing. It's all on the CDs. Use your commute time to effectively learn Chinese with this delightful course whose method will have you speaking your first words in Mandarin within minutes of receiving your course, and enjoying it. The product has superb clarity of voices and exudes a spontaneity which makes learning Chinese fun. You'll be thrilled with the fast and easy to learn design of the course, beginning with the immediate gratification you feel when you conclude your first one half hour session with the CDs speaking sentences in Mandarin that Chinese speakers understand 10 minutes later on the street. You'll be amazed at the 'natural' way you just seem to pick up Chinese without having to learn grammar or reviewing. No need to go back. It's all 'built in' the course. Just imagine the thrill of being able to express what you really feel in Mandarin in 100 different ways because you know own a Chinese linguistic blueprint, a template that you can manipulate over and over again in different and personal ways while increasing your fluency in Mandarin. What' s more, you will also learn to speak in the past, present and future along with idioms all in the same course.
Customer Reviews:
Learn to speak Chinese.......2007-10-19
This product was a good deal. It is fairly a complete package to obtain a comfortable level of fluency in Mandarin Chinese. It is more for those desiring to learn to speak the entire language than those who wish to learn a few phrases for a quick trip to China. Very good for those with long commutes.
Excellent Supplement.......2007-05-16
The most important thing to remember when purchasing this pack is that these CDs are for beginners, NOT novice speakers. People who have had some training with Chinese in the classroom or self-study may be able to pick up and use this CD pack, but the information is presented too rapidly (and there is too much presented at once) to be good for initial acquisition.
I would give it 5 stars, but there is no clear advertising about this product. If I had some information about the rapid pace and the target audience, I probably would not have purchased this set. It will, however, be a useful set once I've mastered some basic phrases.
Excellent! CD 1 and Beyond.......2006-06-16
The 'good' doesn't stop with CD1. It's just beginning.
I notice no difference between the approach used in 'Behind the Wheel Chinese/Mandarin' and other Behind the Wheel courses I have used.
CD 2 and beyond evolve sentence building, tenses, expressions,
and tons of vocabulary that they teach you how to assemble.
Great course.
Good for listening comprehension and practice.......2006-05-06
This audio set is very useful for getting an idea of how things are pronounced natively, and some slight variations on those pronunciations. However, it would not be a good idea to start here, as it relies heavily on memory. However, a good accompanying set to any books and courses.
Meant to be listened to, not to replace study while not driving.
Great Course - Multi-Track - 2 Native Speakers.......2006-03-24
I tried Pimsleur's Chinese (Mandarin) (Instant Conversation) and returned it because it didn't have multi-tracks, they presented too little vocabulary and the the course was 'rigid'.
I prefer the method in Behind the Wheel Chinese because there are multi-tracks
(very important for in-car language learning), a good memory technique and great original sentence formation exercises that get you speaking Mandarin from the get-go.
Amazon.com
The old Quaker adage, "Let your life speak," spoke to author Parker J. Palmer when he was in his early 30s. It summoned him to a higher purpose, so he decided that henceforth he would live a nobler life. "I lined up the most elevated ideals I could find and set out to achieve them," he writes. "The results were rarely admirable, often laughable, and sometimes grotesque.... I had simply found a 'noble' way of living a life that was not my own, a life spent imitating heroes instead of listening to my heart."
Thirty years later, Palmer now understands that learning to let his life speak means "living the life that wants to live in me." It involves creating the kind of quiet, trusting conditions that allow a soul to speak its truth. It also means tuning out the noisy preconceived ideas about what a vocation should and shouldn't be so that we can better hear the call of our wild souls. There are no how-to formulas in this extremely unpretentious and well-written book, just fireside wisdom from an elder who is willing to share his mistakes and stories as he learned to live a life worth speaking about. --Gail Hudson
Book Description
With wisdom, compassion, and gentle humor, Parker J. Palmer invites us to listen to the inner teacher and follow its leadings toward a sense of meaning and purpose. Telling stories from his own life and the lives of others who have made a difference, he shares insights gained from darkness and depression as well as fulfillment and joy, illuminating a pathway toward vocation for all who seek the true calling of their lives.
Customer Reviews:
An Excellent and Inspiring Book!.......2007-06-25
This is an excellent book for reading and reflecting on life. The words will grip your inner soul and move you to a higher state of thinking and consciousness. Along the way, the author uses poetry to awaken the spirit. This book is real and has practical applications regarding life for almost everyone. I heard the author speak at Cardinal Stritch University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, regarding education and he is an excellent speaker. This is an educator who removes the secret veil, exposes what life is about, and the level of aspiration we should strive for. I highly recommend this book. Other excellent books to read are: "Trilogy Moments for the Mind, Body and Soul," "The language of Poetry Forms" by Tree Good, and "Everyday Miracles" by Okubo.
Spiritual self-reflection.......2007-03-25
Palmer's book would be ideal for a rainy day read or for taking on a private retreat. He shares much learning from his life experiences. It is not a book about doing. Rather, it is a way to be integrated in one's living. One can learn to listen to their inner voice by what goes well and by recognizing one's limitations. Much food for thought.
Let Your Life Speak: Listening for the Voice of Vocation.......2007-03-10
Parker Palmer does a wonderful job in a concise why of providing us a guide to how we can learn to value our own experiences and truly listen to our inner voice. Listen in such a way as to be guided by what we are sensing and felling to help us speak through our life work and work life in ways that are self fulfilling and enriching. A very thought provoking and touching look at his own inner journey.
Let Your Life Speak: Listening for the Voice of Vocation.......2007-02-09
A great look at who we are and should be
calling as a gift to receive not a goal to achieve.......2007-01-18
Here is a book that I wish I had read twenty years ago on that perennial Christian conundrum faced by so many: what is God's will for me in my vocational life? I hasten to add that I am not sure that at that stage of my life I could or would have understood its wisdom. For the most part Christians try to answer this question about God's vocational guidance by going "outside" of ourselves to external matters like my skills, the advice of others, perhaps some tests, and so on. But from his Quaker tradition Palmer urges us to go "inside" ourselves to matters of the heart. When we pursue the former path a "false" self often follows the expectations that others have of us and so distorts the "true" self. Vocation, in short, is not "a goal that I pursue. It means a calling that I hear" (p. 4) or "a gift to be received" (p. 10). We discover this call or gift, writes Palmer, by listening to our life, by discovering the true self God made each of us to be, rather than by soliciting the acceptance and approval of others about what we "ought" to do. Palmer is a gifted story teller and writer, and shares liberally from his own vocational pilgrimage, warts and all. Entire chapters on clinical depression and "when way closes" (a Quaker aphorism) were helpful. A final chapter uses the seasons as a metaphor for the vocational life, reminding us as we move inevitably through fall, winter, spring and summer that, contrary to all culture tells us, we do not only "manufacture" our life, but would do well to "grow" it.
Book Description
Comprehensive Japanese I includes 30 lessons of essential grammar and vocabulary -- 16 hours of real-life spoken practice sessions -- plus a Culture Booklet.
Upon completion of this
Level I program, you will have functional spoken proficiency with the most-frequently-used vocabulary and grammatical structures. You will be able to:
* initiate and maintain face-to-face conversations,
* deal with every day situations -- ask for information, directions, and give basic information about yourself and family,
* communicate basic information on informal topics and participate in casual conversations,
* avoid basic cultural errors and handle minimum courtesy and travel requirements,
* satisfy personal needs and limited social demands,
* establish rapport with strangers in foreign countries,
Customer Reviews:
Great product.......2007-10-09
Actually I hate Pimsleur communication strategy: close to spamming sometimes, or announcements like "Learn like a spy" on their website, whereas what they sell is of course only a sheer introduction to Japanese. Do they think we are stupid? However, I must admit that their method is great and very efficient, compared to others that can be found on the market. Quite US-customer oriented: you will learn very early how to handle in car-driving and shopping situations, but anyway, these are things you will have to learn if you eventually want to become fluent in the language. I guess that after the 3 volumes you are still a beginner, but with solid basis to continue on your own or with more ordinary courses. As a matter of fact, there seems to be nothing intended for the advanced learner on the market. They are certainly too few to make the business profitable.
I too believe that the speakers are Native Japanese.......2007-05-30
I had to address the statements from other reviewers who claimed that the speakers were not native Japanese. This product is far too good to avoid buying it because of fear that the accents were "off" or "Chinese." On the Acknowledgement page iii of the companion booklet, the Female Japanese Speaker is listed as, "Kimiko Ise Abramoff", and the Male Japanese Speaker is "Tsunenori 'Lee' Abe." "Ise" is a Japanese surname, so I assume that "Kimiko Ise" married someone with the last name of "Abramoff." Although having a Japanese first name and last name is not conclusive evidence of being a native Japanese speaker, the chances of them not being native are very slim. I have heard spoken Japanese my whole life from both native and non-native speakers and the speakers on the CD sound fine to me.
Perhaps the criticism comes from reading a script and having to enunciate every word clearly so those who are new to Japanese can learn it. Anyone reading a script and pronouncing every syllable can begin to sound a little stilted.
This program is excellent when used in conjunction with a Japanese class. It will get you "up and running" quickly in everyday conversational situations.
A Good Place to Start.......2007-04-29
These audio CDs are a good place to start learning Japanese. The program is quite simple: For the most part, a Japanese speaker says a phrase, and you repeat. As the lessons progress, some of the instructions are in Japanese. This program is well thought-out and produced, and the speakers speak slowly and clearly. Of course, you can listen in the car. No one will think you're weird for talking to yourself, as they will just assume you are on the phone.
It should go without saying that listening to these CDs (even all three sets of CDs) will not enable you to speak Japanese fluently, or even nearly so. It takes a whole lot more work than that to learn Japanese. Still, it will get you started.
Also, these CDs come with very little written materials. That's just fine; as stated above, these CDs are just start.
Amazing!.......2007-04-23
I'm sharing the CD's with a co-worker and this is definitely an amazing series. I feel like I can actually get by with this little bit with a trip to Japan! I am only half way through the first set but see the benefits already.
I've tried several other language CD's with limited results. The Pimsleur series is definitely the best I've found!
A must have for anyone learning any language.
making learning fun!.......2007-04-11
well, what can i say? there are many reviews of this product already, but i just wanted to add my own thoughts about it. i have been looking for a way to learn japanese, the way children learn, in other words, by hearing japanese, then understanding, then speaking. i bought the japanese linguaphone course, but to my dismay, it was nothing like i had heard. it's all in japanese, that's great, but the language used is seriously outdated. my many japanese friends couldn't believe how old fashioned it was. not only that, but you get bogged down in the lessons, and i only finished the first 5 before i gave up. in contrast, the pimsleur method has made it fun to learn japanese, i wake up in the morning looking forward to pressing play on my ipod. the instructions advise you to know 80% of the lesson, before moving on, to encourage rapid progress, and to prevent boredom and over perfection. this has really helped me, and the further i advanced through the course, the more enjoyable it became. not only that, but the words used are very up to date, very useful. and just when you might have forgotten a new word, it is repeated, making it easy to remember. a word of note - there is nothing in the way of grammar, except for a small booklet included with the audio cds (another plus - linguaphone seem insistent in releasing their product in tape format only, with the exception of the main languages. i mean come on, who in this day and age still owns a tape machine? when was the last time you saw tapes in a music store?) but this to me is another bonus, as in my mind it's better to speak and understand, the same way kids do, then to get bogged down with too much grammar. i hope this review was helpful! whatever you do, DONT buy the linguaphone set!
Book Description
Why do some students in the United States make the most of college, while others struggle and look back on years of missed opportunities? What choices can students make, and what can teachers and university leaders do to improve more students' experiences and help them make the most of their time and monetary investment? And how is greater diversity on campus--cultural, racial, and religious--affecting education? How can students and faculty benefit from differences and learn from the inevitable moments of misunderstanding and awkwardness?
Two Harvard University Presidents invited Richard Light and his colleagues to explore these questions, resulting in ten years of interviews with 1,600 Harvard students. Making the Most of College offers concrete advice on choosing classes, talking productively with advisors, improving writing and study skills, maximizing the value of research assignments, and connecting learning inside the classroom with the rest of life.
The stories that students shared with Light and his colleagues about their experiences of inspiration, frustration, and discovery fill the book with spirit. Some of the anecdotes are funny, some are moving, and some are surprising. Many are wise--especially about the ways of getting the best, in classroom and dormitory, from the new racial and ethnic diversity.
Filled with practical advice, illuminated with stories of real students' self-doubts, failures, discoveries, and hopes, Making the Most of College presents strategies for academic success.
Customer Reviews:
So you've been admitted to a top school; now what?.......2007-06-13
If you are interested in this book, check out the hard-cover edition which is available both new and used for substantially less than the paperback.
I was introduced to this book by a friend who is heavily involved in undergraduate advising. I had not heard of Prof. Light or of this work previously, and I wonder whether it is less widely known than it deserves to be.
The title and cover of the book are a bit misleading. It could easily be mistaken for a self-help book and/or a book that covers a wide spectrum of college environments. For this, I fault the publisher rather than the author. Readers who come to it expecting one of the above will indeed find it lacking. It assumes students are motivated and goes from there. If you're looking for a book to provide motivation, this is not it.
The book in fact presents the results of ten years' research, primarily around Harvard undergraduates. To understand the context fully, one should read the first item of back matter, "The Assessment", first. There has been some attempt to generalize by involving faculty from 25 other institutions (which are neither named nor characterized), but the real focus is on Harvard.
There are good reasons for this. Harvard is a very selective place, and its administration has both the wherewithal and the motivation to make every student's experience as rich as possible in the full knowledge that for every student who disengages, there were ten other equally qualified applicants for whom there was not room. Thus, Harvard funded the study, the results are particularly applicable to it, and its own press published it. It is unrealistic to carp that the book wasn't about something else.
So who should be reading this book? Sadly enough, it should most be read by those Harvard faculty members who are not particularly interested in developing undergraduates to see what they're missing. Perhaps Harvard's recently-launched initiative in excellence in teaching will help; the question of advising remains murkier. Academic staff anywhere who aspire to do a better job in helping their students launch their adult lives are bound to find useful perspectives and practical nuggets. I think the book will be mostly lost on undergraduates; I wouldn't have understood it then, much as it might have been useful. Parents of high-potential college students might find it helpful in understanding what their children are going through, but to use it as a guide to advising their parentally-resistant (or, worse, parentally-dominated) offspring may be unproductive. Using it in a peer-advising context is a waste of time, as you can see from other reviews. I suspect there are good nuggets here for secondary school educators as well.
This book makes an interesting contrast with the more recent book, "Excellence Without a Soul" by Harry Lewis, who was the Dean of Harvard College during the time Light was finishing this book. Lewis's book reflects personal opinions on the same issues (and more); its underpinnings are based on his own experiences rather than the extensive interviewing process Light uses. Taking the two together provides even better insights than either separately.
Goodness: Among his many detailed points, Light talks (sometimes through the students) of the importance - and difficulty - of clear exposition in reporting on scientific research and of the value of evidence-based discourse, and this book provides an exemplar of both. The book is not heavy on theory with consequent bulky endnotes, and the bibliography is of reasonable size.
Quibbles: Light intermixes Harvard-specific terminology (e.g., proctor) with more generic equivalents (e.g., dorm supervisor) without making the connection for the reader. He presents most of his dilemmas from the viewpoint of a student in the social sciences, which are somewhat different from those encountered by students in the humanities or - especially - the natural sciences. There is so little indentation in the extended quotes from the students that it is sometimes hard to tell whose voice is speaking. The inner margins in both the hardcover and the paperback are so tight that it's hard to read without breaking the spine. And the editing could have been a bit tighter.
The above could easily reduce my rating by a star, but on balance I think the importance of the work and the clarity (if occasionally redundant) of the exposition overcome these. Perhaps I should say five stars if your desired frame of reference is a selective, research university, and four stars otherwise.
Better the second time around.......2006-06-02
The first time I read this book (in 2002) I wasn't at all impressed. As a student affairs professional, I kept thinking that Light (as is the case with most academics) basically ignored the role of student affairs as a significant source of student support and education. I also thought he was writing the obvious.
I re-read the book in 2005, however, and had a very different experience of it. Light refutes some of the "conventional wisdom" (such as the common feeling that it is best to get all of the "requirements" out of the way early) and backs up what he says with solid reasoning.
The major weakness of this book is it's focus on Harvard students as the research sample. The book would have gained considerable credibilty if Light had made a diligent effort to reach beyond Cambridge and beyond the Ivy League to learn what makes students at other kinds of campuses successful.
That being said, this is an important book for anyone who advises college students: faculty, academic advisors, and student affairs professionals. I would also recommend it for High School guidance counselors and parents. Students might or might not enjoy it; again, the Harvard focus could make it seem perhaps irrelevant to many.
Making the Most of Light.......2005-11-07
I am a peer academic advisor at a West Coast college. I was assigned this book as part of my peer advising training, so I read this book from the perspective of a student. Overall, I found the book mixed in its helpfulness to students.
Chapter 3, "Suggestions from Students", contains the bulk of practically useful information. The title itself underlines one of the book's key ideas: students learn from each other. While substantial student interaction occurs behinds classroom doors, Light notes correctly that "learning outside of classes, especially in residential settings and extracurricular activities such as the arts, is vital" (p. 8). More subtly, Light suggests that college leaders and other individuals must make conscious efforts to develop the kind of environment that facilitates symbiotic learning between students. He writes,
when students refer in their interviews to those that build campus culture, they do not just mean deans or residence hall directors or leaders of student organizations ... They are really characterizing _every student_, in the old-fashioned sense of believing that each person can make a difference by setting an example (p. 194, his emphasis).
Later, he continues,
deans and adults should convey to all incoming students that they have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to experience, in their college years, a new set of people with new ideas that may challenge their own. They should encourage students to see these few precious years as a special chance to meet, work with, and get to know others who are unlike themselves (p. 196).
So far so good. The rest of the book, I felt, was short on concrete advice for students. Here, I'll mention some thoughts that occurred to me while I was reading the book.
First, despite Light's claims, I am unconvinced that his results generalize. Light is a statistician by training, and I was surprised that he did not offer any comparative statistics to substantiate his claims; as such, his work may be more aptly called Making The Most Of Harvard (or more accurately, How Faculty Can Help Students Make The Most Of Harvard).
Second, not only does Light's results not generalize across colleges, he also does not provide evidence to show that they generalize across a diverse group of students (strange, since he devotes a large part of the book to diversity). There are no tables, graphs, charts, or summary statistics that back up his claim that his results generalize; in particular, the book focused mostly on students who are ex ante driven and motivated towards success - Light says nothing about the selection bias that arises from sampling a group of Harvard students, who are more likely than not to possess the characteristics necessary for success.
All in, I found Light's book informative, but unhelpful. I will not deny that there are lessons to be learnt if one puts some thought into it. As a peer academic advisor, however, much of the book was made up of clichés, platitudes, and findings that were irrelevant to my work. Faculty and administrators, however, may find the book more useful.
Pretentious .......2005-09-21
It should have been titled, Making the Most of Harvard: Students Speak Their Minds. We were required to read this book for an English writing class. Some of the suggestions in the book are helpful, like time management and getting help if you are not scoring well but only if you read this book *before* you go to college.
Light makes suggestions that may not be feasable, including finding a class with very few students because it will be benificial. Our class also felt that Light's suggestion of picking roomates according to race is ludicrous.
3.5 Stars... Worthwhile reading for/re incoming college freshmen.......2005-07-08
My son and I went through the college search process in the past year (he'll start college next month), and we actually had quite a good time doing the college campus visits, narrowing down his choices, etc. Now that he is about to start college, I fell upon this book by accident.
"Making the Most of College" is from some professor at Harvard whom I readily admit I've never heard about before. But the author actually makes a number of (seemingly) good points that I thought made a lot of sense (disclaimer: I did not go to college in the US but in Belgium, so I cannot easily compare it to "the old days"). The book does get tedious at times,and as such is not geared to/written for incoming freshmen but more for parents and teachers. I cannot imagine too many incoming freshmen reading through the whole thing (my son certainly did not), but I did discuss certain passages of the book with him. What good (if any) it will do him, who knows... only time will tell :-)
Book Description
If you already speak English, but now would like to start speaking even better, then Speak English Like an American is for you. This book and CD set is designed to help native speakers of any language speak better English. Over 300 of the most-used American English idioms and phrases are presented in engaging dialogue, with plenty of usage examples, illustrations, and lots of exercises -- with convenient answer key -- to help you learn the material. The audio CD includes all of the dialogues. Ideal for self-study. A fun and effective way to improve your conversational English!
Customer Reviews:
Excellent choice and explanation of idioms.......2007-06-01
Being a non-native speaker who has lived in US for over 10 years, I've heard of many of the idioms in this book at work, on TV and in every day conversations. I didn't know what some of the idioms mean exactly until I read them in this book. I think the book is very useful for immigrants like me or simply anybody who would like to learn American English.
Homeowner.......2007-02-21
Excellent with a great many up-to-date expressions and words. CDs let you listen while doing other things. The book allows one to read what is on the CDs.
Unexpectable.......2007-01-10
I didn't expect i would have a great book to improve my English.
I'm in my home country now so I've got going on studying since one an half month . It has 25 lessons and I'm on 12th. I can't wait to skip for the next one because I wonder what's going to happen in subject. But I know I need to consume each lesson. The fiction is really set successfully.
I listen to its CD and my pronunciation has already improved.
I appreciate the edition and the author.
Nesibe
PS: sorry about my English if I've done something wrong:)
Speak English Like an American.......2007-01-10
One of the best idiom books out there, and I've tried quite a few. The stories are entertaining and most of the idioms are very common.
Excellent.......2006-06-02
I am really amazed of how much idioms and colloquial expressions you can learn just by listening to the CD. And guess what - these are idioms and phrases you REALLY hear everyday on the street, used by most people in everyday situations. Before, my English sounded a bit "artificial" and somehow forced. Now, the more I used the idioms I learnt here, the more natural and even friendly I sound to the native speakers.
Buy it, it's totally cheap for what it does!
Book Description
-Repetition of excerpts of complete conversations
-French language rules explained in a simple way
-CDs with booklet containing actual transcripts of French natives with the translations
-Color-coding shows what is and what is not pronounced in spoken French
Learning a foreign language is typically a very frustrating experience. After spending countless hours in a classroom environment, most find that they are still unable to comprehend "real world" French as it is naturally spoken between native French people.
To learn a language one has to develop speaking as well as understanding skills. What to do first is a matter of choice. To learn a few sentences to get by is good but to understand what's coming back to you is also important. Besides developing your speaking abilities, SmartFrench will develop your listening skills, which will raise your confidence to speak naturally (Just learning basic sentences will make you sound too "proper"). For better progress, this process of speaking and understanding should be done simultaneously and the sooner the better, right at the beginner level. If you go to France soon, SmartFrench will help you tremendously. You will feel "connected".
Some people think that developing understanding skills should be a part of the beginner level training. With these CDs you will learn how to understand and speak. A beginner is naturally not expected to be able to understand dialogs at real speed right away, but with a little patience, you will soon feel more and more confident about your ability to "talk" French just by learning how to recognize the "rhythm" of the language and its predictable patterns.
Customer Reviews:
smart french.......2007-10-16
This was a bit more than I was prepared for, the first conversation turned me off as it was a dialog on smoking, one I felt I would not encounter on my travels. I chose to return it and chose a more generalized course that appeared to be better at teaching me vocabulary with dialogs. Much harder than described for a beginner.
For me, the best course to learn french.......2007-10-15
I found what I was looking for!! Finally, here is a course that told me how to speak French! What a difference it makes! I am finally learning French! It might be a little difficult for the true beginner but I wish I had bought it sooner. It's better to get it right away, practice with it once and eventually keep it preciously for later. You will not find such a nice product on the market very often.
Wonderful and innovative with great results.......2007-10-03
Great course! The progress I have made just after two weeks of studying is incredible. Last time I studied French was 10 years ago in college. I retained some grammar and a small vocabulary. Three months ago, I renewed my interest in improving my French. I have learned a lot of new words and phrases on my own. However, comprehension was the elusive part which to me was the MOST important. After researching all available learning courses (took me two weeks of reading and going to various stores), I had finally found "Smart French." After exploring the website and listening to the demo, I was convinced this was a great product.
I have been studying the CDs for the past 2 weeks and I cannot believe the change in my listening and comprehension! My biggest frustration has always been the inability to separate the words and phrases in spoken French. Now, I can listen and discern TF1 news reports and interviews (I can actually understand what Thierry Henry is saying!). On top of that, my speech has changed - my French has acquired a melody and tone to it that surprised even my French speaking friends. I spend 2 hrs a day listening and repeating; to the point that I can feel the muscles in my face being `trained' to move in a different way. No other French class had such results for me. The phonetics I was taught in college sound primitive and crude in comparison to the way I am learning to speak now.
If you want to learn 10-20 "plastic" phrases so you can find a bathroom in Paris - buy a $5 phrasebook and don't waste your time and money. If you don't want to spend time, work hard and dedicate yourself to learning - hire an interpreter.
Learning a foreign language is 10% talent and 90% work. You still have to learn words, phrases and grammar but you don't need expensive CDs for that. Purchase some books and a dictionary, and study, study, study. Any idiot can do that.
"Smart French" has what you cannot get from books - live language - spoken by French people (from France). Not a 100 pre-packaged phrases in Canadian, North African or American accents which many other products use.
There was a comment regarding the sound quality which is completely without merit. There's nothing wrong with the microphone. The teaching part is recorded with crisp studio sound and the actual conversation reflects the natural sound. What you are hearing is exactly what you hear when you are speaking to people in real life - it is very important to learn to understand people in a natural environment.
Those who leave bad reviews are looking for some sort of magic - maybe watched `Matrix' too many times. Foreign languages are learned through studying; not downloaded into the brain while you sleep.
I recommend "Smart French" to everyone, advanced as well as beginners. A very basic knowledge of French would help the beginner student to better appreciate this course but it's never too early to study with "Smart French."
It Isn't 'Smart' to Have to Guess........2007-09-17
As a French instructor, I can say that it isn't 'smart' not to understand what the native speakers are babbling on the CDs. In order to truly learn to speak French (or any language for that matter) you must first 'understand'. Also, the amount vocabulary presented in this course is low.
A much clearer and better alternative to 'Unsmart French' is Behind the Wheel French 8 CDs which offers a clear English translation for every native speaker's word. Behind the Wheel French (8 CD Course) (Behind the Wheel)
Furthermore, this same 8CD course is available with a great book (also in French with English translations, explanations, etc ...) Behind the Wheel French 1 Revised/Complete Illustrated Text & CD Script/Answer Keys/8 One Hour Audio CDs
Best in French learning to you.
SmartSpanish CDs.......2007-09-16
I started studying Spanish 20 years ago when I was a union organizer for the Roofers. I took some college correspondence courses. A few years later I left that job to work as a pipefitter.
When I quit organizing, I decided to continue to study Spanish on my own. I bought all the typical educational tapes, the ones where you repeat a
sentence after the voice on the tape. I started reading Spanish nearly every night, to increase my vocabulary. I read one or two Spanish novels a month, depending on how much time I have.
I recently started to work on big, overtime constructions jobs. The past
year I have been on big jobs in Texas, where at least half the workers on
the job speak Spanish. Some speak both English and Spanish, but a lot of the workers speak only Spanish.
I quickly discovered a few things:
One, I had a great Spanish vocabulary. I am like a walking Spanish
dictionary. I'd say I've a bigger vocabulary than 80% of the Spanish
speaking guys on the job. Spanish speaking guys often ask me for the most
correct Spanish word for certain things.
Secondly, I discovered I couldn't understand anything spoken in spanish. There is a lot of slang, but that wasn't the problem. When somebody said something, or when I listened to someone talking on a spanish TV program, a spoken sentence or paragraph sounded like one long, hundred sylable word. It all ran together, I pick up a work here or there, it sounded like it always did before I learned any spanish.
And thirdly, when I spoke spanish to anyone, it was as if I were looking words up in the spanish dictionary and talking, slowly, haltingly.
These cds were like the missing piece of my spanish education. I'm not even done with the first set yet, since I am working 7 days a week, 10 or 12 hours a day. But shortly after starting listening to the cds, playing them over a few times, my listening comprehension increase dramatically. This is really a major turning point for me. The more I can understand by listening,the more spanish idioms and slang I learn. Now, turning on the TV and watching a spanish movie is a learning experience for me. Listening to guys talking at work is a learning experience, since I can understand them. I am now conversing much more on the job, with much more confidence.
Again, I believe these cds were the key. What a great product. I wish I had them years ago. Though I have the Spanish CDs I am posting this review here because I believe listening comprehension is an important key to learning any language.-Greg
Book Description
Turn Any Presentation into a Landmark Occasion
Ever wish you could captivate your boardroom with the opening line of your presentation, like Winston Churchill in his most memorable speeches? Or want to command attention by looming larger than life before your audience, much like Abraham Lincoln when, standing erect and wearing a top hat, he towered over seven feet? Now, you can master presentation skills, wow your audience, and shoot up the corporate ladder by unlocking the secrets of history's greatest speakers.
Author, historian, and world-renowned speaker James C. Humes—who wrote speeches for five American presidents—shows you how great leaders through the ages used simple yet incredibly effective tricks to speak, persuade, and win throngs of fans and followers. Inside, you'll discover how Napoleon Bonaparte mastered the use of the pregnant pause to grab attention, how Lady Margaret Thatcher punctuated her most serious speeches with the use of subtle props, how Ronald Reagan could win even the most hostile crowd with carefully timed wit, and much, much more.
Whether you're addressing a small nation or a large staff meeting, you'll want to master the tips and tricks in Speak Like Churchill, Stand Like Lincoln.
"As a student of speech, I very much enjoyed this intriguing historic approach to public speaking. Humes creates a valuable and practical guide."
—
Roger Ailes, chairman and CEO, FOX News
"I love this book. I've followed Humes's lessons for years, and he combines them all into one compact, hard-hitting resource. Get this book on your desk now."
—
Chris Matthews, Hardball
Customer Reviews:
Quick read, excellent content.......2007-08-23
I would title this book, "The language of leadership". It's content is excellent and well organized. It teaches ways to speak and act like a leader and therefore command such authority through the power of the spoken word.
The chapter titles all begin with "Power", but the author practices what he preaches by getting across the information in a well organized and easy to get through manner. If you look at the highlights in each chapter and skim through, you get the jist of information, hence making it easy to comprehend in a day.
Every chapter has its content and then real life examples from the author's experience. The examples are both historic and contemporary, very useful, convincing & often interesting, although ocassionally unecessary to get the message accross.
The criticisms I've seen of this book are that it is patronizing or too long winded or redundant. I don't find any of these things to be true. I however admit, that instead of reading the book cover to cover and sentence by sentence, I read it as any executive would read a proposal or document - skim to get the highlights and then go back in for more detailed reference when needed. I got a great deal out of the book this way.
I purchased the book for a Dean of a Business school and a high power executive. While skimming through it, I found myself quite absorbed. Since then, I've found myself continually thinking back to what I read there and I ended up buying myself a copy for reference and one as a gift for the CEO of my company as well.
Makes a great gift for a Type A executive or anyone in a position of leadership of any kind. This isn't just a public speaking book, and it's not about overcoming shyness or a "Toastmasters" type thing. It's about how to make what you say be powerful and effective.
You should own it if you plan giving speeches.......2007-02-14
Well written with great examples. Not your typical textbook, which makes for a refreshing approach to leadership classes.
Delivers.......2006-07-13
Unbelievable that no one taught me these principles years ago. This guy has been around a long time! Excellent, easy to read and incorporate.
speaking like churchill.......2006-07-03
This is an excellent book for speakers os any level who wish to make small yet noticeable improvements to their speaking performance. Churchill and Lincoln both mastered the skills necessary to be great speakers. The greatest secret that I took from this book is the power of the ..... PAUSE. To stand in front of a group of people saying nothing , with poise and confidence , is a skill the truly seperates great speakers from the rest.
I would recommend this book without hesitation.
worthwhile reading.......2006-04-02
Good book. Nevertheless the author could make it better by cutting off some of the quotes that here and there become excessive in number and extension. This is particularly true for the chapters "power wit", "power poetry" and "power line". They are tiresome -- even boring -- when prolonged beyond the necessary. This only proves that you can have too much a good thing. When it happens good becomes less good and enticing becomes exhausting.
If you think your readers - and especially your audience - should be protected against fatuous speeches, empty words and their monotonous delivery, read this book and keep a copy at hand.
Book Description
Comprehensive French I includes 30 lessons of essential grammar and vocabulary -- 16 hours of real-life spoken practice sessions -- plus an introduction to reading.
Customer Reviews:
GREAT INTRO FOR THE FIRST-TIMER!!.......2007-04-23
I have an extremely limited ability with the French language. While written foreign language comes a lot simpler to me, this set of lessons has given me an insight into the speaking side of the language. This course is a wonderful introduction to pronounciation. It also gives basic sentences and/or phrases to get any one started on speaking the language.
While no course is perfect for all who wish to learn, this is a good, basic set of lessons for those who plan to spend a significant amount of time in France on business, travel, or for someone who plans to move to France. Most certainly dedication is the key. With practice, once you get to your destination, you will have enough knowledge and comfort with French to continue speaking to others on your own.
Comparative review of three recorded French Courses .......2007-03-25
This review is a comparison of three very different recorded French courses - Pimsleur, Behind the Wheel French 2 and French with Michel Thomas Intermediate/Advanced.
I have tried and failed several times at learning a foreign language but, when I started working for a French company, I decided to try one more time. I was attracted to Pimsleur because of its promise to focus on the basics, and I was not disappointed.
The approach taken by Pimsleur is to introduce you to a word or phrase in English and then have it repeated several times by an expert speaker of French, punctuated with long pauses so you can listen and repeat. In this way, the course takes you through typical basic situations - going to a restaurant, finding a doctor, working in an office, making travel arrangements, buying items with Euros, etc. New words and concepts are gradually introduced along the way and each session loops back to remind you of things you learned on earlier CDs. I especially liked the great effort that is put into making sure you clearly hear each word, even to the point of painstakingly breaking down words and phrases into separate syllables. This is especially important for English-speakers who may have trouble with French pronunciation. I also liked the fact that the course never dumped a lot of things on you to learn at once - for example, numbers are introduced a few at a time in natural situations such as telling time or counting change. The same is true of days of the week and months of the year. This is a very intelligent way to help people learn large categories of words.
Each learning unit (French I, French II and French III) consists of about 30 CDs, each of which is about ½ hour in duration. There is also reading material so that the student can see in writing the words and phrases that are being said out loud on the CDs. The expectation built into the Pimsleur course is that you will listen to one CD a day and then move on to the next. For me, I found that I often had to listen to the same CD three, four or more times before I felt comfortable moving on to the next. For that reason, it took me over a year to get through French I, II and III instead of 90 days. But by the time I was through, I had a basic grasp of the language and had even gone to Paris and managed my way through a couple of simple conversations in French.
As another reviewer said, however, you can't expect miracles with this course. You can take all three units and go to a French movie or watch French TV, and still understand very little. It prepares you for basic survival in a French speaking country - not much more. The Pimsleur course includes very little technical explanation of what you are learning or the rules of grammar. A small irritant is the fact that the 30-minute CDs are not broken into separate tracks. But overall I was very pleased with how well the Pimsleur technique helped me remember words and basic sentence structure, mostly in the present tense.
For me, the biggest negative is that there is no Pimsleur French IV! So once I got through the first three courses and decided I wanted to keep learning via the Pimsleur method, there was nowhere to go! That's why I was forced to switch to a different instruction method, so I purchased the Intermediate versions of both Behind the Wheel French and French with Michel Thomas to help me get to the next level.
I found that Behind the Wheel French is a very different course from Pimsleur. It's basic philosophy is that you should learn by listening - as you did when you were a child learning your native tongue - and not be instructed on lots of grammatical details. So, a lot of the material consists of what I'm tempted to call an "audio phrase book," with an English speaker saying something followed by a French speaker saying the same thing - there's not a lot of repetition or "looping back" as with Pimsleur. You may hear a word or phrase and then never hear it again, so you don't get the reinforcing effect. Also, I could not always understand the native speaker's words and there is often not enough time allowed in the recording for the listener to repeat. But there are some real special nuggets in Behind the Wheel French. In particular, I liked the story-telling segments where they first slowly go through a simple story told in English, with each sentence repeated in French. Then, the native speaker retells the entire story in French at a normal pace - this is great for educating your ear to understand French as it is heard in normal usage. There is a similar very nice feature where the speaker will go through the same narrative in the present tense, the past tense and then the future tense - very useful to hear exactly how words change depending on the tense. Behind the Wheel French also includes some practical information about social situations in France, some slang and colloquialisms, and LOTS of vocabulary.
French with Michel Thomas is yet again a very different course - it is serious instruction for serious students. That said, Michel Thomas does everything he can to make it easy, including his opening admonition against workbooks and homework. The format consists of Michel Thomas (a very charming and witty guy) working with two students who are probably no better at French than you are. Thomas is very relaxed and is a superstar at coming up with clever tricks, tips and concepts to help you remember how to navigate this language that has 18 tenses. Lots of things that I could not figure out from the other courses are thoroughly and clearly explained by Michel Thomas.
So which course would I recommend? My experience with Pimsleur convinced me that it is the best foundational course. It will give you the basics in a very thorough disciplined manner that you can easily follow - expensive but worth every penny. Michel Thomas is a must for anyone who is seriously interested in becoming proficient at this language, because he is extraordinarily skillful at getting technical grammar concepts across without actually calling it grammar. Michel Thomas is the next best thing to having a private tutor and his course complements Pimsleur very effectively by providing lots of explanation. The Behind the Wheel French is great for improving your ear and building vocabulary, but it is hard to imagine that anyone could become conversational in French with this program.
The funnest way to learn a language.......2007-01-30
I have to say that Pimsleur has to be the most enjoyable french learning course out there. Each 30 minute lesson is set up in a way that it moves fast and adds dialog at an easy to grasp and progressive pace. I find that it sinks in quickly and stays pretty well. This course doesn't feel robotic at all, it has a comforting warmth to it. Don't think I'm strange, but the speakers on the lessons have become this sort of odd French family of mine. Every evening I settle down for a pleasant half hour conversation with my little French family, they say some things and I respond. I say some things and they respond back. Sometimes we don't always understand each other, but they're always happy to repeat it for me and I find as the lessons progress we understand each other more and more. I highly recommend this course for a pleasant and enjoyable language learning experience. There is also a five minutes a day lesson on how to read and pronounce French words. Pimsleur French is the original Pimsleur course that was released and it makes me happy.
Quickly learn to speak & understand simple French.......2006-12-05
During each 20-30 min lesson, you interact with a speaker - asking/answering about 120 questions. The information is repeated at just the right time so you easily remember it later. There is a booklet with reading exercises (and audio) for lessons 10-30.
The CDs provide a natural way to learn the language thru interaction. You don't memorize verb congregations or vocabulary out of a book, but instead learn them thru use in many practice conversations. I have enjoyed this approach because each day I can see a difference and it almost seems effortless (not like studying).
I have already purchased and stared French II and will to continue with French III.
The learning curve compared to my classroom language class (I took Spanish in High School and College) is dramatic! I cannot speak any Spanish based on those three years, but after a month with these CDs I can confidently speak and understand simple French and had a great time traveling in France this year.
I also purchased an iPod Nano so I could practice while walking the dog and traveling. Mostly I listen in the car to/from work.
If you are unsure, I recommend taking the path I took and purchase the $20 set of lessons 1-10 first.
Only 8 New CDs, not 16 as promised!!!.......2006-11-21
Do not buy this language CD. I was really disappointed with this product. It promised 16 new CDs for French I, but the first 8 CDs were exact repeats of the Pimsleur Instant Conversation CD's that I already had (which cost $50.00). So After paying $271.00 for French I, I expected new lessons not repeated lessons from Instant Conversation.
I had to return the product to Amazon and am still waiting for my refund (minus the shipping costs which Amazon does not refund.) I will not be buying another Pimsleur language tape, this is such a rip.
Book Description
Comprehensive Spanish (L.A.) III includes 30 additional lessons (16 hrs.), plus Readings, which build upon the language skills acquired in Levels I and II. Increased spoken and reading language ability.
Level III will increase your vocabulary and grammatical structures and triple your spoken proficiency. Upon completion of a level III, you will be able to:
* participate in most informal and some formal discussions on practical, social, and some semi-professional topics,
* form longer sentences while maintaining the target language syntax,
* be understood even by native speakers unused to dealing with foreigners,
* handle increasingly difficult grammatical structures,
* enjoy fluent conversations with a variety of strangers,
* have a near-native accent, and the subtleties of the language will be apparent in your speech,
* read at the same level at which you speak.
Note: In order for the Pimsleur Method to work correctly, you must first complete the Level I + II language programs before proceeding to the Level III language program.
Customer Reviews:
Another Effective Pimsleur Course.......2007-08-06
This course is a direct continuation of the first two Pimsleur Spanish courses, and has the usual helpful repetition, variation, and gradual increase in vocabulary and grammar that make the Pimsleur system so effective. The system is almost entirely auditory, so it is advisable to supplement this course with some reading and writing exercises, if you want to learn to read newspapers or signs, or even to write simple letters. (I was stunned to recently discover that "which" is spelled "cual", not "qual" in Spanish, as I had been visualizing through the first two courses.) But this approach is an excellent way to develop confident fluency in Spanish conversation.
Want to learn Spanish?.......2007-07-14
In my opinion Pimsleurs method of teaching/learning a new language is top notch. It is fast, sure and builds confidence fast.I rate it a five star because it deserves it.
PIMSLEUR DEVELOPS A SPEECH CENTER.......2007-01-24
No where in the literature that Pismleur puts out does it claim to be the "end all" Spanish program. I mean, really! It would impossible to put everything you need to know in three short courses. What it claims to do, it does. It gets you to a certain level of SPOKEN FLUENCY and no more and no less. When I did the research for my book, "YOU CAN LEARN SPANISH or Any Language No Matter Your Age or Disposition," what I found was that Americans particularly have the most bizzare idea of what it takes to develop spoken fluency in a second language. The course, "FSI Programmatic Spanish", is one that should be done after the highest level of spoken fluency is achieved. What "FSI Programmatic Spanish" does is address material to the short and long term memory and not to that portion of the brain that develops a "speech center". If you want to know what a "speech center" in your brain is, just note how your six or seven year old child can communicate in his native language BEFORE ever learning what a part of speech is. When I went through the " FSI Programmatic Spanish" course so I could review it for my book, I thought it was dreadfully boring, mind numbing, and did not at all address the development of a Speech Center...Pimsleur, however does. Pimsleur is not "A" method for second language acquisition...it is "THE" method for beginning spoken fluency. One comes before the other. In fact, in my book, avaialable here on Amazon.com, I mention Pimsleur as part of the course of study for developing spoken fluency.
Excellent learning program!.......2006-10-14
I purchased the Pimsleur I, II and III series because I wanted to learn Spanish by audio while walking my dogs.
Each lesson is 30 minutes long and I listened to the same lesson over and over again until I felt that I had mastered it then I moved to the next lesson. Each lesson builds on the previous lesson and they work!
I have just returned from a week in Barcelona and I was able to communicate fine in Spanish with the people there. Although Catalan is the most popular language in Barcelona most of the people there also speak Castillian Spanish.
I was completely comfortable alone wandering the city. I knew enough to get around. You only have to ask the locals to speak slowly for you and they will. :) No entiendo, habla mas dispacio por favor. Many of the people I met there had the same problem understanding English when we speak to fast too. So they were not at all bothered by speaking slower for me.
One night at dinner my co-workers made me speak entirely in Spanish for the entire dinner. They were surprised at how much I knew. During my trip strangers were telling me that my Spanish and my pronunication was perfect. I know that if I had the opportunity to spend more time in Spain I would learn faster too with the base of knowledge that these tapes have provided to me. (En Espanol - Sé que si tuviera la oportunidad de pasar más tiempo en España aprendería más rápidamente también con la base del conocimiento que estas CD's me han proporcionado).
I highly recommend these series if you want to learn by audio.
My only regret with these tapes is that there is no Spanish IV, V or VI to learn from. They are wonderful!
I have seen and worked with the other Spanish learning products on the market. These are the best!
Skip #3, but 1 and 2 are good.......2006-09-14
As others have said, Pimsleur is great for developing correct pronunciation and for getting comfortable speaking. In that regard, volumes 1 and 2 are excellent and gradually introduce more complex or idiomatic phrases as well as verb tenses gradually and in a natural way. Also, as others have said, you will not even remotely be able to say much (or understand much) if you ONLY do the Pimsleur lessons. You have to get a good vocabulary book (children's picture books are highly recommended), listen to Univision, etc., but getting grounded solidly in pronunciation and just the initial step of being able to put together sentences confidently is something Pimsleur 1 and 2 will definitely help in greatly. Course number 3, however, is a huge disappointment---it's not just "not good enough", it's actually extremely poorly done. Anyone who gets number 3 presumably has done 1 and 2 and is comfortable with pretty much any basic phrases (Muchas Gracias), how to do introductions (Mucho gusto in concerlo), filler phrases (No importa), etc. but in course 3, you will spend a significant amount of time simply repeating these same phrases over and over. There is also a completely mysterious enormous emphasis on certain phrases that end up taking up in total nearly an entire lesson apiece---for example, "un plato de la especialidad de la casa" (one plate of the specialty of the house). First of all, this is a phrase any reasonably knowledgeable person who has done lessons 1 and 2 could figure out without outside help---you don't need lesson time that you paid for wasted being introduced to something you can figure out yourself. But this phrase took up nearly an entire lesson. Other similar unimportant or phrases easily decipherable without help took up entire lessons. Very little in the way of additional verb tenses were introduced in the entire course number 3, and a very specific set of vocabulary was introduced entirely geared towards foreign engineers making business trips or going to conferences in Latin America (I'm not kidding---that's the vocab you get repeated endlessly and not all that useful outside of very narrow situations). So all in all, number 3 is really terrible and should be avoided even if you get it for free---it simply isn't worth the time. But number 1 and 2 are strongly recommended as good tools for getting to a basic "comfort level" from which you can really develop on your own.
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Books Index
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Spanish
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![Spanish II, 3rd Ed. (Compr.) [CD]](http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/074352893X.01.THUMBZZZ.jpg)
Spanish II, 3rd Ed. (Compr.) [CD]
Spanish III - 2nd Ed.: Learn to Speak and Understand Spanish with Pimsleur Language Programs (Comprehensive)
Pimsleur Quick & Simple Spanish 2nd Revised Edition
French I - 2nd Rev. Ed.: Learn to Speak and Understand French with Pimsleur Language Programs
Pimsleur German I Comprehensive CDs, Second Edition
English for Spanish Speakers 1
