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Best Foreign Language Instruction

Easy Spanish Step-By-Step
Grammatical rules and concepts are clearly explained in order of importance, and more than 300 verbs and key terms are introduced on the basis of frequency. Easy Spanish Step-by-Step is based on the idea that the quickest route to learning Spanish is through a solid grounding in grammar basics. Guaranteed to get you quickly up and running with the knowledge and skills you need to communicate in Spanish with confidence, Easy Spanish Step-by-Step features:
Reviews
"It divides the task into logical, sequential steps that build upon each other, in the order you would learn them if it was your first language, saving verb tenses for later. The reading exercises at the end of each chapter are a useful and motivating tool, but ideally they would have reinforced vocabulary already learned, rather than requiring footnotes!"
"In may opinion, this is THE text book to start learning Spanish if you do it at home and are serious about it."
"Good presentation of this language, helpful exercises."
"This book is more advanced and you will need to dedicate time to learning spanish, but it's a great book."
"Using it with my fifth grader for home school."
"Love the book."
"Really like this book too."
"My son has found this easy to use!"
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Codex Seraphinianus
An extraordinary and surreal art book, this edition has been redesigned by the author and includes new illustrations. “…the book really does live up to its reputation: The drawings are in turn hilarious, disturbing, bizarre and, sometimes, just flat-out incomprehensible, but all of them are annotated in Serafini’s script.” - Dangerous Minds “It’s not the sort of thing that easily lends itself to classification, but probably the most accurate way to describe it would be as an encyclopedia of an invented alien civilization…the Codex is still a disorienting and provocative vision of inscrutable otherness.” - Slate.com “ Codex Seraphinianus is an art book in the most direct sense—there are big, beautiful drawings accompanied by indecipherable letterforms--and it is impossible to “read” in a literal way. " Codex Seraphinianus : History’s Most Bizarre and Beautiful Encyclopedia, Brought Back to Life...a weird and wonderful masterpiece of art and philosophical provocation on the precipice of the information age....Undoubtedly one of the most intricate and beautiful art books ever created."
Reviews
"My campus library had a copy briefly a decade ago, but foolishly left it open to general circulation."
"A weird and wonderful calendar, and the printing is outstanding."
"Beatifully done calendar based on this amazingly mysterious book."
"Drawn & painted in some alternate n ancient universe where dear reader shall be inthralled in its mystery n excellent paper of that of kings ."
"If you've gotten this far, you know what this book is, but perhaps where I can add value is in describing the Rizzoli (white cover) edition. Though i would prefer a black background over white, it has the red circle ladybug illustration (one of my favorites) on the cover instead of the alligator bestiality illustration that the 1st edition has."
"Transports to a new world."
"You can't help but admire the genius to create a whole civilization, with language, geography, religion, culture and science."
"Most incredible book ever."
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The Everything Learning German Book: Speak, write, and understand basic German in no time
German and English are closely related--you already know viele Phrasen! Building on the German language's close relation to English, this all-new edition covers everything from basic introductions to verb conversions. Whether you want to sample das stoutest Lager or converse with your grandparents in their native tongue, you'll soon discover just how easy it is to learn German! Rules of spelling and punctuation Appropriate language for correspondence in German, including e-mail Updated exercises. He is the author of several German, Russian, and ESL textbooks and wrote the first edition of The Everything Learning German Book and The Everything German Phrase Book.
Reviews
"- The exercises are rather limited, I don't believe beginners will be able to properly learn and understand the cases with such a limited set of exercises about the subject. - It often feels like the vocabulary is just thrown in there, because they had to put in some words here in there, if you're looking to learn a lot of words, this probably isn't the right book for you. All in all it is a good read, but you shouldn't use this book only to study German, consider it as an introduction or a book to freshen up old skills and improve your German by actually getting books with grammar/vocabulary drills."
"Trying to brush up on my Deutsch."
"Time to delve into learning German again."
"Great And besure delivery!Thanks Amazon."
"Also, the functional approach toward instruction, so aptly employed in this book, has always been and still is one of the most efficient tools in second/foreign language teaching."
"My instructor was a native German speaker and his teaching style made sure that the course became one of those required drudgeries that you somehow just plod through, get a passing grade, and move on. Especially helpful were the clear directions on how to recognize the gender of nouns (without memorizing them all), assign the correct endings to verbs and to apply the proper German case to sentence structure."
"The author of "Everything Learning German" does an excellent job of covering the basics of German grammar by relating German language concepts to the principles of English grammar that we (native English speakers) already know."
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Best Turkish Language Instruction

Elementary Turkish (Dover Language Guides)
Anyone concerned with current social, political, and cultural developments in Turkey knows that a practical understanding of the basic patterns of modern Turkish is an invaluable skill that until now has been difficult to attain without extensive training. In a carefully arranged sequence of 23 lessons, Lewis V. Thomas, late Professor of Oriental Studies at Princeton, presents thorough coverage that allows the student to begin to use the basic patterns of modern Turkish without time-consuming and expensive private instruction. He went on to become professor of pediatric research at the University of Minnesota, chairman of the Departments of Pathology and Medicine and also dean at the New York University Bellevue Medical Center, chairman of the Department of Pathology and dean at Yale Medical School, and president of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City.
Reviews
"As of the text itself, It doesn't introduce vocabulary like other language learning textbooks, (for any vocabulary that might be new, there is a glossary at the back of the book), but it is quite good at explaining grammar and giving example sentences for the grammar point(s) being explained in a chapter."
"A very good primer on the language at a great price and it was here immediately."
"I wanted a more in depth language book than the Tape & CD variety available in the library. But the book is good to see the actual word, (and in Turkish) understand how the verb stem is added to to indicate negation, question or statement, tense of course, and voice (I, you, we, you plural, they, he, she, & it)."
"It is not a guide that will help you speak a few words of Turkish for an upcoming trip."
"I learnt Turkish with Rosetta Stone, but was missing the grammar."
"A great way to learn basic Turkish, written with simplicity and clarity."
"Successive chapters progress to the basic elements of grammar and verb structure, adding vocabulary along the way."
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Best German Language Instruction

The Everything Learning German Book: Speak, write, and understand basic German in no time
German and English are closely related--you already know viele Phrasen! Building on the German language's close relation to English, this all-new edition covers everything from basic introductions to verb conversions. Whether you want to sample das stoutest Lager or converse with your grandparents in their native tongue, you'll soon discover just how easy it is to learn German! Rules of spelling and punctuation Appropriate language for correspondence in German, including e-mail Updated exercises. He is the author of several German, Russian, and ESL textbooks and wrote the first edition of The Everything Learning German Book and The Everything German Phrase Book.
Reviews
"- The exercises are rather limited, I don't believe beginners will be able to properly learn and understand the cases with such a limited set of exercises about the subject. - It often feels like the vocabulary is just thrown in there, because they had to put in some words here in there, if you're looking to learn a lot of words, this probably isn't the right book for you. All in all it is a good read, but you shouldn't use this book only to study German, consider it as an introduction or a book to freshen up old skills and improve your German by actually getting books with grammar/vocabulary drills."
"Teaching German in my home school this year and this book has been the basis for our lessons."
"Trying to brush up on my Deutsch."
"Time to delve into learning German again."
"I thought that this book might be too elementary for me becaue I have been self-studying German for the last several years."
"Great And besure delivery!Thanks Amazon."
"The first few chapters are all about the fundamentals of language, comparisons of German to English, etc."
"I speak, read and understand German very well as both the progeny of immigrants and through collegiate studies."
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Best German Language Instruction

Learn German With Stories: Café in Berlin – 10 Short Stories For Beginners
Newly arrived in Berlin, a young man from Sicily is thrown headlong into an unfamilar urban lifestyle of unkempt bachelor pads, evanescent romances and cosmopolitan encounters of the strangest kind.
Reviews
"HIs Sicilian character tells you all you need to know about being a foreigner in modern Berlin, trying to learn the language, fit in, have a good time, get a job and meet some girls. Everyone's experience will vary according to their mastery of the language, naturally, so I think it would be impossible to call it a one size fits all book."
"It is nice to have a recap of some key German words with definitions and a short quiz at the end of each section. In addition to this series helping with learning German words and vocabulary, I really enjoyed reading about the different cities and their characteristics, tourist sites, and things to do!"
"Thank you for allowing me to feel comfortable learning this language in an engaging and comical way."
"The German in this text is simple enough that if you have reached a slight stage past beginner, then you will find yourself actually reading a book in German, albeit with some words here and there that need to be learned, which the book does nicely at anticipating these words and providing translations to them."
"I found the stories just long enough to introduce a range of concepts and expressions. The sample of words chosen for explanation at the end of each is well thought out."
"Reading helps make sentence structure become second nature, and having a good German-English dictionary helps, too."
"I bought this to help my kids with the German language."
"This is a very good German language learning tool for the intermediate student."
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Best Children's Russian Language Books

Russian Learners' Dictionary: 10,000 Russian Words in Frequency Order
This dictionary contains 10,000 Russian words in order of importance starting with the most common and finishing with words that occur about 8 times in a million. ..."this dictionary can function as a useful yardstick by which they can guage their development and 'fill in' gaps in their basic wordstock.
Reviews
"While those things are fine, if your goal is to quickly increase your Russian vocabulary, then it just makes sense to use this book. Standard Russian/English dictionaries are a must for any learner's bookshelf but if you add this book too, then you'll master the vocabulary much faster and easier."
"These are words which you will encounter over and over again so it is very worthwhile to make a point of familiarizing yourself with them. Of course, this text, since it is based on written materials, does not really do justice to the spoken language however, for what it proposes to do, it admirably succeeds in its goal of providing a frequency list of the most commonly used 10,000 words in the educated, general language."
"However, for the time it has saved me in searching out the most frequent words in any sort of structure, I believe for me the price is acceptable."
"Great, never seen a book like this before."
"If you want to quickly expand your Russian vocabulary in the most logical and useful way, this is the book to buy."
"The book is sold as is, but I have actually had my Russian friends read the words and the examples aloud while I record their native pronunciation onto digital audio files. I hope that the next edition will be sold with a CD or MP3 files to accompany the product."
"This dictionary is immensly helpful in learning new vocabulary."
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Best Chinese Literary Criticism

The Analects (Oxford World's Classics)
Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, voluminous notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more. Raymond Dawson, Emeritus Fellow, Wadham College, Oxford.
Reviews
"As I understand of my readings from the "Tao Te Ching" and the "Complete Works of Chuang Tzu", TAOISM is a philosophy of inaction, the common analogy being that of the river eroding a mountain just by slowly doing its thing over a long course of time. Within the "Analects of Confucius" one finds quite a few gems of wisdom, including the almost universal Golden Rule (the saying, not the health insurance company)."
"One thing that seems worth mentioning is that, although Confucianism is generally referred to as a religion, the values, beliefs, and teachings of Confucius seem to render Confucianism more a philosophy than a religion. He placed great emphasis on "gentlemanly behavior, but seemed less concerned with anything like preparing for the hereafter."
"This actual paper copy was published in 2013 according to amazon, but many of the most helpful reviews are from 2001 or 2004."
"Given to friends."
"Then, as now, I was attracted to a philosophy that did not hold out a reward of eternal salvation as the basis for establishing common morality. At one point in the Analects, Confucius mocks someone who wants to know about death when in his opinion the person knows nothing at all about life. On the other hand, reading it as part of a class and as a student gave me what I am sure was a much better framework for placing the work against history and context. I had read Mencius two years ago and distinctly remember being frustrated by the introduction. I recognize that writing an introduction is rather a thankless job-- you either bore the experts or lose the newbies. I am not certain whether the Lau introduction to the Penguin edition of The Analects would bore an expert, but this (relative) newbie certainly appreciated its assistance."
"Item as described and fast shipping - recommended!"
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Best Japanese Literary Criticism

The Pillow Book of Sei Shonagon
Lady Shonagon was an erstwhile rival of Lady Murasaki, whose novel, The Tale of Genji , fictionalized the elite world Lady Shonagon so eloquently relates. The Pillow Book is one of the three most important works of its kind in Japanese literature, and Professor Morris has given it handsome treatment. The liveliest and most endearing of Heian writers, and the one who gives the most intimate and vivid picture of life at court.... Its denizens emerge as real and never-to-be-forgotten people.... Morris belongs to the literary rather than the literal school of translators, and his talents are shown here at their best. Shonagon comes through vividly.... [Morris] has given us for the first time in full a delightful and fascinating book which is also a work of notable scholarship.
Reviews
"Besides learning about life in Japanese court from ancient times you will realize that life is the same for people from thousand years ago and us."
"McKinney has impeccable academic/linguistic credentials, and was more scrupulous in compiling her source material (not leaving things out as I recall that Morris did--readers can skip whatever isn't interesting to them, which I think is far preferable)."
"Best segments: her 3-star review of bad boyfriends, her lists of random pretty poetical crap she liked, and her funny critique of middle-aged married couples taking afternoon "naps.""
"It quickly revealed an unknown world of absolute beauty and a life lived as art to my young mind, a world in which the mere examination of a particular color of a mountaintop at sunset or the blink of a firefly winging its way through the first moments of a misty dusk, the small tragedy of a fire reduced to dying embers, are interpreted and elevated to their proper place as the miracles of a life well-observed. She freely and whole-heartedly chronicles the daily doings of palace life, unfettered and uncensored--she wrote in secret, living with the dire danger that she be found out--from the grandest and most complex internecine details of royal ceremonies and celebrations to the delicious gossip of secret romantic affairs of high and low society. I enjoy simply letting it fall open to any random page, allowing myself a few minutes or several hours of sheer pleasure. For writers of any sort, or for anyone for whom reading is more than a pleasure but necessary to one's routine, The Pillow Book will become a touchstone, indeed an anchor and a shield against the unpleasantries of modern culture. The absurdities of the mundane, glamour, the glorious beauty of the infinite within the small, the evil that permeates and remains shrouded within structured societies but does not destroy us, has never been captured so rapturously and with such a rigorous eye."
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Best Salsa Music

La Guitarra Flamenca: A Video Series of 6 Lessons with Music Tablature and Notation Presented on Two DVDs, Book & 2 DVDs (Faber Edition)
Juan Martin explains and demonstrates the essential techniques and rhythmic forms of Flamenco guitar playing in six progressive lessons, designed for all players from beginning to advanced.
Reviews
"IMHO, Juan Martín's method is simply THE flamenco method to use (and I have all of the various flamenco method books). Get this and his El Arte Flamenco de La Guitarra (v.1&2, which is like the bible of flamenco)."
"I can tell you the songs in the book aims toward the intermediate level to advance level. If you don't have a basic understanding of those techniques, you will not master the songs in this book. Contents-. Lesson 1- Solea. Bulerias: Opening theme. Solea: Introductory Solo. Solea: The Basic Compas. Index Finger Down-Strokes on a Chord of E Major. Adding Fs on Accented Beats. Second Compas with Fmaj7 and C Chords. Ending Phrase with Apoyando Thumb Strokes. Variation with Added Gs. Llamada. First Falseta. Second Falseta. Final Llamada. Solea: More Advanced Solo. Lesson 2 Alegrias. Introduction. Bulerias: Opening Theme (2nd version). Alegrias: First Example. Solea: High Position (Cejilla at 7). Alegrias: High Position. Solea: Llamada (High Position). Alegrias: Llamada (High Position). 5-Stroke Rasgueo. Beginning Alegrias: First Compas. First Compas: Slower Version. Second Compas. Third Compas.Llamada. First Falseta. Introducing Flamenco Tremolo. An Example of Tremolo. Falseta 2 (First Version). Tremolo Excercise on One String. Chromatic Excercise on Second String. Continuing the Alegrias. Triplet Rasgueo. An Ending for Alegrias. Scale Excercise for Picado. Scale Excercise in Compas. An Excercise in Ligado. Lesson 3 Seguiriyas and Fandangos. Introduction. Bulerias: Opening Theme (3rd version). Seguiriyas: Notation of Compas. Seguiriyas: Introductory Solo. Seguiriyas: Counting the Compas. Seguiriyas with Counted Rythm. Left and Right Apagado Techniques. Rasgueo Thumb Stroke. Seguiriyas: Longer Solo. Alzapua. Seguiriyas para bailar. Seguiriyas: Final Sequence. Triplet Rasgueo (example from Alegria en Mi). Fandangos:Introduction. Fandangos:A Way to Start. Fandangos: Basic Compas. Fandangos para cantar. Fandangos: Final Sequence. Lesson 4 Bulerias. Introduction. Six Compases. B flat position. Bulerias: The "al golpe" rythm. First Accent on Beat 12. Counting 1 to 5. Bulerias: Opening Theme (Extended Solo). Bulerias "al golpe". Beating Time with the Foot in Bulerias. Bulerias: Basic Variations in the 'por medio' Key. Timing of Accents: Another Example. Bulerias To End Other Palos: Solea. Emphasising the 3,6,8,10,12 Accents. Bulerias To End Other Palos: Alegrias. Ending Sequence with Changes of Key. An Excercise for Alzapua. Alzapua Sequence. Bulerias: Final Sequence. Lesson 5 Granainas, Guajiras, Tientos, Tangos, Farruca, Rumba. Introduction. Granainas. Guajiras. Tientos. Tangos. Chord Sequences with Bridging Chords. Farruca. Symbol for Slapping Techniques in Rumba. Rumba. Lesson 6 Rumba, Tarantas, Taranto, Sevillanas, Zambra Mora, Rondena. Rumba Rythm Excercises. Improvisations por Rumba. Tarantas. Taranto. Four Sevillanas. First Sevillana. Second Sevillana. Third Sevillana. Fourth Sevillana. Zambra Mora. Rondena. Palomino Rumba. Appendix: Juan Martin's Other Publication. Personally , I enjoy playing the Granainas,Rondena, and Taratas."
"These are the best materials I've encountered for learning to play flamenco... Martin is an excellent teacher and there's sufficient variety to keep any guitar student of flamenco interested."
"There is a saying that when the student is ready the teacher will appear."
"This book is a great supplement to Juan Martin's El Arte Flamenco de la Guitarra OR Mel Bay Play Solo Flamenco with Juan Martin because it has many concert pieces of many styles.Trouble is,there is little instruction,focusing mostly on the history and the execution of the song rather than going to the very basics.The DVDs provide great visual and verbal hints on how to get the right feeling into each piece.Very good material if used in conjunction with any of the 2 books mentioned above....for the intermediate player."
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Best Slang & Idiom Reference Books

Knickers in a Twist: A Dictionary of British Slang
Brits and Americans dress the same, eat at the same chain restaurants, pass music back and forth across the Atlantic, and our national leaders are practically conjoined twins.
Reviews
"I am finding the book interesting."
"I have to say this book has most of the slang, I was a little disappointed when reading the book from beginning to end to know that they didn't have some of the slang."
"Makes a change from the books that think all English people are living in cockney London in the 18 hundreds!"
"This is a gift for my husband... he originally grew up in the UK but moved to America at the age of 15. I snuck the book out of its hiding place for me and the kids to read and it made us laugh so much."
"the slang is so funny and I have used a few in conversations with friends( who look askance at me) a very funny addition to your library."
"Found out that our family is from Britain so I bought this book at a flag as a joke for my sister."
"This was a gift for my mother in law who was born and raised in England and came to the States at age 19."
"Unfortunately this "dictionary" is not arranged as a dictionary but as a series of articles."
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