Catalan (Teach yourself books)

I have really learned a lot from this book. Sad that it doesn't come with a pronunciation tape or CD. However,it will help you learn basic Catalan. It will also give you and idea of the countries that speak Catalan and the culture of this language.

It is a great book if you want to learn some Catalan, specially if you plan on going to Barcelona or Catalunya or know people that speak the language. It'll give you the basics for traveling and/or pulling a smile from your catalan friend....

After my return from eastern Spain, I took up the study of learning Catalan, which was the language many of my ancestors spoke before they settled in the New World. While at a bookstore in Madrid, I encountered this book on a shelf and found it fascinating to read and study. while the language is primarily spoken in 4 countries (Catalonia, Spain; Southeastern France; Sardinia, Italy; and Andorra (its' official language) it still holds plenty of power in Europe, being one of the top ten most spoken in the European Union (although not official.The author took his time in researching the language and he clearly states the dialect taught in the book differs from other Catalan dialects such as Valenciano or Mallorquin. This is very important, especially if traveling and/or doing business in this region of Europe, where dialects are plenty. I read the book, and after a while, I surprised my pen pal near Barcelona with a letter in Catalan. He was blown away that I wrote the language so well on my first try. This book will help you learn grammar, vocabulary, and sentence structure, however as the other reviewer of this book said, the only thing negative is that there is no audio tapes to accompany this book. Many language books in the Teach Yourself! series have audio tapes, however it is very difficult to speak Catalan without listening to a native speaker. I had to go on the web to hear some examples, and even this is difficult, because only a few phrases are said.I contaced the publisher by mail, and I got the same response. There is not an audio companion to the book. I am so disappointed about this, however this shouldn't be a reason not to buy this book. Mr. Yates, who has written other books on the series has done an excellent job covering this once-forbidden language (Franco prohibited its' use in public during his regime). If you are interested in learning this language, I recommend the following books:(1) Cambridge Word Selector : English - Catalan (2) Catalan sin Enfuerzo (for Spanish speakers who want to learn Catalan)(3) Catalan Dictionary :English-Catalan/Catalan-English (by Routledge Press)Let's hope in the future that NTC Publishing will change its' mind and release an audio tape companion to this book, but for now, the best way to learn phonetically is to find a private tutor.