Painless Spanish

Well... I guess the name says it all. painless? not...really. You do have to really want to learn. I bought this book, and have worked through the first 6 or 7 lessons, and am still going. the author teaches you about the culture, which is helpful, but he tends to teach you more about that than the language itself. It does help me learn spanish, but you should probably already have a basis of spanish. For a total beginner, this is not suggested. I am a high school student in spanish 2, and if I had not had the knowledge of what I already have in spanish, this book would have been useless to me, and I would not have understood a single word. I really only understand becuase of what I already know. If I hadn't payed full price for this, I wouldn't be using it. The book is okay, and good if you're a little more than a beginner. recommended? I guess.

A 276 pages of text in 13 lessons. Even though the book is directed to middle school student , the approach used makes it a good starting book for an adult who wants not only to speak and write spanish but also understand the culture. The approach is a CONTEXTUAL approach in its general meaning : word in a sentence, sentence in a paragraph , a paragraph in a short reading selection, a reading selection within a famous book, the book within the spanish literature, the literature within the country history. Every lesson includes pronunciation, grammar, history, culture,vocabulary. Here are the author's words : " Each of the 13 lessons is divided into 9 main parts or sections,with titles given in both Spanish and English ..." Why the 4 stars : a number of typos which can be detrimental to a real beginner ; for example on page 21 : un Fuen fin instead of un buen fin. For a false beginner , it is a very good approach .