Complete Idiot's Guide to Learning Latin

I'm not going to pretend to have finished this marvelous volume, but its first chapters have given me great hope that at long last I will be able to understand this wonderful language. What's great about this Complete Idiot's Guide (CIG) and what sets it apart from other Latin guides I have seen, is that it really does make an effort to explain the basics of Latin that have become the insuperable obstacles that have stopped my learning before it began. For instance, once a book of Latin starts talking about declensions (usually very early in the going) I get lost. CIG makes it clear that the first declension is a more-or less arbitrary collection of feminine words that end in "-a" and second declension words are usually male words end in "-o". CIG starts us off easy with other tidbits of the language -- that verbs often appear at the end of sentences (non dignus est) and that word endings (not articles and pronouns) define gender and tense. Pronunciation is introduced very early -- "V" pronounced as "W", and "C" having a hard sound like "K," etc. Before you know it, you are able to read simple sentences involving the nominative and genitive cases, such as "Senator non est elephatus" -- "The senator is not an elephant." Then the fun begins as CIG throws readers into the shallow end of the pool, introducing Latin words that are familiar to English speakers and cleverly inserting other words that are less familiar. CIG intends us to learn the language as children do -- not through books and formal charts, but by experiencing words in a rather haphazard order -- familiar terms first, and specialized terms later. Don't expect to breeze through "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Learning Latin" in a weekend or a month. The concepts, even when presented in a friendly way, are not easy. And you will need to memorize word endings and definitions, then practice pronunciations. Luckily, the book contains enough practice exercises (including fun words like "hippopotamus" and the aforementioned "elephantus") that are enjoyable. With this book firmly in hand, I look forward to the day when I can say (in regards to Latin) "Veni Vidi Vici" -- I *came* to the language, I *saw* it and I *conquered* it.

For a "dead" language you may ask why an update on such a book is needed? The second edition had a promised section in the answer key for chapter one, which was missing. Such an omission can be a discouragement to a beginner in just about anything, particularly languages. I remember a guidebook to the Delphi programming language, from Sams Publishing, which had a mistake in the very first coding exercise. Well done Ms Harwood. It's a great book, well set out and with plenty of humour in the "Complete Idiot's" tradition, whilst still not being over the top. The paradigms at the back of the book are useful and digestible. Supplementary to any Latin course, including this book, I'd purchase vis-ed (see vis-eddotcom) flashcards. Their Latin flashcards are great. I don't work for the company, honestly, I live on the other side of the planet.

This is just a wonderful little guide to help those who may have little or no background in Latin to take a dip in the pool of the language. Although, no, this is not the volume that will provide you with medievalist-like fluency in the language at the completion of the book, it is a great survey. I would recommend this to anyone who is interested in getting a taste of Latin and what might be involved in further study of the language. Go ahead, get your feet wet!

Yes, Wheelock's is the standard text for this topic--but for anyone who's interested in learning Latin on their own without the assistance of a college professor, it's less than appealing. That's where Harwood comes in, full of energy and humor and yes, hard work. There is still study involved in learning Latin--there are exercises and you will need to practice, like any other foreign language--but this book does make the subject more enjoyable than many of the other texts out there, with a logical structure (Harwood's years of teaching experience and lesson plans led to a killer outline) and lots of relevant examples. There is no comparable book, really--nobody else manages to take a light tone yet still convey all that is still relevant about the infamous "dead" language. It's more alive here than you'll find in any other instructional book!

This should be a required textbook in all Latin courses. Harwood's obvious command of the subject, combined with her wit and humor, make this a great read for everyone-not just Latin students. Lets have more from this author!