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Rating: 
Summary: Great Book to Learn Continental/Lusitanian Portuguese
Review: "Beginner's Portuguese: An Easy Introduction" by Sue Tyson-Ward is an excellent and rather quick way to learn the basics of Portuguese. Prepared in the same manner as other books in the "Teach Yourself!" series, this book is great if you want to learn Portuguese as it is spoken in Portugal (including the Azores and Madeira). While many people might pick up this book thinking that the dialects of Portuguese in both Portugal and Brazil are the same, they are sadly mistaken.About 40 million people in the world only speak Continental/Lusitanian Portuguese. This includes Portugal and all her former African and Asian colonies, as well as Portuguese language enclaves in both New England and Toronto. Brazilian Portuguese, spoken by more than 140 million is widely more recognized due to the major influence Brazil has had on the music world. The major difference in Brazilian Portuguese is that many words borrowed from the many indigenous groups and ex-African slaves found in Brazil have added to the language. While a dog might be called a "cao" in Portugal, it is a "Cachorro" in Brazil. Therefore, if you plan to spend a lovely weekend in the Algarve, or go sight-seeing in Lisbon, then this book is the only one you'll need to speak proper Portuguese. If you are traveling to Brazil, then purchase "Teach Yourself! Brazilian Portuguese". Both books are also available with audio books if you need to practice your pronunciation. Overall, a great book at a great price.
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Summary: Quick and easy
Review: focuses on continental which is hard to find. not much grammar, but enough basics to get you going. good conversations and lectures.
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Summary: Is this really a language course for adults?
Review: I bought this course hoping to learn the language, but I was in for some disappointment. Dialogues: you don't quite know what they say, the vocab lists give you only some of the words. Audio: too fast, unclear diction. Grammar: superficial, partial info on some points only. Exercises: more for show than to help you. Pictures: they may appeal to children or the young at heart. Final balance: very frustrating, wasted money. I hope my experience will be of use to other learners.
Rating:
Summary: Good Intro to the language
Review: Ms. Tyson-Ward has written a good, easy to follow, introduction to the language. The book comes with two tapes which are absolutely essential to getting the pronunciation down. Unlike Italian and maybe Spanish, Portuguese is only modestly phonetic and listening native speakers is only way to learn correct pronunciation. I had just a few problems with the book. First, the author never fully explains the pronunciation of Portuguese 's.' The speakers on the tape usually pronounce this like the English 'sh' when at the end of a word. But at other times, it is pronounced like a standard English 's.' Also, I believe the book is supposed to be about Continental Portuguese, yet at least one of the speakers on the tape is apparently speaking with a Brazilian accent (e.g. pronouncing final 'e' like the English final 'y'). Additionally, a short appendix on basic grammar would be most helpful. I'm sure these minor deficiencies will be corrected in future editions. Otherwise, an excellent book. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Good Intro to the language
Review: Ms. Tyson-Ward has written a good, easy to follow, introduction to the language. The book comes with two tapes which are absolutely essential to getting the pronunciation down. Unlike Italian and maybe Spanish, Portuguese is only modestly phonetic and listening native speakers is only way to learn correct pronunciation. I had just a few problems with the book. First, the author never fully explains the pronunciation of Portuguese 's.' The speakers on the tape usually pronounce this like the English 'sh' when at the end of a word. But at other times, it is pronounced like a standard English 's.' Also, I believe the book is supposed to be about Continental Portuguese, yet at least one of the speakers on the tape is apparently speaking with a Brazilian accent (e.g. pronouncing final 'e' like the English final 'y'). Additionally, a short appendix on basic grammar would be most helpful. I'm sure these minor deficiencies will be corrected in future editions. Otherwise, an excellent book. Highly recommended.
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Summary: Not friendly at all
Review: Portuguese is my third foreign language. I have read many foreign language courses, some good, some not so good. This one is not one of the best. The dialogues are reasonable. They resemble the dialogues in other courses like a BBC Get By course my mother bought in Europe early in the 1980s. A problem is that you cannot learn a language just by looking at the dialogues. The tapes are too fast for a beginner and you cannot catch what the speakers say. You are left with looking at the dialogues and trying to make sense of what they say. This is not easy either. The language notes are minimal. You are given very little guidance on the language itself. The little guidance you get in some cases comes under the wrong heading. The 'ir'+ main verb formation (eg eu vou visitar) is given the name of "simple future". The simple future (eu visitarei) is something quite different, not shown in this course. When you move to a more informative course, as I have done, you find out these inaccuracies. They can mislead a beginner who is not used to foreign language learning. If you are a reader turning to this course as a starting point, then you are being started on the wrong foot. The first thing you come across in this book and more than once (on the cover etc) is that this is a friendly introduction to Portuguese. In my view a friendly course is one that looks well after the learner. This one does not!
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Summary: disappointment
Review: The book begins by referencing an audio tape (series) that does NOT come with this offering of the book. Clearly, the audio is VERY important to pick up even the most basic of languages.
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Summary: Textbook to learn Portuguese
Review: The book is very good and gives a basic introduction to the language. It references a tape series which would be very helpful, especially for learning some of the more difficult sounds.
Rating: 
Summary: Not worth the money
Review: This book is too elementary to teach you anything. The dialogues may give you a sample of the kind of things you may need to say, but there is no real help with the language itself. There does not appear to be a plan behind the dialogues. I gave up and bought Elisabeth Smiths Instant Portuguese which is much more helpful. You can tell there is a plan in this one. You feel more confident you are in the hands of a good teaching tool.
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