Rating: 
Summary: I'm buying volume II right now.
Review: I have tried many of the various language courses that are out there and none of them even comes close to comparing to the Pimselur language courses. I never in my life thought that I would be responding to German questions without having to first translate them into English. This course has given me something that I will keep for the rest of my life.The only bad thing that I have to say at all about this course is that it doesn't provide you with the spelling of the words that you are learning. But this course isn't meant to focus on spelling, it's meant to focus on hearing and responding so I was not too upset to let that slide. I'm 100% positive that, after I finish volume II, that I will purchase volume III. Thanks Pimselur!
Rating:
Summary: best of the Pimsleurs
Review: I have worked with the Japanese and Chinese comprehensive series, and so far (I've only finished German I) I have to pick this as the best of the three. I have always been attracted to the elegance and clarity of the German language, but I never thought that learning it for the first time could be so pleasurable and easy as it had been. The speakers are warm and lucid, the script is very efficient and very logical, and the whole package has a playful and pleasing quality to it. I cannot rave enough about the speakers. They are genuinely attractive, and their flirty bantering imbues this production with a pleasant and humorous atmosphere missing from most other foreign language programs, which are usually flat. Also most of the lessons are under 25 minutes and easily zipped through.
Rating:
Summary: One of a kind
Review: I took German in high school and college, but wanted to brush up on it. I just completed German I, and I was pleasantly surprised. To achieve spoken competence requires a hugh amount of repetition and drilling to internalize the patterns. But different people have different learning styles; some respond well to reading and practicing grammatical principles and paradigms, others are more ear-oriented. At first, the endless repetition was frustrating; I must have heard "Would you like to drink something with me?" about 40 times. And "Where is Goethe street?" about 30 times. For someone who remembered some of his school German, it was a little much. The pace picks up in later lessons, and it began to get a little more interesting and challenging as new vocabulary and grammatical structures are added. All in all, it was an enjoyable experience, and I think a pure beginner would do very well with these tapes. If only they weren't so hideously expensive. Fortunately, my library system carries all 3 levels of the German series, so I'm all set. Before paying for the full set, you might want to pick up the smaller 4-cassette version to see if it suits your learning style.
Rating: 
Summary: Effective
Review: I took German in high school and college, but wanted to brush up on it. I just completed German I, and I was pleasantly surprised. To achieve spoken competence requires a hugh amount of repetition and drilling to internalize the patterns. But different people have different learning styles; some respond well to reading and practicing grammatical principles and paradigms, others are more ear-oriented. At first, the endless repetition was frustrating; I must have heard "Would you like to drink something with me?" about 40 times. And "Where is Goethe street?" about 30 times. For someone who remembered some of his school German, it was a little much. The pace picks up in later lessons, and it began to get a little more interesting and challenging as new vocabulary and grammatical structures are added. All in all, it was an enjoyable experience, and I think a pure beginner would do very well with these tapes. If only they weren't so hideously expensive. Fortunately, my library system carries all 3 levels of the German series, so I'm all set. Before paying for the full set, you might want to pick up the smaller 4-cassette version to see if it suits your learning style.
Rating:
Summary: a few tips
Review: I'm currently using Pimsleur to learn Japanese and Cantonese, and I'm thrilled with my progress. Pimsleur has a truly effective system for learning language painlessly and effectively. I've noticed, though, that on many Pimsleur reviews here on Amazon, people say they needed to listen to each tape 2-5 times before they felt they knew the material. Fortunately, that's not necessary. Here's how to make equal progress on just one listening: Each time you're prompted to come up with an answer on your own, *stop the tape* and give yourself time to think before you get interrupted by the soundtrack. If the tape gives you the answer before you've come up with an answer yourself, you haven't learned anything. Also, as much as I love the Pimsleur comprehensive courses, they're still wildly expensive, even with Amazon's sometimes-substantial discounts. [...]
Rating:
Summary: Wunderbar!
Review: I've tried a number of approaches to learn languages. These tapes make it easy, yet they work. They open up the world. The only problem: the words and phrases you learn from these tapes work so well, that others think you know the language, and start speaking too quickly. Then they don't believe that you learned from tapes!
Rating:
Summary: Dr Kossleur loved it
Review: It is no miracle, kein Wunder, but it really works if you want to get the most of a foreign language, especially if it is eine Fremdsprache. The method is very well accomplished, leting us feel at complete ease. The pauses are perfect, the only thing is that for those who have scratchig skins I would suggest an improvement of the pauses, so that you can have time to repeat and/or scratch the top of your head or else. As a matter of fact, here goes a good sugestion: re-record the tapes so that the pause can be longer and... ...enjoy yourself! Making them longer and longer will give you a chance not only to scratch your body as a whole, but also do it for your mate, your pet, even your neighbour, if he/she happens to ask for a cup of sugar... Enjoy IT!!! It is worth the money!!!
Rating: 
Summary: Pretty darn good
Review: The Pimsleur programs are well structured and well-paced, and the instructional techniques appear to work. A big plus to this program is the 'conversation' that occurs completely in German at the beginning of each lesson. Not only do these conversations provide the user with confidence in their comprehension, but they provide a realistic example of 'conversational speed'. The pedagogical conversations in which the student participates are highly amusing, and one might rename the course "How to hit on, and get shot down by, German girls." (There's really more to it than that, but the entertainment value does keep ones' interest up.) I penalized the Pimsleur course one star because it's not quite as good as the Michel Thomas course (though it covers more), and parts of it are redundant to the point of making the student insane. (About the 50,000th consecutive time you've started a sentence with "Ich mochte...", go back and check your pronunciation...) All-in-all my second favorite for pedagogical style, and first for comprehensive content. (I am taking into account that there are two more series available.)
Rating:
Summary: Excellent! Well worth the money.
Review: These tapes are tremendous for learning to speak the language. They train you to actually think in German -- you are not just regurgitating set phrases, but learning to use the language in many different ways. I am saving my money for the second set -- if the first set is this good, I can only imagine how much I could learn from all three sets!
Rating:
Summary: This is great - I'm getting Volume 2
Review: This is really a great course. I compared it with the Living Language set -- and there's no comparison. You won't learn a lot of words, but you will definitely learn to use the language. I find myself thinking of a German response to everday events, and I'm confident that I am learning not just to parrot phrases, but to use the language. I am very happy with the set and look forward to Pimsleur's German II.
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