Rating: 
Summary: Time for an update
Review: I'm about halfway though this set and I agree with all of the positive things that have been said about this product. However, I've reduced my rating of this product because it badly needs a revision and an upgrade to CD media.
The edition currently being sold is dated 1988. This means that---at $80 a pop---Barron's investment in creating this product has been well amortized. The fact that they have not made updates and improvements makes them simply greedy.
My main complain is significant number of sections for which answers are not available, particularly for the written assignments. (Hel-lo? May those of us who are no longer in a grade school language lab have a solution key please?) And the limitations of cassete tapes causes at least one of the units I have reviewed so far to be cut short, with a terse statement in the text reading, "Note: Practices 28-33 are NOT recorded." Which brings me to my next complaint.
It took me only about a day to copy the casette tapes to mp3 format and burn them to two data CDs. The fact that Barron's is not willing to take even this minimal amount of effort to offer a CD format is inexcusable. If they did so, maybe they could add the segments back in that are currently missing.
Finally, the vocabulary that is most important to learn has changed somewhat since 1988. How about some lessons discussing the internet, email, webpages, and high-speed connection? How do I ask where the nearest internet cafe is?
In short: stop being so cheap and greedy, Barron's. It's time to give back to your loyal customers. Freshen up this otherwise solid product.
Rating: 
Summary: Native Brazilian Portuguese pronunciation in no time!
Review: I'm no linguist. But I needed to learn Portuguese to live in Brazil, where my job was about to take me in three short months. My manager-to-be in São Paulo made no bones about his displeasure at receiving another American under his wing who spoke no Portuguese. He said I needed to come to Brazil speaking -- and well, or my contract wouldn't be renewed at the end of six months. Barron's Mastering Portuguese seemed like the logical choice because it's the same program used by American diplomats trained by the Foreign Service who need to hit the ground running when sent to a new country for work. I crossed my fingers and dived in.
For the first chapters of this program, you do nothing but repeat vowels. Again and again. And again. Its boring, for sure. But it ensures that your pronunciation of this beautiful language is as close to native as possible. The rest of the course leads you through a series of recorded drills that sharpen your conversational chops and unobtrusively teach you grammar along the way. The best way to learn anything is by repetition and that's the framework for learning through this program. I found myself dreaming in Portuguese within two months, and speaking it better than I ever thought I would. When I arrived in Brazil, my Portuguese was by no means fluent -- even the best programs can't give you fluency; you have to go live in the country -- but I was making my desires understood and understanding natives. The biggest compliment I received (which in turn is the biggest compliment I give this course) is when I was in Rio, I was told again and again that I sounded like I was born there. People couldn't believe I was American. This is not an easy course to get through. It requires hard work, patience and consistent practice. But if you're serious about learning Portuguese, there is no better way. Believe me, I've tried them all.
Rating: 
Summary: The Difference Between Brasileiro and Português
Review: If you read the review by the person from Lexington, KY, and you believe it, then you are in for a Big Surprise! I wonder how well this "professional translator" knows what it is like for a Brazilian to go to Portugal.Here is the difference... The Portuguese - The Portuguese have no problem understanding Brasileiro because in Portugal you get to watch Alot of Soap Operas from Brazil. Because of this the Portuguese have been exposed to the differences between Brasileiro and Português. They can easily understand a Brazilian. The Brazilian - The Brazilians have a hard time understanding Português in Portugal. Most TV programs in Brazil are made in Brazil, and therefor are spoken in Brasileiro. The Brazilians have not been exposed to Português that much at all. Don't believe me? My wife is from Portugal. Our friend is from Brazil. When our friend from Brazil came to Portugal she had a hard time because of the differences between the languages. Brasileiro and Português are different. Sure, you can get by in Portugal with Brasileiro, but it will get annoying when you have to get the Portuguese person to say things twice so you can understand. It's kind of like American English and Irish English. How many Americans can truely understand every word that Irish guy is saying? I can't! There is a difference between the two. So, take advice from someone who has "experienced" the differences through people he knows, and be cautious about the so called "professional translators" who "claim" that there is no difference. Like I said in my last review... this book is GREAT for learning Brasileiro... but not for learning Português. Adeus, Tchau! Tnis Kopit CEO Mi'kmaq Net
Rating:
Summary: Dry, academic, but masterful
Review: If you want fun and happy learning with gentle, friendly encouragement, go buy a "Portuguese for Dummies" book. You won't learn the language, but you'll enjoy yourself. If you just want to get a few phrases, go get a Lonely Planet phrasebook. But if you aren't afraid of hard work and want the BEST there is, then get the Foreign Language Institute series. If language courses were judged on cosmetic features, this course would get zero. There are no glossy pictures, cheerful icons, in fact the text book was clearly written with a typewriter (!) The writing style is dry as a bone and the content rigorous and academic. But if you have the ability to see through that, then the course is utterly flawless. You will need LOTS of self-discipline (but then you need that to learn any language, regardless of the course chosen). I've usd this course for a few months and have already been able to have some basic conversations with some Brazillian friends. I'm planning on getting some more FLI series as a result. As a final note - be aware that the course is designed for Brazillian, not European Portuguese. These dialects are quite different from each other, much moreso than the US-British English differences. If you are travelling to Africa (ie. Mozambique, Angola, etc) this course will serve you very well.
Rating: 
Summary: EXCELLENT, IF A LITTLE DRY
Review: it wont win any rewards for riveting language learning, but this is an excellent and comprehensive series of tapes. the series focuses heavily on correct pronunciation...so youll spend a lot of your time repeating phrases over and over. i found it to be really useful. My only complaints would be: 1) this doesnt come on CD, only tape. i had to scrounge to find a tape player that worked. putting these onto a cd would make pausing and rewinding SO MUCH EASIER. 2) the book leaves a bit to be desired. it looks like it was typed on a TYPEWRITER and is pretty basic. overall, its great and id recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Brasileiro, Português . . .
Review: It's a good book and it has some great tapes. Don't beleive all that you hear about the Brasileiro/Português stuff. I'm a professional translator and the differences aren't that great. You will definitely understand and be understood after you finish this course. That's really the goal isn't it?
Rating:
Summary: Increadible
Review: Recently I purchased this course for my girlfriend. This is Brazilian and not Portuguese. For somebody that wants to learn portuguese this course is a rip of. As a Portuguese I feel sad that my native language is beeing presented to the eyes of the world as Brazilian. Legaly I think that no company as the right to advertise yellow and sell red. In the packa
Rating:
Summary: Very good and inexpensive way to learn Brazilian portuguese
Review: This book and 12 tape set (90 minutes each) will give you a very solid foundation in Brazilian portuguese. You should have excellent pronounciation, be able to have long meaningful conversations, and be able to understand others very well when finished. It is also a great value for the money - a lot cheaper than other multi-tape courses! Each unit is broken into smaller parts that build on each other, so you can easily work at your own pace. And since it builds gradually, you will not forget material you previously learned. As others have commented, the book does look like it was done on a type writer and has no interior graphics or color - very dull looking. Also, the vocabulary should be more extensive - the same nouns and verbs are generally used to teach new usages and tenses. But if you get a basic dictionary, once you look up a new word or verb, you will know how to use it in many contexts and tenses. I tried several other items before I bought this one and I have been very pleased with my purchase.
Rating:
Summary: mastering portuguese
Review: This book was very good, but it had one major problem. It completely ignored the future tense. Although you have other ways of expressing the future, for understanding it is probably important. I found the book to be very helpful and the way the material is presented is fabulous. However, the promise of complete fluency is totally impossible. The lack of vocabulary made it unrealistic to expect fluency from this book, but I did feel that it is great as a supplement. It is a great way to start off, but total fluency from this book is just a lie. Overall I would say that this is a worthwhile purchase
Rating:
Summary: Excellent beginning course
Review: This is an excellent beginners course. It goes well beyond the superficial memorization of phrases and includes detailed practice on pronunciation. Highly recommended. Excellent value. I recently spent 3 months working in Mozambique, and completing this course prior to arrival there provided me with an excellent foundation. For those wanting more practice, I suggest listening to an international news service such as BBC, VOA or Deutsche Welle, available on the internet, for Portuguese news. This is an excellent way to hear either spoken Brazilian or Continental Portuguese, and you can gain valuable and free vocabulary practice reading news bulletins as well.
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