Rating: 
Summary: Bad title, great book!
Review: I've used the book a lot in my last three trips to Berlin. The Germans were surprised of the "stuff you never learned in German" that I knew. They even liked the book and I had to leave my copy there on last visit. And it's just plain hilarious most of the time. I have to order another one for me.
Rating: 
Summary: Terrific Gutter German
Review: In her book, "Scheisse" Gertrude Besserwisser, which seems to almost have to be a pseudonym, the reader is introduced to really wonderful low Deutsch of the most common variety. In fact, this is German you don't learn in school, I heard this stuff when I went to Germany, Austria and Switzerland. But not in school.No profanity is too great for the unabashed Besserwisser. Wonderful colloquial German expressions of full throttle profanity and abusiveness are introduced in this book, along with illustrations by David Levine that increase the humor of the presentation. The one item that the reader should know, is that basic knowledge of a little German is really a pre-requisite to get the most out of this book. Although, it is readable, by those who have never spoken a word of German. And just as funny. This book is highly recommended for people about to take a trip to a German speaking country. At least you will know when they are cursing at you, even if you cannot understand all of it.
Rating:
Summary: Terrific Gutter German
Review: In her book, "Scheisse" Gertrude Besserwisser, which seems to almost have to be a pseudonym, the reader is introduced to really wonderful low Deutsch of the most common variety. In fact, this is German you don't learn in school, I heard this stuff when I went to Germany, Austria and Switzerland. But not in school. No profanity is too great for the unabashed Besserwisser. Wonderful colloquial German expressions of full throttle profanity and abusiveness are introduced in this book, along with illustrations by David Levine that increase the humor of the presentation. The one item that the reader should know, is that basic knowledge of a little German is really a pre-requisite to get the most out of this book. Although, it is readable, by those who have never spoken a word of German. And just as funny. This book is highly recommended for people about to take a trip to a German speaking country. At least you will know when they are cursing at you, even if you cannot understand all of it.
Rating:
Summary: Terrific Gutter German
Review: In her book, "Scheisse" Gertrude Besserwisser, which seems to almost have to be a pseudonym, the reader is introduced to really wonderful low Deutsch of the most common variety. In fact, this is German you don't learn in school, I heard this stuff when I went to Germany, Austria and Switzerland. But not in school. No profanity is too great for the unabashed Besserwisser. Wonderful colloquial German expressions of full throttle profanity and abusiveness are introduced in this book, along with illustrations by David Levine that increase the humor of the presentation. The one item that the reader should know, is that basic knowledge of a little German is really a pre-requisite to get the most out of this book. Although, it is readable, by those who have never spoken a word of German. And just as funny. This book is highly recommended for people about to take a trip to a German speaking country. At least you will know when they are cursing at you, even if you cannot understand all of it.
Rating:
Summary: Culture, and how!
Review: Not only does this book teach you all the 'dirty words', but it gives you insight into the German culture. Seeing that there's a phrase to call beer 'liquid bread' seems silly at first, but you quickly learn there's a lot more to it. It's a similar experience to learning some of the small cultural bits in your own language- Americans might relate to how whiskey can be formulated as "grandpa's cough medicine", or various beer/food/etc combinations can become the "breakfast of champions".
The great thing about this book is that it's careful to seperate myths from truth, and stereotypes from cultural traditions. Not only will you learn how to say the dirty word, but you'll learn the culture around the word, and how much trouble it will get you in. You'll learn what words we THINK are naughty but aren't, and some pitfalls you might run in to trying to speak everyday German (more things that SHOULD be taught in school but never are).
Great just for the fun of it, excellent if you plan on travelling, and absolutely necessary if you plan on drinking. Yes, you should have a basic running knowledge of German before picking up a copy, but so long as you know how to string together some basic sentences, this book will do the rest. I can't reccomend this highly enough.
Rating:
Summary: Great addition for someone learning intermediate German
Review: Ok, I picked up this book so I could learn some dirty words. And boy was I in for a surprise! There is LITERALLY EVERY DIRTY WORD POSSIBLE in here. The book provides sentences with many of the words and at the end of each chapter gives you a chance to see how well you are learning the slang. The book also tells which words are considered "taboo," so you don't go around using things that might get you labeled as something bad. The book also clears up some slang that we may "try" to use that is wrong, such as if we directly translated "she dosn't have a butt," which, if I remember correctly acutally means "she can't sit for long." The book also gives great phrases (such as "Your place or mine?") and others that I cannot write in this review. It also has stuff that you can use, such as names for bars and how to ask for directions and other helpful stuff. There is a great glossary in the back for quick reference, and each chapter is broken into sections (such as: body parts, tourist stuff, profanity, etc). This is a great book. I showed it to my teacher, and there were things in it she never even knew! A must have!!!
Rating:
Summary: My teacher didn't even know some of this stuff!!!
Review: Ok, I picked up this book so I could learn some dirty words. And boy was I in for a surprise! There is LITERALLY EVERY DIRTY WORD POSSIBLE in here. The book provides sentences with many of the words and at the end of each chapter gives you a chance to see how well you are learning the slang. The book also tells which words are considered "taboo," so you don't go around using things that might get you labeled as something bad. The book also clears up some slang that we may "try" to use that is wrong, such as if we directly translated "she dosn't have a butt," which, if I remember correctly acutally means "she can't sit for long." The book also gives great phrases (such as "Your place or mine?") and others that I cannot write in this review. It also has stuff that you can use, such as names for bars and how to ask for directions and other helpful stuff. There is a great glossary in the back for quick reference, and each chapter is broken into sections (such as: body parts, tourist stuff, profanity, etc). This is a great book. I showed it to my teacher, and there were things in it she never even knew! A must have!!!
Rating:
Summary: It was cool!
Review: This book has many german phrases that you need to know to survive. (If you are a gangster or just have to know everything.)
Rating:
Summary: German For People With Dirty Minds
Review: This book is the perfect way to spice up your German vocabulary with slang, curse words, insults, ect. Everything is in this book from talking about body parts (you know which body parts), to how to call someone a dirty old man. This book is divided into many sections such as sex, general profanity, ect. If you're interested in learning some new words that they'll probably never teach you in a class this book is for you. The only problem with this book is that some things are missing due to regional differences in the language. Some slang that I've heard for some foreign exchange students I met couldn't be found in this book. Still this book is funny, and you will definently learn some new words.
Rating:
Summary: Zum Lesen mit'm Duden
Review: This book provides some useful words and expressions that you certainly won't learn in American high schools or colleges. It is probably the best of its kind available for German (the Wicked series books are filled with ridiculous made-up sayings that no native speaker really uses). That said, it really doesn't compare with the Merde books in French, of which this is the German equivalent. For instance, the sentences given as examples are not witty and they are also loosely translated into English, which might give the right "feel" but is not the best for someone trying to learn the intricacies of their usage. Also, the German doesn't get as vulgar as the French (whether this is because the German language is more civilized or this book less complete I hesitate to answer). One understandable problem is that there are tons of different dialects and regional differences in German so that a general unified version of German slang is sure to lack some substance. Consider also the great wealth of Viennese slang (Wienerisch, eh kloar!) or the different Swiss expressions which are of necessity left out. Over all this is a pretty decent book for those who want to learn some "low German" or just try out some choice words on their German teacher!
|
