Rating: 
Summary: Good Grammar, poor execution
Review: Already having a solid background in classical Hebrew, I decided to work through this grammar for fun. I found that the material was extremely accurate, however, I didn't feel like it was a very good grammar. The layout was rather weak and not user friendly, there are far too many transliterations, and the explanations are often in prose--making for prosaic reading. I think this grammar could be very solid if it were repackaged in a larger textbook and visually reformated.
I'm glad I didn't have to learn Hebrew with this book, because although it can teach your a lot, it makes the process unnecessarily cumbersome.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent Grammar
Review: In my opinion, Lambdin is among the best grammars of Biblical Hebrew (tho' I can't quite understand why US students pay so much for it when the UK edition, tho' paperback, is a quarter of the price). When I first studied Hebrew, I used Weingreen (which I still consider an excellent book for those who like an old-fashioned approach to language), but when it came to reviewing the language, I used Lambdin, whose far more sophisticated approach gave me quite a different and very valuable perspective on the language. Another book available in the UK which is invaluable to lone students, H.G.M. Williamson's Annotated Key to Lambdin's Introduction to Biblical Hebrew, which is what it says it is! But I can't see it on amazon.co.uk, tho' Shefield Academic Press still claim it's in print.
Rating: 
Summary: You Need Good Eyesight
Review: Lambdin's book is not bad - it is more pedagogical and suitable for self-study than most of the old traditional hebrew texts such as Weingreen and Davidson. However for someone using the book for self-study purposes and not taking a Hebrew course concurrently it may be difficult to jump start your language study with Lambdin: the introductory chapter on sounds and spelling is not well written and may have the effect of discouraging the student from further reading. But beyond that the book is fairly easy to digest. My only other concern is with the paperback edition. The print of the Hebrew letters and points is small. Have a look at a copy before you order. This may not seem significant as you read this review but once you start studying from it you may have regrets.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent introduction to Biblical Hebrew
Review: Of the grammar books I have used in learning classical Hebrew, this was the most useful. The text is clear and complicated grammar is introduced both logically ad usefully. Adapted biblical passages are used as reading material after each chapter for most of the book. Don't worry about the reviewer's insistence that poetical language isn't covered - except for archaic poetry, the grammar is the same. One proviso, tho' - I didn't give the book 5 stars because it has no key. The University of Sheffield in the UK publish a key, H.G.M. Williamson's "Annotated Key to Lambdin's Introduction to Biblical Hebrew", ISBN 1 85075 065 3 (about $25). Together, they beat anything else.
Rating:
Summary: simply the best!
Review: The "best" textbook for the systematic study of Biblical Hebrew. Most useful for 2nd & 3rd year serious study!
Rating:
Summary: There are other better grammars than this one
Review: The best Hebrew grammar book for new learners is Andrew Bartelt's Fundamental Biblical Hebrew. Lambdin's book is definitely not it. In fact, I rate Weingreen's Classical Hebrew Grammar and Page Kelley's Classical Hebrew way over Lambdin's. Lambdin's text is confusing and frustrating. I say that as someone who started off by teaching myself Hebrew -- Weingreen was excellent, and Kelley supplemented where Weingreen fell short. I do have the Lambdin text, but gave it up in frustration. The one text that organizes and clarifies in a way that neither Lambdin, Weingreen, nor Kelley does, is Bartelt's. That's the text for the Hebrew neophyte, either with a teacher or a self-starter.
Rating:
Summary: Where are all the Hebrew Characters?
Review: The explanations of hebrew grammar and sounds are much too difficult to understand in this "introduction". I spent more time trying to learn all of his transliterations and grammatical terms than I did actually learning the Hebrew. In fact, from the start in his sounds and spelling section he doesn't even give you the Hebrew characters! This might be all well and dandy if this was spanish or something but this is Biblical Hebrew, the main point is to be able to read and understand it instead of pronouncing it. I found that after a little study I could pronounce many things but I couldn't tell you how they looked on paper.<
Rating:
Summary: Very good book, transliterations should be separated
Review: This is a good grammar and vocabulary and the passages chosen are a good start on the Scriptures. The weak point is that for those struggling with the Hebrew letters, it is NOT helpful to put the English transliteration in between the Hebrew words and the English translation: A future reprint of this book should set the type so that it is possible to cover up all the English tranliterations with a single piece of paper and practice the page. Also, a future printing should consider using the interlinear format for example translations: that way more advanced exercises can be demonstrated using the interlinears than the students could read on their own.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful!
Review: This is an excellent introductory textbook for "serious" study of Biblical Hebrew, and as such, one is required to have a solid background in Grammar.
Rating:
Summary: An excellent introductory text
Review: This was the text specified by my Intro. to Biblical Hebrew professor 2 years ago . I thought it was an excellent book. Our prof. discouraged us from using Lambdin's transliterations as a crutch--we began by memorizing the Hebrew alphabet. Each chapter is organized around a theme (or two), and gives you a manageable amount of vocabulary and paradigms to memorize. Two semesters were not quite enough time to finish the whole book, but we came close. The chapters have plenty of exercises and simplified Biblical passages to translate, plus our prof. supplemented these with translation exercises from the actual Hebrew Bible. It also has English-to-Hebrew excercises, which really have little value for reading the Hebrew Bible. With any foreign language book, typographical errors can be a real nuisance. I am happy to report that typos in this book are few to non-existent. I am not as happy about the recent price increase, but perhaps this is indicative of how well-accepted this book has become at universities where Hebrew is taught. Are there better books for self-study? Perhaps--I can speak only for this one. But Lambdin is very straightforward and if you work hard at the memorization part, this book will put you well on your way to reading the Hebrew Bible.
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