How to Learn Any Language

Rating:
Summary: One of the Better How to Learn A Foreign Language Books
Review: I liked this book more than Grahma E. Fullers' How to Learn A Foreign Language book in which I found much of the same info in a fee mini-ebook: Ten Secrets to Learning Spanish Like Crazy at www.learningspanishlikecrazy.com/TenSecrets.pdf
I am now using one of Farber's techniques that he calls the Multiple Track Attack. And it is helping me to learn Spanish very quickly.


Rating:
Summary: Great Book - Greater Help
Review: I think this book is awesome! It really gives me help. While I had a great French teacher for four years in high school, I didn't retain that much, simply because I had bad study habits and I didn't apply myself. When I found out I was going to France for an extended stay, I decided I might want to learn. I followed Mr. Farber's advice and within a few months I spoke an incredible amount of French, and did great for the month I stayed near Antibes and Grasse.

I've heard a lot of other reviewers say that this books needs to be updated, but anyone with a brain can figure out how to add in electronics, etc. to the program.

There was only part I didn't like and that was that Farber's use of mnemonics, simply for the fact that they don't work for ME. Mnemonics work for thousands of people, but I am blessed with the ability to just look at a word and remember, and the stories that mnemonics provide tend to just get in my way. However, I understand how much this method will help some people and that's why I say you should use this method if it is effective for you.

Overall, this book is something you should definitely get if you want to learn any language. It's worth the relatively small amount of money, and you will learn a wealth of information from this book.

Rating:
Summary: Great Book - Greater Help
Review: I think this book is awesome! It really gives me help. While I had a great French teacher for four years in high school, I didn't retain that much, simply because I had bad study habits and I didn't apply myself. When I found out I was going to France for an extended stay, I decided I might want to learn. I followed Mr. Farber's advice and within a few months I spoke an incredible amount of French, and did great for the month I stayed near Antibes and Grasse.

I've heard a lot of other reviewers say that this books needs to be updated, but anyone with a brain can figure out how to add in electronics, etc. to the program.

There was only part I didn't like and that was that Farber's use of mnemonics, simply for the fact that they don't work for ME. Mnemonics work for thousands of people, but I am blessed with the ability to just look at a word and remember, and the stories that mnemonics provide tend to just get in my way. However, I understand how much this method will help some people and that's why I say you should use this method if it is effective for you.

Overall, this book is something you should definitely get if you want to learn any language. It's worth the relatively small amount of money, and you will learn a wealth of information from this book.

Rating:
Summary: If you want to learn a language...
Review: then this book will be your best source of inspiration, guidance, and encouragement. Farber's masterpiece will clue you in on the best techniques to learn any language, and, unlike other books of this kind, it actually promotes self-study. In truth, no one needs to take a class to learn a language. Just follow the simple, straightforward instructions, put in a little elbow grease, and you'll be well on your way to learning any language.

The book is divided into three parts: Part I is a lengthy (but very enjoyable) presentation of Farber's own story (and how he came to speak over 18 languages); Part II is the meat of the book, the actual system. This section contains the raw information needed to be successful at learning any language, which Farber himself concedes is the end result of years of poor decision-making, coupled with some very insightful (and at times accidental) choices, in the end distilled into the most helpful techniques. While some would claim that nothing here is revolutionary, I would like to add that nothing here hurts either! It's often important to find reinforcement of one's own arrived-upon ideas, and also to receive a new perspective on why something is the way it is. Part III is a small group of appendixes that mention the now unheard of (I can't find it!) Language Club in New York City, a list of the world's major languages, and also Farber's own notes (reviews, really) on the major languages (European and Asian).

If you've read this far, please do yourself a favor and get this book. The only reason I've cared to write so much about this book is because it really meant a lot to me to find this book when I was debating whether or not to spend the time, energy, and money to learn another language. I hope this book will help guide you to your destination, just as it's helped guide me to mine. Good luck!

Rating:
Summary: In Plain English about learning a foreign language!
Review: This book changed my thinking. I was one of those people who would have loved to learn another language.....BUT....after two years of high school spanish (I retained very little), I began to go around muttering, "Well, Id like to learn a language, but I just aint very good at it (my high school language grades proved that)....and dont have the discipline to do all that memorization". Barry points out in the book a variety of language learning techniques other than just drilling into your memory a new vocabulary. These techniques are why other nations have greater success in language training compared to the U.S.'s educational methods! I now enjoy learning languages (in part because of this books and others) and actually think Im pretty good at it!

Rating:
Summary: In Plain English about learning a foreign language!
Review: This book changed my thinking. I was one of those people who would have loved to learn another language.....BUT....after two years of high school spanish (I retained very little), I began to go around muttering, "Well, Id like to learn a language, but I just aint very good at it (my high school language grades proved that)....and dont have the discipline to do all that memorization". Barry points out in the book a variety of language learning techniques other than just drilling into your memory a new vocabulary. These techniques are why other nations have greater success in language training compared to the U.S.'s educational methods! I now enjoy learning languages (in part because of this books and others) and actually think Im pretty good at it!

Rating:
Summary: A decent starting point
Review: This book is a good place to start on your quest to learn a new language. It offers some tips and suggestions from the author's experiences with language learning. The book is a fairly brief. I think the paperback version is a bit too expensive, but the hard cover version is half the price. You can find the hard cover version fairly easily if you search at other book stores. Amazon does not seem to have the hard cover version in stock right now.

This book is entirely one person's perspective. I would have greatly preferred additional insights from college professors or from people who teach language for a living. I would also like to know any scientific research that has been done in how to learn a language efficiently.

This book is essentially a pep talk and a common memory trick, but it is still worth a read.