Household Spanish: How to Communicate With Your Spanish Employees

Rating:
Summary: Household Spanish
Review: I recently started using a cleaning service and thought I had picked one where they spoke english but when the ladies showed up I learned that only the owner of the service speaks english. This book has been so very helpful, along with another book called "Your Housekeeping Source Book for the non-spanish speaking home owner." These two books have been invaluable to me. This book, household spanish, gives you the tools you need gramatically and word-wise to make sentences (simple ones) which is useful if you want to go beyond the very basics. It also has some helpful tips like putting labels on certain items etc. Great resource!

Rating:
Summary: Good vocabulary for everyday objects
Review: The book has two chapters with the basic spanish you need to know. The other chapters have content specific to cleaning, the kitchen, childcare, the yard and errands. It is a good addition to a non-credit course I am taking. The two basic chapters may be hard for someone with no spanish to take in without help. The information is compact as opposed to other books that would take the whole book to cover that information.

The other chapters deal with groups of vocabulary that you would use or see around you everyday which makes it easier to relate to. The chapters also include sections of action words, cultural tips, exercises, key phrases and words, and tips and hints. It is nice that each spanish word has a translation to show you how to correctly pronounce the word.

Rating:
Summary: Pitiful
Review: There is more to the Spanish language than the verbs "barrer, limpiar y cocinar". The socioeconomic message that this book carries is degrading to native Spanish speakers. It is unfortunate that people would use only this book in an effort to learn such a beautiful and rich language.

Rating:
Summary: Pitiful
Review: There is more to the Spanish language than the verbs "barrer, limpiar y cocinar". The socioeconomic message that this book carries is degrading to native Spanish speakers. It is unfortunate that people would use only this book in an effort to learn such a beautiful and rich language.

Rating:
Summary: Much more than the title suggests/Great Book for beginners
Review: This books provides much more help than communicating with Spanish-speaking household help. I purchased it a couple years ago and to my surprise, it's been one of the most valuable Spansih-reference books I've bought to date. It's got just about every household object listed in Spanish, cleaning, and commands.

The best part about this book is that every-single word in Spanish is spelled out phonetically in English; so if you're not familiar with Spanish pronunication, this book has you covered!

I'm nearly fluent in Spanish and my mother is trying to learn the language using Pimsleur's Spanish CDs (which by the way is possibly the BEST way to learn basic conversational Spanish for the basic basic beginner). She came to me and asked if I knew of a book that could teach her to "read" Spanish (i.e., correctly pronounce the words). I immediately thought of this book, adding that it could teach a lot of useful household Spanish as well.

I would recommend this book to anyone wanting to expand their Spanish vocabulary, not just learning how to communicate with your Spanish employees.

Rating:
Summary: An instant vocabulary builder of terminology in the home!
Review: This mini dictionary focuses on "household terms in Spanish". Don't expect anything more or less. The book is divided into seven chapters each with thematic vocabulary. Within each section there are mini sections that focus on cultural themes (temas culturales), a review of what has been taught (repasemos), key words (palabras claves), to name a few sections. There is a pronunciation guide in brackets beside every word but I don't think it would be helpful if you are a true beginner in Spanish. I believe that sounds and phonetics need to be taught to ensure correct pronunciation and accentuation. I found the vocabulary to be interesting at times but there are so many ways in Spanish to say a word it just depends where a person is from but I think that Barron's tried to use the most generic word at all times. I really believe the book is good if you want to learn some Spanish vocabulary without having to worry about grammar and sentences etc. If you decide to purchase this book you will instantly increase your vocabulary and most of all know how to say everyday household terms in Spanish. This is a fun resource for learning Spanish vocabulary.

Rating:
Summary: The Spanish Book I Can't Live Without
Review: We have a Latin American person living in our home now who only speaks Spanish, and I have taught myself how to "converse" in Spanish in just over a month, thanks to this book and the cassette tapes. I have checked out many Spanish books at the library, but none gets to the heart of conversation like Household Spanish does. The introduction of vocabulary is useful and gradual, and the presentation of verb conjugation comes at just the right speed. To complement this quick-start book, I have purchased a Spanish/English dictionary and a workbook for reinforcement. With this combination, I can say almost anything, but it helps if your Spanish speaker is very patient!