German Verbs And Essentials of Grammar

Rating:
Summary: Good clear explanations in a compact format
Review: I am a new learner and found having a grammar handbook essential when trying to do readings or translations. This is a good one because the explanations are clear and compact. Compact is important: its easier to remember.

Also worth hunting for at the library is "English Grammar for Students of German" which discusses the issues involved in grammar with English examples.

Rating:
Summary: Nice, solid reference and learning tool
Review: My mom and I began to learn German with a tutor over a year ago. This was one of the first books I bought and I still refer to it regularly. It helps to have some understanding of grammar in general to really get good use out of this book, but taking on German implies some mental commitment and capacity anyway, so I wouldn't worry too much about that. Strangely, the first half of the book is all verbs and the second half the rest of grammar (articles, nouns, etc.). The table of contents is concise and detailed however, so this "separation" is not a problem. Actually, it makes it easier to find things when you know what you're looking for. You will need a dictionary accompanying this book, as it isn't comprehensive vocabulary-wise, but this book generally gives you all the rules you need and I highly recommend it. It is remarkably thorough for a book barely 100 pages long. There are no exercises and I caught three or four typographical errors, but this book has plenty of information in it, is lightweight, and well-worth the purchase for beginning to intermediate German students.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent grammar summary
Review: This book is a great German grammar summary. It features a large section on verb conjugation (60 pages) followed by smaller sections on articles, nouns, prepositions, adjectives, adverbs, numbers, pronouns, et cetera.