English on the Job: (Ingles En El Trabajo)

Rating:
Summary: Useful little book
Review: This book is small enough to be easy to carry in a pocket and it has words and sentences specifically targeted for work in construction, gardening, housework, etc. Here Spanish speakers can readily find English words like plywood, pillowcase, or pruning. There are useful phrases, mostly at the front, but some, oddly, are listed alphabetically by the order of the first word. Thus, "Estoy enfermo y no puedo ir a trabajar" (I am sick and can't work today) is found between the words "este" (this) and "filoso" (sharp). However, the book is small enough that one is likely to chance upon such useful sentences pretty quickly, so this quirky organization isn't the problem that it might be. There is a Spanish on the Job, too, and the pair would make a nice employee/employer set.

If you are interested in helping someone learn English, don't neglect to give him or her a grammar book. Books of words and phrases are limited. Grammar books show you to construct your own sentences. Betty Azar's books are excellent, and for a Spanish speaking beginner, I like CONVERSANDO EN INGLES: ENGLISH CONVERSATIONAL GRAMMAR FOR SPANISH SPEAKERS by Prof. Jaime Garza Bores.