Adesso!: An Introduction to Italian (with Audio CD) [Hardcover]

Marcel Danesi (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0838460763 | ISBN-13: 978-0838460764 | Publication Date: December 2, 2002 | Edition: 2

ADESSO! provides students with the opportunity to learn Italian through functional, everyday contexts. Each chapter in the program provides ample opportunity for the student to develop formal skills through the grammar presentations and activities.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"We adopted ADESSO! in the Italian Program at the University of Kansas because of its functional approach to language teaching. While learning Italian, students actually learn how to function in certain situations in the target language. The presentation of grammar in ADESSO! is never an end to itself, but always a tool to unable meaningful communication. Since we adopted ADESSO! oral proficiency among our first-year students has improved remarkably in comparison to the level of oral competence they were able to achieve while we were using other textbooks." --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

About the Author

Marcel Danesi is Professor of Semiotics and Communication Theory and coordinator of the University of Toronto undergraduate program in Semiotics and Communication Theory at Victoria College. He is a well-known authority on language acquisition and, more recently, on how problem solving can best be approached through culture. He publishes extensively in the fields of linguistics, Italian studies, applied and cultural semiotics, and communication theory. He edits several book series dealing with research and theory in the field of semiotics.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 510 pages
• Publisher: Heinle; 2 edition (December 2, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0838460763
• ISBN-13: 978-0838460764
• Product Dimensions: 9.7 x 8.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,269,094 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Students - caution before online purchase:, September 13, 2005

By 

kalyson (Sacramento, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Adesso!: An Introduction to Italian (with Audio CD) (Hardcover)

Yes, it's a reasonably good book. But if you are a student buying this book for a class, most classes require the online workbook/lab manual, too. This requires a key that will cost you at least $51.00 extra if you buy it separately. I made the mistake of buying my book online (not here, though) and it did not have the key included, so I'm paying a lot more than if I'd bought them together as a package. Most bookstores on campus get them together for less money than if purchased separately. Check to be sure your online purchase includes this if your course requires it.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Challenging for self-learners, September 23, 2007

By 

Hsu Mon Chu (Taipei, Taiwan) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Adesso!: An Introduction to Italian (with Audio CD) (Hardcover)

I read about the positive reviews here and took the plunge - put my order to have the book delivered across the Pacific Ocean. It was a delight at arrival - well printed, realistic scenarios posing the ones I experienced during my trip to Italy. Excited and carried away, I quickly got myself a tutor to accompany the book (I figured, if I can not be in a classroom like the other reviewes did, a native-speaker tutor should well be a good alternative.) The problem is, once the tutor leaves, I can not recall what the pronounciation and accent of everything, anything, is like. The audio CD that comes with the book does not provide line by line demonstration. It only has a 1 minute long conversation for each of the 17 chapters. But for a beginner who has but 1 hour of private lesson per week, I would appreciate more "sound" from the book to keep me familiar with the language. Aside from the drawback, the book has been good otherwise.

5.0 out of 5 stars Very effective, September 3, 2007

By 

Second Language School of Manchester CT (Manchester / Vernon CT town line) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Adesso!: An Introduction to Italian (with Audio CD) (Hardcover)

Some of our teachers use this book when teaching Italian and find that it works very well. It teaches grammar almost painlessly while teaching how to communicate effectively.