33 of 37 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Lots of grammar, April 22, 2005
Before criticizing the book its worth noting that Arabic poses several problems to the English speaker. Standard written Arabic is thicket of grammar that makes German look like a walk in the park. Spoken Arabic is a simpler affair but dialects vary from country to country. So teachers of Arabic have to decide whether to start with grammar (A&S's approach) or with conversation (Al Kitab's).
I am using this book at NYU. I, along with my classmates and professor, complain about it's over emphasis on grammar, its typos and questionable organization. The strict grammar rules lend themselves to simple presentation in tables, but the authors generally fail to use this approach. Also note that you will need to buy the CDs. They are appallingly expensive given the poor production quality.
If your goal is to read classic Arabic literature A&S is probably your best bet. But if you want to be able to handle a basic conversation I recommend Al Kitab instead.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
for a solid understanding of Arabic, April 2, 2007
I have been tutoring Arabic for 5 years (thearabictutor@gmail.com) & this is the best book I found to be the text book for my students. My students love my lessons & this book is a big part of the good experience.
it does not run over the material, it goes with you step by step, I do not know how Arabic would be learnt without a teacher, it is not like studying French if you know English..the difference starts in the Alphabet (writing & pronunciation) & grows more in grammar. So if you are looking for a gimmick book that will teach you to say parrot's "good morning" & "good night" & "have a nice day" then this is not the book...this is a serious, carefully planned, aiming at well-educated level of understanding & ability to handle this beautiful poetic language.
for those who says it won't help you learn on your own: Arabic is one of the hardest languages to learn, & it is an Afro-Asiatic language so if your 1st language is Indu-European then do not blame the book, & the book is not full of misspelling, probably you were not understanding the language enough to know what you are reading!
for those who do not like the book because of politics: the book is not political, it is a language book, but of course it will call Palestine by its native people given name & by the name Arab call it because it is teaching you Arabic in context! in this book you will follow some Arab students correspondances with their family & friends, & it will give you a background of the culture.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent for a beginner, April 14, 2000
I am a very new beginner. I have found this course to be very easy to understand and follow. (Note--I also have the accompanying tapes which I purchased seperately.) Each lesson is broken down into very easy to digest parts-perfect for someone like me who is doing this in my "spare time." I would have given this 5 stars if I had finished the course and could give a complete review. I can only say that for now, I am hooked and enjoying this process throughly. (This is the book used in the basic Arabic course taught at Rice University in Houston.)
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
![[Start the discussion]](http://g-ecx.images-amazon.com/images/G/01/x-locale/communities/discussion_boards/start-new-discussion-sec._V192250339_.gif){kind=small}
