Contatti: A First Course in Italian [Paperback]

Mariolina Freeth (Author), Guiliana Checketts (Author), Giuliana Checketts (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1995 | ISBN-10: 0812082362 | ISBN-13: 978-0812082364

Contatti gives a thorough grounding in the language and enables the user to speak, read, write and understand contemporary Italian. Reading and listening materials present lively activities based on everyday situations in Italy. This is an excellent self-teaching course for travelers. 2 cassettes.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Learn Italian from scratch through a course which provides fourteen thematic lessons with lively listening and learning materials. English is kept to a minimum but support is evident throughout, with a strong course book accompanying two audios recorded by natives in Italy, and a support book of transcripts. An excellent, in-depth learning tool for the serious beginner. -- Midwest Book Review

Language Notes

Text: English, Italian

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 261 pages
• Publisher: Barron's Educational Series (February 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812082362
• ISBN-13: 978-0812082364
• Product Dimensions: 11.1 x 9.1 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,623,683 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars If you want a tape to listen to while driving this isn't it!, July 26, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Contatti: A First Course in Italian (Paperback)

I was looking for lessons on audio that I could use to practise Italian while driving. This audio falls way short of my expectations. There are no English explanations on the tape, so you have no idea what is being said. The tape is useless on it's own, you need to be looking at the book. The book is not well organized. I'm plodding through it but I find the approach somewhat irritating at times. I'm still searching for a good audio.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Good Course, July 30, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Contatti: A First Course in Italian (Paperback)

I think that this is a good book if your intention is to immitate a college course on your own. The book was well structured, and the listening excersises were a great compliment to the book. The cassettes were not meant to be used on their own, and no where on the package does it claim to be a "learn while you drive" type of product. This book is meant for more serious users who plan on devoting a little more than their freeway time to Italian. My only complaint is that it has a very poor method of teaching grammatical skills that are often desired.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Solid, useful package, June 30, 2004

By 

G. Scimeca "GDS" (Richmond, VA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Contatti: A First Course in Italian (Paperback)

I used this course after Barron's "Italian the fast and fun Way" and "Teach Yourself Italian" as a kind of review before tackling Barron's "Mastering Italian." I think it served the bill. My advice is try a simpler course first (such as Barron's "fast, fun way" or "teach yourself beginner's Italian") and you will get more out of this course without worrying about some of the grammar shortcomings. I agree with the "4 star" reviewer who likens this to a college type language course. The book is full of color pictures and illustrations, and helpful culture notes. It really is a departure from the many 'teach yourself' type books and other learn by yourself courses that lack colorful diversions. Overall the course is quite helpful, especially since it was not new to me. The dialogs are easy to follow and the book provides a lot of vocabulary and puts in you typical traveller-type situations. Again, grammar explanations were rare, you kind of have to pick it up on your own, but this won't be as critical if used as a supplement. Nothing extraordinary here, but a solid book that will greatly improve your speaking and listening skills if used at least 1/2 hour 5 times a week.