Customer Reviews

A Course in Phonetics

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

"A Course in Phonetics" is the best book available on introductory Phonetics, and I recommend it whole-heartedly for every Linguistics student, but not necessarily for those with a general interest in Linguistics and languages. What I found to be especially useful are the sections of exercises at the end of each chapter to test what you've learned. The exercises are very well designed; however, the one drawback is that the book contains no answer key (that can only be found in the professor's copy).

The sections on Articulatory Phonetics (how our mouths, teeth, and tongues interact to make sounds) and Phonetic transcription,which uses current standard IPA symbols,are particularly good. On that note, what I find lacking in the book is coverage of languages other than English. If you're interested in further information on transcribing in IPA in 29 major languages, I strongly recommend "Handbook of the International Phonetic Association: A Guide to the Use of the I!nternational Phonetic Alphabet." Also, the section on Acoustic Phonetics was a bit overwhelming for anyone in my class who didn't have any background in Physics.

Still, the book's strength is the depth it goes into, taking into account that this is an introductory book. Every major concept in Phonetics is touched upon, and Ladefoged makes particularly good use of tables and diagrammes to help the reader.

(Note 7/2001: When I wrote this review, this was the most current edition. However, the 5th edition was published in 2000, and I haven't reviewed that yet, but you might want to check it out.)

Phonetics is a notoriously technical discipline, and most books on the subject will make the beginner's head spin. Ladefoged's "A Course in Phonetics" is not one of those books. I believe this is the best introductory book to phonetics available. It's easy to read and he doesn't overload the reader with lots of technical terms. He uses simple plain English to describe phenomena that takes other writers half a dictionary to describe. The concepts aren't watered down, so this is the perfect introduction to phonetics. If you're doing serious research into phonetics and you've already taken a course in phonetics, this may be a little basic for you, but I can recommend it to everyone else.

Peter Ladefoged's Course in Phonetics covers the so-called science of speech (according to Professor Higgins)in every respect. Unlike many other texts on the field, this is no only meant to describe the phonological system of a language in particular or give you some background on general phonetics. This book really teaches you to become a phonetician! This is not just because of Ladefoged's imcomparable background in phonetics and physics (what a great scientist!), but also because Ladeofged himself acts like a motivator as he passes his own passion to the readers.

The interactive CD is awesome. You will be able to listen to the XX century's leading English phonetician Daniel Jones making his own cardinal vowels. There is also an invaluable x-ray short movie of different articulations, and believe me! It is really illuminating to have the chance to see that rather than beautifully designed drawings. Ladefoged himself will teach you by dictating and pronouncing a great number of words, nonsense, English and other languages.

I really recommend this book to whoever is interested or passionate about this discipline. Even though Prof. Ladefoged is not here with us anymore, this is an excellent - and for many of us the only one - chance to be taught by one of the greatest.

As it has been already noted, Ladefoged's work is excellent in every respect! However, a prospective buyer of this book should bear in mind that, although it's NOT so modestly priced, the printing and binding quality for this edition (4th edition, 2001, Heinle & Heinle) is very low. The covers and the paper are so thin, it's almost imposible to read from the book while holding it with one hand only. It feels almost like a vacuum cleaner manual, which is really a shame. This kind of book obviously deserves a better publisher.

As a linguistics student at UCSB, I must say that this has been one of the better textbooks that I've had. It is incredibly clear in explaining all the concepts and terminology of phonetics. Additionally, as someone who usually hates textbook material, the fact that this is concise, easy to read AND follow makes a better course for the phonetics class that you are taking.

A really excellent book that gives the maximum information in the minimum space and is packed with relevant examples. We have used it extensively with a range of people who have been working in speech synthesis and speech analysis, all have found it, not only useful, but really interesting. A genuine five star book.

This book is pedagogically one of the best texts I've read on any subject. It is an excellent, clear overview of the field, together with many interesting tidbits and insights into our own (English)language. The explanations of how to make unfamiliar sounds is clear enough that I could understand even without a recording. The author supports his viewpoints with acoustic research without getting bogged down. Highly recommended.

I'm taking a phonetics and phonology class this semester, so the book was requried reading. Nevertheless, it proved to be very useful and readable, which was nice. The interactive CD-rom is the best part about, though I imagine that's what makes the book so expensive. For those of you who need the book but don't want to break the bank, the fourth edition is almost exactly the same, though without the CD.

Ladefoged's "A Course in Phonetics" is one of the most well-known and best phonetics books around. It is an excellent volume covering just about every element one must know to have a solid base in phonetics. The breakdown favors native English speakers, (and American ones in the US edition, at least) first providing a clear description of the phonetics of English including prosodic features, consonants, and vowels before moving on to all other sound systems. It is fantastically complete given the size.

One of the strengths of the volume lies in the insightful walkthroughs on producing some of the more difficult sounds, using such hints as how to determine which method of articulation one uses to produce the American English "R." To determine whether one bunch the tongue or curl the tip up, carefully insert a toothpick between one's teeth and judging by the point of contact on the surface or bottom of the tongue, it is easy to figure out. Other techniques, such as sucking in air to feel exposed areas for laterals, all provide extremely helpful ways of both identifying and articulating nearly all sounds. Furthermore, each chapter end includes a bevvy of performance exercises one can use to practice and alternate between sounds, getting down the rhythm of expression.

One of the only real weaknesses to the volume is in the CD portion. While immensely helpful, the CD was not updated between the 5th and 6th edition (even though it has "6th" printed on it). The exercises on the CD therefore do not match those in the book, yet it is really only a different order so still usable. On that point, I really noticed no differences between the 5th and 6th edition other than the exercises, which pisses me off to the classic tune of the publisher's release of a new edition for no legitimate reason. Especially given this book is expensive as sin (I paid around $120 for a new edition).

Those bureaucratic complaints aside, this book is the best there is currently for phonetics from of the most important people to have worked in the field. The illustrations and charts are extremely helpful for driving home points, the aforementioned descriptions are useful, and the glossary in the end is excellent. If you want to study some phonetics, get this.

Book was in stated condition-- however, for my course the CD was of CRUCIAL importance, and it did not come with it, as clearly stated in the title of the product. Very disappointed.