18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great, Hilarious Russian Slang Book, November 1, 2009
This review is from: Dirty Russian: Everyday Slang from "What's Up?" to "F*%# Off!" (Dirty Everyday Slang) (Paperback)
They weren't kidding about dirty! Just reading the English on some of the phrases in this book were making me laugh out loud. There's a lot of things in here you might not use everyday, but the fact that it has been translated is appreciated. As another reviewer said not everything is dirty and this is true. I would consider myself at the intermediate Russian level so I really like how they arranged stuff in sections in English. The only thing better would be to list phrases/words alphabetically in English and I think an index in future editions would be a nice touch. They also provide some background on various topics and those are enjoyable to read. I have the Dictionary of Russian Slang and Colloquial Expressions, 3rd Ed. and although more complete it's hard to find a phase/word you want to say because it's alphabetized in Russian. If you don't know the words in Russian already it's hard to find the right phrase. All in all I think it's a good book and am glad I gave it a try. So far I have found one spelling error (i.e. they used "s" in the Russian part instead of "'c") and I tried a few of the more mild phrases out on my native Russian tutor and she agreed with the translation.
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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Hilarious and spot on!, June 1, 2010
This review is from: Dirty Russian: Everyday Slang from "What's Up?" to "F*%# Off!" (Dirty Everyday Slang) (Paperback)
I'm an American expat living in Moscow. I bought this book at a local bookstore here and am so glad I did! It is not only hilarious, but both the language and the short cultural notes are SPOT ON! As for the reviewer who cautioned against using the slang with "educated Russians", well duh! It's all about context, as the authors explain in their introduction. There is a time and a place and obviously you need to exercise some judgment on that in order not to offend. Having said that, however, my Russian friends and I have had a great time with this book. What I especially appreciate is that the translations are not literal and slavish--instead the authors have provided real equivalents for words that I used to think were just untranslatable. A glossary would have been helpful, and the pronunciation line is a bit awkward at times, but the phrases given and their translations are excellent. Like I said, I live in Moscow and I have HEARD people talking just like this book! Sure, it's usually when they're drunk and sloppy, but how often do you a find a phrase book that captures that aspect of language and culture? And it exists, believe me. But I agree that you shouldn't head off to a business meeting with this book in your pocket. If you do, it and you sound like an idiot, then it's your own damn fault.
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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Don't buy if you want to learn Russian Slang, July 27, 2010
This review is from: Dirty Russian: Everyday Slang from "What's Up?" to "F*%# Off!" (Dirty Everyday Slang) (Paperback)
My first language is Russian and I bought this book to learn some English slang.
The writers are wife and husband, seems her first language is English , because English sentences sound about right. The husband's first language is Russian and seems he doesn't know English very well and Russian either.
All what you will find in this book is a slang of neighborhood, where husband was raised and grew up, probably. And seems it's in the middle of nowhere.....
It's not a slang you can use every day all around Russia or CIS, nobody will understand you at all. Russian sentences in this book have no glue...
Translations are messed up, seems he had bad time to explain his wife what does he mean, because if you know both languages you can see that translations have different meaning ...like "I want a drink" and they translate into Russian like "I'm thirsty, let's get drunk!"
Guys,really?
It can be fun to read first 3-5 pages, than they repeat themselves.
I can imagine if someone use this book to impress his Russian girlfriend or girl in the bar. Be ready to see "?????" faces.
This book is a shame and I'm sorry it went on the market!
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