Customer Reviews

German Made Simple: Learn to speak and understand German quickly and easily

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

When I was in graduate school I had to pass a reading competence test in German. Since then, I have not done much studying in this area. However, recently I decided I wanted to review and practice what I learned and I have been searching for good resources.

After looking at many books and bringing along someone who is fluent in German, I settled on this as one of my primary resources. This book is well-organized, comprehensive and to the point. It also has very good exercises, stories and tips for learning the language. You can buy this book with confidence.

The pace of this book is quick and if you haven't studied German before, you may want to get supplementary resources. However, this text provides an excellent roadmap and you can use other books, tapes and software to support its basic approach.

I've been learning German this semester and it has been sooo hard. This book is far more organized than my college textbooks and so much cheaper. I've had so much anxiety watching my peers fly through the course effortlessly. From the very first chapter of German Made Simple, my German comprehension sky rocketed. I am having a much easier time understanding words and how they're strung together to make sentences.
Definitely add this book to your study material. I bought the Living Language CDs and it was a nightmare. Buy this instead.

I bought this four months ago and loved it the moment I opened it with the cute font and the way each chapter takes an interaction and gives the meaning on the right side column, vocabulary at the end and then grammar discussions and extensive exercises.
It also smoothly progresses using a single theme of an American businessman learning German and interacting with his teacher and traveling to Germany and so on with progressive increase in grammatical structures.
Can't pass a day without even reading something from this book. Even take it with me if I travel for even a few days. Have to open this at least once a day!

Only con was the inadequate index of German terms at the end of the book. There is no single place to look up the German words unless you knew which chapter it occurred in first so if you came across a word in some dialog or exercise in chapter 33 and if it is not listed in the vocabulary right there you are on your own if it is missing from the index at the end of the book also; have to search previous chapters tediously. This is the only problem I faced. But overcome by the good things of this book if you kept a dictionary such the Collins.

I have been using the text book German Made Simple for a few years with teaching German to mature students. I have found the book to be an excellent tool because it is an easy text to study and it is very helpful for English speaking students to learn grammar. As any teacher of the German language would know, Germa grammar is a very difficult part of the German language. I have found over many years of teaching that I have to teach students English grammar before I can start teaching German grammar. The text book is well laid out in practical exercises as well as interesting text to make students want to learn. I can thoroughly recommend this text book to tutors of German.

I bought "German Made Simple" after purchasing several "learn German yourself" books. I have been trying to learn this language for the past few months. I bought audio CDs, beginner phrase books and even scoured the Internet for a good website. Of course, all of these were to no avail in teaching me German. Then, I discovered "German Made Simple". Best purchase of my life.
Many of the other products I bought had me memorizing dozens upon dozens of phrases that didn't help me much beyond introducing myself. I am the sort of language learner where I want to know how to construct my own sentences. I love to learn about grammar. If I have a firm grasp of the basics, I can skyrocket in my ability to learn more difficult stuff.
Not only did this book teach grammar, but it taught so much vocabulary in a way that is workable and not too overwhelming. I think in the first ten sections alone, your vocabulary ranges to around 300 or so words. I also thoroughly enjoyed the dialogue at the beginning of each section that used previous and new grammar and vocabulary in context.
The only downside of this book is the information overload concerning grammar in the first part of the book. My recommendation is to take it slow through the first ten chapters, especially where it explains noun declension. I was very confused at that part. I purchased "Handbuch zur Deutschen Gramatik (second edition)" at a discount book store and that helped tremendously with that. There are dozens of websites that explain that as well. I also used the website "Quizlet" and made my own flashcards of German vocabulary in each chapter. That was a lifesaver.
So, if you are in the same boat as me, this purchase would probably be the best decision of your life. It was mine. Not only did I learn how to speak and understand German (of what I know), but I know how to write and read in the language as well. The activities are great as is the whole book. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who is learning or has learned German.

We are learning German for the summer. The title is completely accurate. The way the book is laid out and the explanations really make this an easy way to learn. My kids and I are having no problems being able to read and speak some German. We are just beginning but so far we are having a ton of fun!
The book starts with describing related German and English words. Some examples are Mann-man, Haus-house, Onkel-uncle, kalt-cold. The book then moves into German letters and sounds in words and sentences. The next chapters involve Mr. Clark being taught German by Mr.Muller and so we follow along and are taught as well. The book includes the answer key and glossary for vocabulary.
The book also contains exercises and a review at the end of the chapters.
I chose German and my kids are interested in learning Italian so I am buying the Italian Made Simple book. We are learning and we are having fun. The best part is that my kids are excited to continue and learn other languages and we will be using another Made Simple book!

Of all of the books on learning German this is probably the best one for me. It teaches you words and then puts them into sentences and later German conversations so it reinforces the learning process. Sometimes the problem is that some of the words in the sentences are used earlier and on prior pages so you have to go into the glossary at the back of the book to look them up. Nevertheless, this is a good learning tool for a difficult language. I use Rosetta Stone as well as a German/English dictionary and I think I like this book the best of all of them. It's difficult to stay with any of the study materials unless you are dedicated because it can be a chore and requires work.

this book is SO helpful in my venture to further my German! The explanations are wonderful & the exercises are very helpful as well!

I took several years of German in school years ago. Wishing to reclaim the ability to speak German, I began studying German from various books ('Dummies' was OK), and did make some progress. I found 'German Made Simple' in a book store, and it looked interesting. Let me tell you - this book is a winner! I have made massive progress, and even understand 'prepositions and the cases that govern them' now. Ja wunderbar!

German Made Simple was an incredibly well written and thought out guide to German. The entire course built upon itself and routinely brushed the reader up on concepts learned in earlier chapters. My only complaint is that it did not come with an audio companion, so it is quite easy to develop an American accent (or whichever accent corresponds with your mother tongue). That aside, the constant repetition of vocabulary and key stylistic markers made for an enjoyable and easy approach to learning a very tough Romance Language.