Italian for Dummies (With Audio CD) [Paperback]

Francesca Romana Onofri (Author), Karen Antje Möller (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0764551965 | ISBN-13: 978-0764551963 | Publication Date: May 15, 2000 | Edition: 1st

As society becomes more international in nature, knowing a few words in other languages has become more useful. Perhaps you travel frequently abroad, or your business requires you to travel overseas. Perhaps you have friends and neighbors who speak other languages, or you want to find out more about your heritage by learning a little bit of the language your ancestors spoke.

Whatever your reason for wanting to learn some Italian, Italian For Dummies is the right book for you. Written in partnership with Berlitz – experts in helping people learn foreign languages – this book gives you the skills you need for basic communication in Italian, and it will get you well on your way to becoming fluent. Just think what you're family and friends will think when you order off the menu at your favorite Italian restaurant!

Italian For Dummies covers not only ordering at an Italian restaurant, but also these topics:

• Basic spelling, grammar, and numbers
• Meeting and greeting, and making small talk
• Shopping, shopping, and even more shopping
• Going out on the town
• Business situations
• Traveling, checking into a hotel, and planning a trip
• Handling emergencies
• Top Ten lists with advice on how to pick up Italian quickly, things you should never say in Italian, and favorite Italian expressions

The best thing about this book is that you can learn at your own pace; for example, if you're planning a trip to Italy next year, sit down once or twice a week with this book and go through the chapters that you'll think you need for your trip. That's a lot easier than dragging yourself to a class twice a week – not to mention a lot more fun, too!

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Berlitz has been the global leader in language instruction for more than 120 years. The famous Berlitz approach is based on the premise that the best way to learn a second language is the same way people learn their first-through conversation.

With the growth of global commerce, business travel, tourism, and the Web, a working knowledge of foreign languages is more vital than ever.

From the Back Cover

Dialogues from the book on audio CD

Your survival guide for everyday words and expressions

The renowned Berlitz(r) approach with a fun and friendly twist This unintimidating guide from the experts at Berlitz(r) will help you start speaking Italian beginning today, whether you're a student, a traveler, or you just want to pick up language basics. all this on the audio CD Pick up Italian the Berlitz way - through actual conversations Listen to dialogues from the book Hear how native speakers say the words Practice your own pronunciation

Discover how to: Have everyday conversations in Italian Make sense of Italian grammar Improve your pronunciation Get a handle on verb conjugations Use idioms and popular expressions Get around in Italy

Get smart! www.dummies.com Register to win cool prize Browse exclusive articles and excerpts Get a free Dummies Daily(TM) e-mail newsletter Chat with authors and preview other books Talk to us, ask questions, get answers

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 372 pages
• Publisher: For Dummies; 1st edition (May 15, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764551965
• ISBN-13: 978-0764551963
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 7.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (39 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #30,158 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #27 in Books > Education & Reference > Foreign Languages > Italian
  • #27 in Books > Education & Reference > Foreign Languages > Instruction > Italian

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

210 of 212 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Italian for Students of Italian, February 12, 2001

By 

Wallace V. French III (Boston MA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Italian for Dummies (With Audio CD) (Paperback)

Italian For Dummies is for the serious student who wishes to learn the language. I didn't feel as if this book would help the traveler who wishes to learn only a few "get by" lines. I am going through Italian language lessons right now and I have purchased many many Italian books and I still keep referring back to this Italian For Dummies. It is very useful and very easy to use. Which is what the "For Dummies" series is all about. If you want a start-up book which will help you learn the language this is the one. If you are looking for a traveler's guide to Italian I would suggest another book. Berlitz makes a nice Italian phrase book if you just need to learn a little Italian.

170 of 172 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good for limited long-term study, April 9, 2002

By 

Michael Mathis (Yokohama, Japan) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Italian for Dummies (With Audio CD) (Paperback)

This is way to deep for those who wish to learn a little Italian for that one-week vacation, but for those of you who have an extended opportunities for limited interaction, this is the book for you.

Just like other books in the series, Dummies successfully "dumbs down" Italian as much as possible, which is pretty hard to do with an entire language. Although it is billed as being a Berlitz-written text, the focus is primarily on grammar and pronunciation. There are some entertaining dialogs, too.

It's easy to follow...much easier than comparable (an much more expensive) text and CD combinations.

However, if you are just going on vacation, I recommend Fydor's Italian Phrasebook. On the other hand, if you are really serious about beginning Italian, or any other language, I strongly recommend the Triple Play Plus series software. Together with the "Dummies" series, you should be functional in no time.

105 of 109 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Italian for Travelers, November 21, 2000

By 

Sharon from Alameda (Alameda, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Italian for Dummies (With Audio CD) (Paperback)

I really like the set up of this book. I have been listening to Italian audio tapes and that has helped with my Italian accent but I did not know how the words were spelled. In some cases, I was mispronouncing the words because I did not hear them correctly. Also, the tapes did not deal with all of the things that I will have to know when I travel to Italy next spring.

This book addresses the topics that I think I should know - how to check into a hotel, order food, ask for directions, make a phone call, go to the bank, go shopping, use a credit card, deal with an emergency, talk to a doctor, etc.

The CD is a great bonus because you can listen to the conversations along with the book. Overall, I did not feel overwhelmed because I can look at a section at a time before my trip. Learning a foreign language without attending a formal class is very difficult so I will be using this book to supplement my audio tapes.