Learn Russian the Fast and Fun Way [Paperback]

Thomas Beyer (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0764142143 | ISBN-13: 978-0764142147 | Publication Date: September 1, 2009 | Edition: 2.0

Barron's popular Fast and Fun Way foreign language learning programs are designed primarily for travelers to foreign countries but are also suitable for instruction in classrooms and language labs. Learn Russian the Fast and Fun Way is filled with cheerful illustrations, word lists, pull-out vocabulary flash cards, and language-learning exercises that take the form of games and puzzles. Emphasis is on the practical Russian that travelers will need when getting around in Moscow, St. Petersburg, or outlying villages. The book teaches appropriate words and phrases for greetings and introductions, finding one's way in cities, dining, shopping, getting hotel accommodations, telephoning, seeking medical help, reading road signs, and more.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

(back cover)
Available in: ARABIC • CHINESE • FRENCH • GERMAN •

ITALIAN • JAPANESE • RUSSIAN • SPANISH • ENGLISH FOR SPANISH SPEAKERS • ENGLISH FOR RUSSIAN SPEAKERS

It's easy...It's practical...It's fun!

In just minutes a day, you'll pick up the language you need for most everyday situations--from meeting and greeting people to asking directions and handling simple business transactions. You'll learn the basic vocabulary for: introductions • finding your way • entertainment • dining • shopping • banking • using the telephone and mail services • medical help and emergencies



Plus: days of the week • months • seasons • weather • time • numbers •

basic grammar • handy pronunciation guide

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Barron's Educational Series; 2.0 edition (September 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764142143
• ISBN-13: 978-0764142147
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 7.8 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #291,300 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #50 in Books > Education & Reference > Dictionaries & Thesauruses > Foreign Language > Russian

More About the Author

Thomas R. Beyer Jr was born in 1947 in Brooklyn, New York where he attended Xaverian HS. he is a graduate of Georgetown University (1969) and the University of Kansas (1974). For the past 35 years he has been a Professor of Russian at Middlebury College in Vermont. He is the author of over a dozen books to learn Russian, several translations of the Russian writer Andrei Bely. Considered an expert on Russian writers in emigration in Germany and the United States, Professor Beyer has lectured extensively in Russia, Germany and the United States. For the past few years he has offered seminars on the works of Dan Brown designed to permit students and readers separate fact from fiction.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Less than stellar., September 23, 2004

By 

Bighairydoofus "-" (Brooklyn Park, MN United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Learn Russian the Fast and Fun Way (Fast & Fun Way S.) (Paperback)

The graphics used in the book are the same as the ones used in the awful "Russian in ten minutes a day" by Kristine Kershul. This is somewhat better, but not by much. Many of the words in the book don't have the stress, or accent displayed, so for those words it's sort of useless. You get the stress for the "spotlight" words which are phonetically transliterated (the stressed syllables are in capitals).

I purchased the book and cassette version used for cheap. In that context - it was worthwhile, but for not much more, the Oxford Press "Take off in Russian" by Nick Ukia was superior. If you're really serious about learning Russian, there is no substitute for the Penguin Russian course. It really is the benchmark by which all beginners texts are judged.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not what it could be, July 20, 2004

By 

Charles Stromme "Chuck In Oregon" (Cottage Grove, OR, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Learn Russian the Fast and Fun Way (Fast & Fun Way S.) (Paperback)

My Russian tutor (I am in Tbilisi, Georgia) and I chose this book, sight unseen, for my first Russian course. I am only a few pages from finishing it. The first half fully lives up to its promise. The dialogs are decent, the lessons are a little different and interesting, there are amusing illustrations and the vocabulary is useful. So far, so good.

However, the book takes a real nosedive after the first half, or maybe 60%. It's almost as if the author had quit and left the rest of the work to someone else, or maybe just got tired of working on something that most people won't finish. The author uses a lot of words from that point on that suggest he is an American teaching what he learned from some other Americans. Some of the vocabulary he uses in the second half, in what should be routine dialogs, are obscure synonyms or colloquialisms not at all commonly used by Russians. My tutor too often says "Nobody says it that way."

The dialogs themselves become quirky, at best, after the first half. There are typos and brainos that simply should not have been left in after a decent proofreading. The use of some words or phrases in some of the dialogs, without prior introduction or further explanation (other than in the direct translation, which is often something other than what was written in Russian) sometimes leaves you wondering "What the heck does THAT mean?"

This book isn't bad, and I will finish it in a few days, it just falls short of its promise. If you buy it without tapes, as I did, you should have a tutor or friend who can at least coach you on pronunciation and clear up some of the confusion, especially in the second half.

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Too advanced for beginners, April 5, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Learn Russian the Fast and Fun Way with Cassettes (Fast & Fun Way S.) (Audio Cassette)

The pronouncation exercises in the audio cassettes move too fast for the beginning student of Russian. There is not enough time given for the student to pronounce the words and phrases after the speaker. Also, the authors evidently assume that by listening, one will learn. This may be true but, since the dialogue moved so quickly, even with the pauses provided, I found the entire study to be extremely frustrating and finally substituted it with another more satisfying method. I would not recommend this book and cassettes to beginners.