Master the Basics Spanish [Paperback]

Christopher Kendris Ph.D. (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0812090039 | ISBN-13: 978-0812090031 | Publication Date: June 6, 1995 | Edition: 2

Both books make fine supplements to high school or college texts. The new Spanish Grammar--a smaller edition of Master the Basics--doesn't include its "Test Yourself" and "Diagnostic Analysis" sections.

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English, Spanish

From the Inside Flap

(back cover)
For students of Spanish 1, 2, and 3 in high school and college, and for self-instruction

A comprehensive summary of . . .
Spanish Grammar • Pronunciation • Parts of Speech • Idioms • Vocabulary • Synonyms and Antonyms • Phrases for Telling Time, Days, and Months

Plus . . .

Practice exercises with answers in reading comprehension and writing proficiency

A diagnostic test with answers to open each chapter

A chapter-closing test to help you measure your learning progress

New in this edition . . .

The revised system of Spanish alphabetizing

Frequently used words and phrases in technical and computer communication

More exercises, puzzles, and word games than ever --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 302 pages
• Publisher: Barron's Educational Series; 2 edition (June 6, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812090039
• ISBN-13: 978-0812090031
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,513,801 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Dr. Christopher Kendris, an accomplished linguist, has worked as an interpreter and translator for the U.S. State Department at the American Embassy in Paris. He holds a Ph.D. from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, and diplomas with Mention très Honorable at the Université de Paris (en Sorbonne), Faculté des Lettres École Supérieure de Préparation et de Perfectionnement des Professeurs de Français à l'Étranger, and at the Institut de Phonétique, Paris. He is former Chairman of the Department of Foreign Languages and Supervisor of 16 foreign language teachers at Farmingdale High School, Farmingdale, NY, and has taught foreign language courses at various colleges and universities.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars You'd better know your grammar, December 8, 2001

By 

"jackiesdog" (Sonora, Mexico) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Master the Basics Spanish (Paperback)

This book is heavy on self-testing, including reading comprehension and writing, a nice feature that many Spanish books don't have. It also has special sections on idioms, synonyms and antonyms, and definitions of basic grammatical terms. That's the good part. To make sense of the grammar section, the student had better have an excellent handle on grammar and grammatical terms. This is an excerpt from the "Position of Double Object Pronouns: A Summary" section. "With a verb in a simple tense or in a compound tense in the interrogative: The indirect object pronoun remains in front of the direct object and both remain in front of the verb form. The subject (whether a noun or a pronoun) is placed after the verb form." Then, ONE example is given. If the learner can handle this type of instruction, the book is great. For people who are a little light on grammar, Dorothy D Richmond is a better choice.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Great reference material; not a self-teaching book!, December 13, 2008

By 

William E. Santagata "Bill S." (Rhode Island, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Master the Basics: Spanish (Paperback)

The title "Master the Basics of Spanish" gave me the impression that I could order this book with little to no experience in Spanish, crack it open and start to learn the language. This is not the case. This is merely a reference material that explains all the concepts of Spanish grammar organized by sections (nouns, verbs, adjectives, etc.) and not in an order that is conducive to learning (you need to learn a little bit about nouns and verbs at the same time, so you can start forming sentences!) Also, its explanations are given under the assumption that the reader is knowledgeable of grammatical concepts (what a direct object is, an indirect object, etc.) and has a solid Spanish vocabulary (the exercises in the book are scant, but often ask you to translate English sentences into Spanish -- not only do you need to know the grammatical concepts taught in the book, but you also need to know the vocabulary needed to translate the sentences, something not really covered).

That being said, this is an excellent reference material. Need to know the irregular preterite stem of "poder"? Just go to the well-organized table of contents to find the page where it's listed. Forgot the imperfect subjunctive endings? They're all listed in an easy-to-find, easy-to-read format. So although it is a perfect reference guide, its title is completely misleading. As a "basic" text it completely fails. As a reference text I give it 5 stars, as a beginner's text I give it 1 star, hence my 3-star rating.

For the beginner Spanish student, I highly recommend the book Spanish Now! Level 1 (and later Spanish Now! Level 2). I also recommend the book 6,000+ Essential Spanish Words to help build your vocabulary. For a great Spanish dictionary, look no further than www.wordreference.com, a free online dictionary that covers a multitude of languages. It has not only a Spanish-English/English-Spanish Dictionary (that gives you precise meanings of words -- all the nuances that are important for picking the right translation) but a monolingual Spanish dictionary as well (to get definitions of Spanish words in Spanish).

3 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great resource - one I will continue to use!, June 11, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (ohio) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Master the Basics Spanish (Paperback)

The contents are structured well, and offer useful tips on remembering Spanish. The tests at the end as well as the synonyms/antonyms vocabulary list are a terrific bonus. I would recommend this book for any beginner or someone hoping to refresh their Spanish.