Customer Reviews

Pidgin: The Languages Of Oceania (Lonely Planet Phrasebooks)

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This book covers the three Pidgin languages of Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu - three of the most diverse, fascinating and unspoilt countries in the South Pacific. While English is spoken by many people in all the three, the Pidgins described here are the lingua franca in each, and I found that locals were very happy to hear me speak them. Each of the three languages is introduced by a good description of its grammar (don't worry, easy and similar in all three) and pronunciation, followed by useful phrases arranged thematically.

And here comes my only complaint - I would have preferred more phrases, and perhaps short dictionary listings for all the three languages. Space for that could have been found by omitting what seems a waste here to me - descriptions of two obscure pidgin languages of Australia, which are also included in LP's Australian Phrasebook (where they logicaly belong) anyway.

Still, within the confines of its limited space, this little book is excellent.
If you are lucky enough to travel to these charming archipelagos, don't leave home without it!

The book is NOT out of print. You can buy it any time on Lonely Planet for less than ten dollars. Those prices, higher than one hundred dollars for a used book, are the most ridiculous. Sorry to spoil the business but we are in a free country and I have the right to provide people with this information.