The Quick and Dirty Guide to Learning Languages Fast [Paperback]

A. G. Hawke (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1581600968 | ISBN-13: 978-1581600964 | Publication Date: September 1, 2000

There are many reasons why you might need to learn a foreign language quickly. The author, a U.S. Army Green Beret, often travels to foreign countries on short notice and needs to be able to communicate with military and government officials, many of who do not speak English. He tried all types of schools, classes, books and tapes, but none delivered what he needed when he needed it. So he developed his own method for learning foreign languages. It proved so effective for him and his fellow Green Berets that he decided to share his method with others who need to learn a language quickly. The Quick and Dirty Guide to Learning Languages Fast is designed for people who have no interest in learning complicated rules of grammar. The author promises that his method will help anyone become functional in any language in seven days and proficient in 30. He's trimmed the fat, freeing your time for what's truly useful. Includes a day-by-day schedule, a handy workbook format and secret tips to help you master key elements quickly and easily.

Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: Paladin Press (September 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1581600968
• ISBN-13: 978-1581600964
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #386,777 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

56 of 58 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Jump-start your learning, February 4, 2005

By 

heartburn - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Quick and Dirty Guide to Learning Languages Fast (Paperback)

I've been studying Spanish on my own nearly every day for almost two years. Of all the how-to-learn-a-language books that I've found in that time, I think that Barry Farber's "How to Learn Any Language" outlines the best long term strategy. But I think that A.G. Hawke may have the best short-term/quick-start method.

In his introduction, the author talks about principles. He says that his method is based on the KISS (keep it simple stupid) principle. I don't think he gives himself enough credit. I can see three much more tangible principles at work here:

1) Prioritize
Learn the most useful and important things first. The book's charts are prefilled with suggested concepts that the author considers most important.

2) Divide and conquer
The material to be learned is broken into manageable chunks. You concentrate on one chunk at a time. Every day you have a goal.

3) Be consistent
The method suggests a daily pattern of review and learning.

While these principles may not be earth shattering news, the book does provide plenty of details. From those details, you are expected to craft a program of your own. This allows you to take charge of your own learning and to progress with the least amount of wasted time and effort (At least in the early stages).

After reading this book, I can't help but wonder how much of a head start it would have given me. Having no guidance at all, I floundered for quite a while before I started making any real progress. If I'd had this book, I might have shaved several months off my initial learning. (Even just a one month head start is worth more than the price of the book.)

Other reviewers point out that this slim book has very few pages of real text. I'll admit that was my initial reaction too. It's barely longer than a magazine feature article if you don't count the charts. But the author wastes no words.

Short as it is, I'm glad this did end up in book form rather than in a magazine. Otherwise, it would be lost in the abyss of back-issues.

34 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good start to language learning, March 3, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: The Quick and Dirty Guide to Learning Languages Fast (Paperback)

This book is largely based on the method used by Sir Richard Francis Burton who was fluent in a couple dozen languages. Burton said "I got a simple grammar and vocabulary, marked out the forms and words which I knew were absolutely necessary, and learnt them by heart. After learning some 300 words... I stumbled through some easy book-work... and underlined every word I wished to recollect." Hawke's book is based on the same idea. You basically fill in tables with commonly used verbs, nouns, adjectives, etc. and learn them. This is a great way to get a good foundation in a new language. You will have an adequate vocabulary to hold many everyday conversations.

However Hawke's ideas should only be used as a stepping stone to real language learning. Hawke tends to assume that grammar in all languages is somewhat similar to English. This is untrue. Grammar and sentence structure vary by language so you will need other tools especially a couple of good grammar books. A sentence like "I stood in front of the bank" could translate into another language as "I bank the in front of stood."

I also disagree with Hawke when he says you will need very few tools to learn a language. Things you really need include grammar books, a phrase book, learning tapes or CDs, software and a movie or two in the new language to learn pronunciation. It useless to know a lot of words if you can't pronounce them
correctly. Premade flashcards, script learning books (urdu, hindi, arabic,etc.), books of verbs and conjugations are also very helpful if you can find them for the language you are learning.

While I don't agree with some of what Hawke has to say I do recommend this book. It is a great method to use to get off to a fast start. However a start is all it will give you. Once you have finished this book you should move onto "How to Learn Any Language" by Barry J. Farber.

33 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Quick and Dirty - but not easy, March 13, 2006

By 

G. BARTO (Los Gatos, CA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Quick and Dirty Guide to Learning Languages Fast (Paperback)

If you want to learn most languages, you've got Michel Thomas, or Pimsleur or Berlitz (the courses, not the travel packs) to turn to. If they're available, that's where you should go.

Unfortunately, they haven't yet made these handy-dandy one-size-fits-all solutions for all languages. If you're learning, say, Azeri, or Tahitian, or Georgian, there's precious little out there. This is where the Quick and Dirty Guide comes in handy. While some of the advice is contradictory and some of the ideas about how fast you can learn are exaggerated, this book provides a great format for streamlining and organizing your learning for the more exotic languages where the resources are scattershot.

As a language teacher, I don't agree with all of Hawke's observations on language. But if you're faced with the practical reality of needing to communicate in a week or two, proper language learning has to take a backseat to picking up what is humanly possible. For this purpose, his advice is worthwhile.

If you're looking for a language-learning silver-bullet, bad news - none exists. But if you're looking for a way to organize your self-study of an unusual language, this book is worth looking at.