Customer Reviews

Rick Steves' German Phrase Book and Dictionary

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I bought a number of German language books for an extended stay in Germany, and by far, this book has proved to be the most useful.

It covers all the most important situations with an extended section on meals and menus, all grouped by category. Any German I have shown the book to has felt that it uses "real" spoken German, and not something that was translated. There is also a lot of humor built into the situations.

Its also been great in helping learn the language.

My German colleagues liked the book so much, they bought some extras for gifts to other English speaking friends.

This is a very useful phrase book, which i have used successfully in germany. it's fresh and fun, unlike other phrase books i have used. i very much agree with other reviewers: this is the best phrase book i have seen, of the 5 or 6 i have used. but, for me, the book is missing what i think could have easily been included: article and gender. the book doesn't list what article (the/a) goes with a noun (masculine, feminine, or neuter; der, die, das/ein, eine, ein). for those with no experience in german this lack may seem like no big deal. but article/gender plays a critical role in constructing sentences--adapting what rick steves provides--because word endings change according to gender.

I bought Rick Steves' German Phrase Book before making a business trip to Leipzig last month. I had three years of high school German almost 40 years ago, but was told that "everyone in Germany speaks fluent English." I feel strongly that Americans should get over their arrogance about speaking English only, so I brushed up on essential phrases hoping that I would have a chance to practice my very rusty German. Did I ever!

I discovered that many, perhaps most, older people in the former DDR do not speak English at all, but were overwhelmingly patient and encouraging of my efforts to communicate in their language. Whenever I knew that I would be dealing with a specific activity, such as buying a train ticket,I got out my phrase book and reviewed the language I would need to complete the transaction. Rick Steves' books are easy and practical to use, and I found that this one prodded my memory of German vocabulary and syntax to the point that I was chatting away quite comfortably by the end of the week!

I was so pleased with my German phrase book that I ordered the Spanish version for my daughter and her beau, who are planning a trip to Puerto Rico during Spring Break!

I really liked the pronunciation guides and the phrases, but i had difficulty finding the specific words that I wanted. For example, I couldn't look at a restaurant menu and then look in this book and figure out what my food options were. Probably works better for a touristy trip, than my permanent move.

I moved to Germany about a month ago and bought this book to keep in my purse. This book has been invaluable in helping me to communicate in German until I get a more firm grasp on the language. Not only has it helped me to speak in German but it's also helped me to start conversations on trains and in stores...I've had several people chuckle when they see me referring to my "German for Beginners" book (as they've called it). They appreciate me making the effort to speak in their language and are more willing to help because of it. I highly recommend this for anyone traveling to Germany for any length of time!

Very easy to find common, useful phrases. The book is light weight, small enough to carry, yet the print is large enough to read easily.

I recently took a trip to Europe and needed 3 language books. I had Lonely Planet books for French and Italian then bought this book for German. I was really disappointed in this book after having used the Lonely Planet books prior. The menu translator, in particular, is lacking. I could hardly find anything from the menu in this book...and I went to Oktoberfest. I'm sure the food served was traditional German food so why wasn't it in the book? Next time, I'll stick with Lonely Planet.

this little book will be a great help to me in traveling in Germany--although I do have a rather spare knowledge of the language, the idiom often escapes me--hence this will be a genuine positive, too, thanks to its small size.

The book was well organized and good hints and tips. But I barely used it in Frankfurt and the areas I visited...lots of English spoken there.

Excellent phrase book for travel to Germany. Many additional aids in the book. Convenient size also.