8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Interesting, rough for a first-timer., February 15, 2001
This review is from: Teach Yourself Czech: A Complete Course for Beginners(Teach Yourself) (Paperback)
I'm learning with this book, and I do find it helpful and interesting. But I think the chapters introduce too many points at a time, and the exercises at the end of each chapter are not comprehensive enough to practice what was presented. I agree with other reviewers that the book relies a bit too much on intuition on the part of the reader.
The main thing I'm using it for is studying the conversation practices and comparing them with the tapes. I'd have to say that I've actually learned more Czech from a 40 year old copy of "Teach Yourself Czech" I found. Each chapter is only 2-3 pages long (there are lots of chapters) so you can digest things a bit at a time. So don't forget to look around some of your local used book stores!!
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11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A good place to learn conversation, June 20, 2001
There are two primary goals to master when trying to learn Czech. The first is attempting to learn all of the various rules for endings changes (and the numerous irregulars and exceptions). The second is building vocabulary and conversational ability. Short wisely leans toward the second goal and gently introduces the labyrinth of grammatical rules as needed. If the first goal is stressed, it is hard not to feel overwhelmed and give up.
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13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Mistakes not corrected, April 24, 1998
This review is from: Teach Yourself Czech: A Complete Course for Beginners(Teach Yourself) (Paperback)
This text, no matter how good, cannot be recommended. There is a huge mistake that exists with the letter: t', it comes off incorrectly printed as: afl. Thus, any occurance of a word which contains the letter t', reads as: afl.
The Czech word: at' will appear as the nonCzech word: afl and the Czech word: vrat' will appear as the nonCzech word: vrafl.
I wrote to the publisher four years ago asking for my money back. They only offered a corrected copy when it would be printed. I've never received one, and, these incorrect texts are on the shelves in book stores worldwide.
Look at pages 205, 208 and 215 for some incorrect words.
Once again, no matter the good and great things in this book, you will learn an embarrassing Czech that does not exist if you use this book. Buyer beware!
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