Athenaze: An Introduction to Ancient Greek: Book I (Paperback)

by Maurice Balme (Author), Gilbert Lawall (Author), Catherine Balme (Illustrator)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"My students and I have both enjoyed using this text. The readings are fun, and the integration of reading, grammar, and cultural materials is remarkable, far above anything in any other elementary Greek or Latin text."--George Houston, University of North Carolina

"Excellent. Makes the ancient Greek language 'come alive' to the modern student."--Liane Houghtalin, Randolph-Macon College

"An enjoyable text to teach from. The presentation of grammar is logical. Students really can cope with a Greek text after this."--Robert W. Sawyer, Hiram College

"The only Greek text I know that I can imagine being used successfully in high schools as well as in colleges....The Classics community owes Maurice Balme, Gilbert Lawall, and the Oxford University Press a large debt of gratitude for producing this very useful text."--The Classical Outlook

"This extensively revised and expanded version includes many of the features of the original, but is much more stylishly produced and a great deal easier to read....Well worth looking into."--JACT Review

"I am using these texts [Athenaze and the OLC] and the students love them. They like the idea of being able to read immediately....I will continue to use these publications in my courses."--Sr. M. Regina Pacis, OSF, Franciscan University of Steubenville

"Excellent. The students enjoyed using it and became quite competent readers. I think it will make the transition to actual texts much easier."--Eva Stehle, University of Maryland

"I have taught Classical Greek from many other grammars in many different places, but Balme and Lowell's Athenaze is far and away the best of them all."--Howard Jackson, Pomona College

"We were especially attracted to the continuously developing story sequence, which teaches culture and history together with grammar and syntax. Our course is intensive, so we will do 26 chapters in 15 weeks."--Victor Udwin, University of Tulsa

"Excellent, comprehensive and well-supported work."--Bruce R. Marino, Valley Forege Christian College

Product Description
Combining the best features of traditional and modern methods, Athenaze: An Introduction to Ancient Greek provides a unique course of instruction that allows students to read connected Greek narrative right from the beginning and guides them to the point where they can begin reading complete classical texts. Ingeniously constructed to hold students' interest, the course begins with a fictional narrative about an Attic farmer's family placed in precise historical context (432 B.C.) that students can understand prior to formal grammatical explanation. The narrative is interwoven with tales from mythology and the Persian Wars, and gradually gives way to extracts from Herodotus, Plato, and Thucydides. In the last two chapters the head of the peasant family reappears in his original incarnation as Dicaeopolis in scenes from Aristophanes' Acharnians. Each chapter includes a full explanation of new vocabulary and grammar, and an essay on relevant aspects of ancient Greek culture and history. Exercises in translation from English to Greek are integrated throughout, including particularly useful sets on word-building, that help students to recognize new words when they encounter them, and in word study, which show the relationship between Greek words and their English derivatives, making the importance of Greek language to Western culture clear to the student.

With its unique combination of features and lucid presentation of material, Athenaze: An Introduction to Ancient Greek helps students learn to read Greek fluently, with an intelligent understanding based on a firm grasp of its cultural and historical context, while at the same time demanding high standards of linguistic precision.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 270 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; Revised edition (February 22, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0195056213
• ISBN-13: 978-0195056211
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (55 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,013,115 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

60 of 62 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Marvellous introduction to Attic Greek, June 19, 2000

By	Paul V Caetano (United Kingdom) - See all my reviews

I found this book an excellent introduction to Attic Greek. People who want to become professors in the Classics might prefer other texts, but Athenaze is an admirable book for those who simply want to acquire some reading knowledge of ancient Greek. Athenaze succeeded well at that important task of making language learning interesting. I found that the reading selection was substantially more interesting than other introductory language books which I have used (albeit in other languages). Since I used this book for self study and not as part of a professor taught course, I felt that the engaging nature of the book was especially important. The grammatical explanations were lucid and well designed to build upon each other as the lessons progress. While these explanations might not give the full story, a beginner would get lost and discouraged if too much grammar is thrown his way.

94 of 104 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Greek tutor does not recommend..., January 4, 2005

By	Katie Konrath "Fresh Thinker" (Minnesota) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Athenaze: An Introduction to Ancient Greek Book I (Paperback)

I was a Greek tutor for a student using this book, although I learned myself 3 years ago from a different textbook. I don't recommend this one because it has a very confusing format. The book jumps around too much. It introduces difficult concepts (like middle voice) very quickly to beginners while they are still struggling with the basic noun and verb endings. The Greek paragraphs don't come with translations, and the trivia about culture and mythology buries the important information. It's very easy to overlook important concepts hidden in the middle of a busy page. Also, the book never presents helpful charts for quick-reference... instead students have to rift through the pages every time they need an ending. I ended up copying tons of material from my old Greek textbook for my tutoree because she couldn't find what she needed in the Athenaze book. My student isn't alone in having trouble with the book; her professor has decided to switch texts for next semester because Athenaze doesn't give students what they need to be proficient. This book appears to be a fun way to learn ancient Greek, but it's too disorganized for a serious student who actually wants to learn the language.

I recommend L.A. Wilding's "Greek for Beginners" (edited by C.W. Shelmerdine) instead because of its clear format that presents information up front, its Greek-to-English and English-to-Greek sentences, the interesting end-of-chapter longer readings, and (especially) the amazing charts at the end of the book that I am STILL using 3 years later because they are so quick and easy to reference.

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent and clearly organized introduction to Attic Greek, December 13, 2004

By	A. Crouch (Swarthmore, PA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Athenaze: An Introduction to Ancient Greek Book I (Paperback)

I learned Greek at university using the JACT "Reading Greek" text. When it came time to teach my elementary school-age son, it was clear that the JACT text was inadequate--starting with its forbidding small type and its unclear (or absent) explanations of many key concepts. Fortunately Athenaze has come along since I went to college! It is superior in every way. The English text is readable and clear (at least as clear as one can be explaining the arcana of Greek syntax). I can even say that, thanks to Athenaze, I myself finally understand, more or less, the rules for accents that somehow eluded me in four years of Greek at the university level. The Greek texts are well written, not overly pedantic, and do a good job of introducing vocabulary and forms gradually and thoroughly. The accompanying workbook is indispensable for giving beginners more chance to practice, and (another improvement over JACT as I remember it) balance Greek-to-English and English-to-Greek exercises.

No language textbook is a substitute for a teacher, but Athenaze is an outstanding resource.