Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Very good, but incomplete., April 25, 2000
This book gives an excellent mix of grammar and examples. It introduces just the right amount of grammar in each unit. The written exercises are too few and too simple. The pronunciation on the tapes is clear. Unfortunately the tapes only cover a part of what is in each unit, and there is too much English. I will definitely make good use of this book, but after that I will be looking for a more extensive book with more exercises and better tapes.
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20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Comparison Of Two Irish Language Courses, May 15, 2002
By A Customer
After researching Irish language courses at my local libraries and on-line, I selected the following two textbooks for my own study of this language. The two books are Teach Yourself Irish by Diarmuid O Se (1993 edition) and Learning Irish by Micheal O. Siadhail (1995 edition). Before reviewing each one, let me first warn those wishing to learn the rudiments of this language that you may find Irish grammar, spelling, and pronunciation hopelessly complex and illogical. (Fortunately, it uses the Roman alphabet.) Whichever book you chose, proceed in small steps. Read just a chapter a day to keep your frustration to a minimum. I recommend beginning with Teach Yourself Irish, which I found the more enjoyable of the two books. Each of its 20 chapters opens with short dialogues which are topical as well as interesting. Next comes a review of grammar clearly explained at a very basic level. All of the chapters conclude with exercises requiring the reader to answer in short phrases or sentences. There are also illustrations scattered throughout the book, thus breaking up the monotony of the text. (Too many other language books for beginners, like Learning Irish, lack pictures to liven up the text.) On the audiotapes the dialogues have been re-created by native speakers who demonstrate, as I understand it, the Munster dialect.
If you want a more thorough grounding in the language, read Learning Irish next. In its 36 chapters it will re-inforce what you have learned in Teach Yourself Irish, explain the grammar in greater depth, and expand your vocabulary. Each chapter begins with a laundry list of words to memorise. It is followed by a presentation of grammar which I found quite dry and boring. (It will put you to sleep if you are not careful!) Next there are some paragraphs of text to translate, drawing on the words in the vocabulary list. Finally, there are sets of exercises to test your skills, including one English-to-Irish exercise. As a do-it-yourself language student, I found myself to lazy to write out the answers for the exercises in both books. Instead, I would translate by sight, while taking quick peeks at the answer key provided at the back of each book. The audiotapes for Learning Irish offer a detailed treatment of what the author considers the more standarised pronunciation in Ireland today.
*A word about dictionaries: The selection of Irish dictionaries currently on the market is disappointing. I ended up buying the Pocket Oxford Irish Dictionary because I thought it was the best one for beginners. I am still waiting for the big publishing houses, namely Cassell's, Collins, or the Oxford University Press, to put out an up-to-date, standard Irish-English/English-Irish dictionary with a phonetic pronunciation guide for each entry. This book would serve as an essential reference for the intermediate or advanced student.
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26 of 28 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Needs more emphasis on grammar, August 13, 1999
By A Customer
If your whole intention of learning a new language is to memorize phrases that will get you by when you are travelling, then this book is adequate. However, if you really want to learn how a language is structured, forget this book. Learning the basics of grammar i.e. verb conjugation, etc. is fundamental and to me, the obvious starting point. It is of little benefit to memorize how to say "Excuse me, but where might I find the secretary?" if I don't even know which word is the verb or which word is the subject. The tapes do not necessarily follow the exercises in the book, so I got lost rather often. One advantage, though, is that the tapes are spoken clearly, and it would not take a person very long to catch on to the pronunciation (once you've memorized how to say "Thank you for your hospitality, Miss O'Donnell.")
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