Demystifying Spanish Grammar: Advanced Spanish Grammar, Clarifying the Written Accents, Ser/Estar (Verbs), Para/Por (Prepositions), Imperfect/Preterite (Past Tenses), & the Spanish Subjunctive [Paperback]

Brandon Simpson (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

Demystifying is right! -- Luis Rojas, www.rojasspanish.com

"...the overall "feel" of the book is a "user-friendly" one and this book is not difficult to understand." --Matthew G. Sherwin, Amazon Top Reviewer

Review

I can't see this book not being useful for anyone whose native language is not Spanish. Even if you are familiar with the topics covered, chances are you will see things that cause you to say, "Yeah cool, I've never really thought of it quite like that--very helpful."

"This book sets out with a very clear purpose and delivers on its promise..."

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 112 pages
• Publisher: Small Town Press; 1st edition (March 17, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0981646603
• ISBN-13: 978-0981646602
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #360,096 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "I can see clearly now, the rain is gone"----GREAT BOOK, BRANDON SIMPSON !!!, June 5, 2008

By	Matthew G. Sherwin (last seen screaming at Amazon customer service) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)

This review is from: Demystifying Spanish Grammar: Advanced Spanish Grammar, Clarifying the Written Accents, Ser/Estar (Verbs), Para/Por (Prepositions), Imperfect/Preterite (Past Tenses), & the Spanish Subjunctive (Paperback)

Demystifying Spanish Grammar is quite a good book for Spanish students everywhere. At first I wondered if the book would be able to cover much ground as it is a shorter book than I expected it to be. Wow, was I ever wrong! This Spanish grammar book covers lots of territory and works wonders for helping students of Spanish like me understand basic yet critical concepts about nouns, verbs, prepositions and much more including those pesky Spanish accents. Great!

Here is a list of what the book covers very well:

1) Written accents in Spanish
2) Understanding Ser and Estar
3) Understanding Para and Por (worth the price of admission alone!)
4) Understanding the Imperfect and the Preterit (the simple past tense)
5) Two lengthy sections on understanding the Spanish Subjunctive (excellent)

There are answers to the exercises; a list of other recommended books (wow); an English-Spanish Glossary; extra information on Spanish nouns and even definitions of grammatical terms.

Author Brandon Simpson has an excellent writing style that spells things out remarkably clearly and the overall "feel" of the book is a "user-friendly" one and this book is not difficult to understand. You also still have the ability to re-read parts of the book that are particularly troublesome for you if, for example, you're having trouble differentiating between para and por--this certainly does throw many, many students of Spanish grammar--even the best of students can stumble and fall on this topic.

Overall, I highly recommend this book for people who wish to pursue the formal study of the Spanish language at the entry and intermediate levels. It's also a good book for people who wish to use it to review or refresh their understanding of certain concepts even when they are at the more advanced levels of study. In addition, this book is designed in such a way that you can use it for independent study or you can refer to it when a topic in class just isn't clearly understandable to you. Brandon Simpson has made a huge contribution to the study of the Spanish language; and we are better off for it.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good For What it Is, June 2, 2008

By	Michael A. Newman (New Hyde Park, NY) - See all my reviews (VINE VOICE)

This review is from: Demystifying Spanish Grammar: Advanced Spanish Grammar, Clarifying the Written Accents, Ser/Estar (Verbs), Para/Por (Prepositions), Imperfect/Preterite (Past Tenses), & the Spanish Subjunctive (Paperback)

Don't expect to learn a lot of Spanish or to spend hours reading this book. I went through the entire thing in a couple of hours. The book only goes into six grammatical issues facing foreign learners. For me I picked up a few small tips (using "ser" to indicate event location and a slightly better understanding of when to use the accent mark) but about 95% of the book was covered in my College advance grammer course. The book is good for a quick study before a test in one of the grammar areas and I suspect it is more useful for high school student (who don't have a good understanding of even English grammar) than for College students.

The book does give some acronyms to remember for when to use "ser" vs. "estar" and is good for people that need acronyms to jar their memory.

All in all the material, though sparse is well explained and will be useful for students that have difficulty with the concepts covered.

10 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Several lessons on a few key points of Spanish Grammar from a talented tutor, May 19, 2008

By	Craig Matteson (Ann Arbor, MI) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)

This review is from: Demystifying Spanish Grammar: Advanced Spanish Grammar, Clarifying the Written Accents, Ser/Estar (Verbs), Para/Por (Prepositions), Imperfect/Preterite (Past Tenses), & the Spanish Subjunctive (Paperback)

Look, I don't know much about Spanish. Most of what I know or can dope out I picked up through my music studies and having to try and read lyrics and texts in various European languages. The only language I studied at all was a year's worth of German as an undergraduate. So, I know a little about what students go through in trying to learn a new language. If you are beyond Spanish 101 and want to get some real help in understanding some key basic elements of the grammar of Spanish works, Brandon Simpson's little book can help you.

Simpson says you should consider this book like sessions with a tutor and I think that is spot on. He sets out to help you with a few problems that his experience tells him most students studying Spanish struggle with.
1) Demystifying the Written Accents in Spanish
2) Demystifying Ser and Estar
3) Demystifying Para and Por
4) Demystifying the Imperfect and the Preterit HIDE/STARS acronyms.
5) And two chapters dealing with the Spanish Subjunctive.

He provides several mnemonics to help you remember the rules, as most good teachers will do, several sets of exercises to help you see if you really understand what you have read, and several appendices to help you get at key information and a list of other books to read and study. Simpson also provides contact information so you can get a hold of him yourself and ask questions.

A handy and useful book. Just remember that it is a few lessons with a tutor to help you learn a few key lessons rather than a big text on the all and all of Spanish grammar.

Reviewed by Craig Matteson, Ann Arbor, MI