Complete German: Your Complete Speaking, Listening, Reading and Writing Package (Teach Yourself Language)

The new Teach Yourself language books are coming now with better quality paper and color illustrations (German is one example). Despite the fact that their traditional method was already very good, it seems to have improved even more with this German language course. Instead of giving vocabulary in small chunks, it now gives new words piecemeal, almost one by one, as even the titles of the activities introduce new words as you go through the course. Although most words are explained, some are not, whose meaning can usually be inferred from the rest of the context. I like to study this course with an online dictionary available, so I can write down every new word I learn in case it's not explicitly explained.Exceptionally, while most Teach Yourself language books have 20 chapters, this one has 23, as German is a slightly more difficult language and the topics are introduced really gradually. Even after finishing all the 23 chapters, you won't have learned a lot of german (even the future tense is not covered), but you'll surely learn enough to get you by during a trip, for example. Sometimes I wish the content (grammar points) were not introduced so slowly, and a little bit more content were introduced, like the future tense for example, but I'm not sure it would do good.Also for the sake of simplicity some topics are introduced as they come up, eg, the fact that adjectives in german are declined differently with the definite and indefinite article. Since concepts come so gradually, sometimes you cannot easily look in retrospect and have a full view of the grammar taught, and thus feel entirely confident, but this is a minor complaint.In the case of the German language in particular, and a few other languages, the Teach Yourself series also offers an 'Improve your German' course, which can take you further in the language(s).This course taught me German well from scratch, and gave me confidence to speak it correctly. I really recommend it.

I got this to brush up on my high school German before a trip to Germany. With all the language courses out there, I had a hard time making my choice, but this was a good course for me. The book consists of short lessons with numerous recordings thrown in. It starts very easy, but it advances pretty quickly. It might be frustrating for a complete beginner, but I found it very useful to brush up on German. And the course covers good material for a traveler, how to order in a restaurant or ask for directions. I only had a few weeks to work on my German and something like a Rosetta Stone course just wouldn't work. Aside from being really expensive, Rosetta Stone just goes too slowly, and I'd rather learn how to say "I need a glass of white wine" than "the triangle is yellow".

This is easily the best book I've found to help bring-together my German studies. I've been learning the language on my own over the last year or two, and this really, really helps. Are you confused about when to use which adjective ending? This book easily answers your questions. Do you still have a hard time trying to identify when you should use the proper case? This book, once again, easily shows you correct placement.If I had not already completed "German Made Simple," this book may not have been enough to teach me the language, but my German wife has been absolutely amazed by how quickly my speech has progressed once I've started this book. Not only that, I can complete an entire chapter in about 15 minutes, and have had at least 2-3 "a-ha!" moments every time I use their system to study.

This book/CD combination could have been much more useful if the book showed very clearly what text is recorded on the CD, and what is not.Sometimes you can read along in the book while listening to the CD, but more often you can not.Because of this, it is much less frustrating to use the book and the CD separately, as two different courses.

I am going to Europe later this year and wanted to perfect my German, which is good but limited.I found that I understood each and every word in the CD, and thought at first that it was a waste. But it was not at all, because it makes your ear atuned to hearing Germans speaking German and really helps with pronunciation.This CD is NOT going to take you from High School German to fluent German, but it is a great "Brush Up." And in combination with the text book, one could learn to say a good many thins. But you will not be learning any Grammar or formative rules of German Der / Die / Das.NOT FOR BEGINNERS !

Great book.

I really enjoyed the book, it really remembers me my English classes where we used to listen to the recorder and try to understand what they were saying to later associate the informantion that we listened to what is asked in the book.The big difference is that i'm learning German without need to go to one school.

While some language books have updated their material and made it more interestin TY have just made glossier versions of the same material and added color. This is decent for the price but moves a little slower than most in the TY series and the content is a little lack-luster.

Days ist sehr gut!! Super!!!!!!!!!