Spanish For Beginners: Un hombre fascinante

by Juan Fernández

William is a shy, young English man who is learning Spanish and trying to survive daily life in Madrid. Reading about his misadventures in the capital of Spain, you will learn about Spanish culture and improve your language skills along the way. This story is the second book in a series of Spanish Easy Readers called SPANISH FOR BEGINNERS, whose aim is to help you learn Spanish from scratch and reach an intermediate level.Therefore, the difficulty of the text and the language used in this short story have been adapted to help students revise and consolidate their grammar and vocabulary in Spanish at level A1 and A2 on the Common European Framework of Reference. Repetition, repetition, repetition… Repetition is key in this you will read the same words, the same expressions and the same grammar structures again and again. When learning new words and new expressions in a foreign language, repetition is essential. You need to read (and hear) the same words again and again, in different contexts, in order to understand its meaning and to be able to remember them later on. That is the reason we say this book is carefully designed to help you revise and consolidate fundamental vocabulary and basic grammar structures studied in any Spanish beginner you will read the same words, the same expressions and the same grammar structures again and again, in different contexts, in order to help you understand its meaning and be able to remember them later on. Vocabulary. Each chapter comes with a translation of the most important words and expressions used in the text to help you understand the story and learn the vocabulary and grammar involved.

Genres: Spanish Literature, Fiction

159 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 17, 2018

About the author

Juan Fernández is a Spanish teacher at University College London. He was born in the south of Spain, in Granada, one of the most beautiful cities in the world. In 1997 he moved to the UK, where he has been teaching Spanish for more than 15 years.
He is also the creator of 1001 Reasons To Learn Spanish, a website with games, videos, podcasts and many activities to help you learn Spanish in a pleasant way.

Reviews

[Carrie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Me encanta este libro para principiantes de español. Es fácil a leer, instructivo, y te enseña el idioma de una manera divertida. Aprendo mucho, gracias.

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you’re learning Spanish I recommend trying these novels. Level A2 is a big improvement. The vocabulary is more challenging and the use of the past tense adds a new dimension to the story.

[Lex · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️ ¡Qué entretenido! Cinco estrellas ⭐️

[Braga · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the continuation of the first book in this series Hola Lola (A1). This book was not only easier to read for beginners like me, it was also a hilarious story. I did not expect it to be this funny. I had to admit this did a world of good to my Spanish.

[Caroline · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this story was super funny. I especially liked when William and Lola planned to ask potential roommates how much milk costs to see if they usually go grocery shopping or steal their roommates milk, the joke that William is so young he only needs the past perfect tense to talk about his life, and the big confession by Lola that she's been stealing the chocolate cookies. I also liked the parallels between the protagonist and the author, which are pretty clear if you've been watching the Español con Juan Youtube channel. The plot was a bit disjointed, but I didn't mind that so much since I enjoyed the reading experience.

This is definitely more repetitive than La profe de español, which I happened to read first and is also marked as A2. I know the repetition is intentional (the book says so), but I found it a bit much. I agree that seeing the same word again in another context is helpful, but many times entire sentences were repeated to refer to the same situation. That's not seeing the word in another context, it's seeing it in the same context. If I wanted to reread a sentence, I could do that on my own! It makes the story more boring to repeat things I may not have wanted to reread. On the other hand, this may just be because A2 is a bit below my level, so I'm not complaining too much.

[Tea73 · Rating 4 out of 5]

William has a girlfriend, but he's still a bit of a sad sack. He knows he's overweight and should go to the gym and eat healthier food, but he doesn't do a thing about it. He knows he'll never be "guapo" but now he's got a new goal to be "fascinante". Will that happen? Quizás! In the meantime, there's a tortilla contest, suspiciously missing toilet paper, and an unpleasant roommate. This is a follow-up to Spanish For Beginners: ¡Hola, Lola! and has a lot more plot, more pages, a lot more vocabulary and more tenses. (A2 level approximately.) At the end of each chapter there are English translations of some of the more idiomatic expressions, but no irritating multiple choice questions like the first book. Like the first book, there's a fair amount of repetition of certain phrases, a couple of which got on my nerves after a while, but for the most part an enjoyable read. William's deprecating sense of humor works quite well here.

[Stewart · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great way to learn Spanish

I guess Juan would prefer I wrote this in Spanish but I want as many newbies to read it as possible.

I did a year of Spanish at night school five or so years ago. I enjoyed it but let it slip. A couple of months ago I read a Paul Noble book, an Ollie Richards short story book, and then I discovered Juan Fernandez. This has been a fantastic experience. Paul Noble gave me some basics and the Ollie Richards expanded on that but Juan takes it to a whole new level.

I'm doing a course on his website, 1001 reasons to learn Spanish, I watch his YouTube channel, and read his books.

He breaks the learning down in to bite size pieces and I actually look forward to the next lesson or activity. It's fun. I'm not learning long lists of words or grammar.

My Spanish has come on leaps and bounds in weeks.

Finally, this is a funny book, muy divertido.

[Erna Kindli · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading Juan’s books is an entertaining method to improve your Spanish.

I have been listening to his podcast for months (highly recommended!); and decided to add one of his “short novels” to my self-study curriculum.

I am grateful for Juan: this book has given me a nice sense of achievement. Even if I know that it is a novel for educational purposes, it helps to maintain my motivation to continue to learn Spanish.

The story is entertaining, easy to follow. I enjoyed seeing all the grammar and vocabulary that I’ve learnt thus far in context. There were also some new expressions: just the right amount to feel that I’m still learning, but without the overwhelming “study” feeling.

This book is best suited for those who have just finished A2 level curriculum in Spanish. But the author has written such a book for Spanish students of each level.

[Barney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely one of the more entertaining books for learning Spanish. Still, I do not feel that the story is resolved. I would have liked to have known what happened after la chica polaca moved in. Did William and Lola get along with her? And we know that el chico guapo got arrested for stealing toilet paper from the Spanish school. Was he found guilty? Perhaps the book should have been longer, or maybe a book 2 would have been better.

Also, there are certain expressions that get repeated too often throughout the book. Eyes are opened wide like plates: los ojos muy abiertos, tan abiertos como los platos. And when someone turns red from embarrassment: como un tomate. To me, this gets old after a while.

This book could have been a 5 star. I still enjoyed it, and so I give it a 4.

[Avery · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought it was a really good way to introduce the various past tenses and grammatical concepts in A2. The story itself was really interesting and ended up as somewhat of a mystery!

I'm very much a fan of graded readers by this author who has his own Youtube channel and podcasts as well. It felt really nice to get a sense of his humor and still teach people Spanish through example well, which is extremely hard to do at the beginner level! Especially making it entertaining at the same time!

Definitely trying this out if you're looking for a unique and interesting graded reader friendlier to bigger Spanish students!

[Nick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well constructed

This is a great way to increase your Spanish level. I definitely came away with a much better understanding of grammar and vocabulary and I enjoyed the story!

Its constructed in a way to gradually introduce you to more and more phrases and grammar while being repetitive enough to retain what you’ve learned but in a way that is at all boring!

Thanks Juan! I’m looking forward to reading more of your stuff

[Bob · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfect for beginners

This book is a sequel to the A1 level book. It has much more of a plot, and improves on the first book in terms of interest, variety, and humor. Actually this book was really amusing and I laughed aloud at its climax at the tortilla contest. And I can really feel my ease of reading and comprehension improving.

[B LEE · Rating 5 out of 5]

Greatly helping me to enjoy reading stories in Spanish at last

Easy and funny story to read and read again to improve your Spanish! I started the first book in the series a month ago and this is the second book i read , planning on reading all of them in the series to reach an intermediate level

[Michael Swank · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent way to complement you textbook learning

Tired of doing drills, vocabulary flashcards, or just pounding your head against the wall trying to understand grammar and verb conjugation rules? Take a break and read a book! The books in this series are engaging and help you learn while you relax and enjoy the story. Highly recommended.

[Steven M Zalaznick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Juan Fernández has made this book interesting and challenging for an adult reader.
It is not for someone just starting out. It is for someone who has basic Spanish and is ready to read books but not able to read literature.
He introduces vocabulary and common phrases and repeats them throughout the story.

[Curtis Hartwig · Rating 5 out of 5]

Foreign intrigue

The story of Lola and Willy continues. Willy enters a cooking contest although he has never cooked before. He becomes famous on youtube and in the local news. Book is well organized for learners.

[wayne l davila · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good story …liked it

A good way to help to learn spanish. The story was fun. The review at the end of each chapter was very useful. I enjoyed it and look forward to reading more. I highly recommend Juan…

[Angela Wood · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very Good for Spanish Learners

I really enjoyed this book. I am currently learning Spanish and use reading to supplement the conversation in class. I am currently somewhere between A1 and A2 and was able to understand the story even if I didn’t know all the vocabulary or grammar.

[Zuza · Rating 3 out of 5]

Un poco raro. No entiendo que pasa en este libro. Una tortilla bomba?? Papel higienico? Y porque la novia de Willy dice que el esta gordo? Pienso que, el debe dejarla. Pero mi espańol es un poco mejor:)

[Chris Castle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Muy bien y divertido. Acabo de comenzar lo leer el segundo vez.

A book with the kind of humour, and non boring repetitions of key vocabulary and useful idioms that you'd expect from the author if you've watched his excellent "comprehensible input" videos on his you tube channels Español con Juan and 1001 reasons to learn Spanish.

[Alex Gibson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Me gustó este libro pero no me encantó. William era un hombre muy aburrido para mí, se preocupaba mucho en el libro.

Sin embargo, me siento orgolloso este es mi primero cuento todo en español! No puedo esparar a leer más!

[Ian Magargee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantástico y divertido

Me encanta este libro. De hecho, ¡me encantan todos los libros que he leído de Juan Fernandez! Y su canal de Youtube. Es un profesor de Español increíble.

[Dana G · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fernandez does it again. Compelling (if light) story. Excellent repetition of Spanish phrases and grammatical structures. Looking forward to his intermediate level books!

[john varley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pitched just right

Very good next step in the series and actually an enjoyable story.

Highly recommended to help review the past and present perfect tenses

[Michael Francis · Rating 5 out of 5]

great read

I really enjoyed reading this book. This is great for someone who has a knowledge of Spanish. Great story! I’d recommend you read it.

[Revati · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots of repetition to reinforce sentence structure and a fun to read! I listen to Juan's podcast and his voice and sense of humour really come through in this book.

[Mariam Badr · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mucho mejor que el primero

[Jason · Rating 5 out of 5]

Me gusta le libro.

[MS C Murray · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyable read...would recommend

[maoppw · Rating 5 out of 5]

Este libro es un poco raro porque el protagonista me molesta. También su novia. A pesar de esto, este libro es perfecto para aprender español, hay mucha repetición y usa todos los tiempos gramaticales (por ejemplo Pretérito Perfecto, Pretérito Imperfecto, Pretérito Indefinido etc..). Aunque no sepas lo que son, debería poder leer este libro sin problemas.