Beginner's Latin

by George D.A. Sharpley

Do memories of your grammar lessons haunt you and other textbooks overwhelm you? Then 'Teach Yourself Beginner's Latin' is for you. Follow a Latin story set in a medieval monastery, where conspiracy unfolds in the cloisters, Vikings threaten to attack, and young lovers set out to unmask the villains. Sample some classical Latin too, and learn more about the authors who wrote it. 'Teach Yourself Beginner's Latin' is ideal for complete beginners because it introduces the language step by step through an interesting and humorous story. Each unit contains grammatical explanations and vocabulary support. There are plenty of exercises to practise each point as it is introduced and help you remember what you have learnt. There are two revision units so that you can check your progress and review areas of difficulty. 'About Latin' sections give lots of information about the history of the language and its influence upon English. 'Living Latin' sections contain pieces of authentic Latin, most of which is classical. They are included to give you an idea of what there is to enjoy once you have mastered the language and the translations are given. Two accompanying CDs are available separately or in a pack with the book. The recording contains the story and the 'Living Latin' sections of the book, and will enhance your enjoyment of the poetry and give you an idea of what Latin sounded like. The leader in self-learning with more than 300 titles, covering all subjects. Be where you want to be with Teach Yourself.

Genres: Language, Reference, Nonfiction

240 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

Reviews

[Thieluar]

I just finished this book!? yup, the story is fun to read and all of that forsaken grammar is made clear and easy to understand even though it's a short book. I liked the funny strory, it revolves around Paulus the monk, Lucia the maiden and Mulus... the mule XD It starts simple but when you get to the later chapters you really want to know what happens next. I finished it in three weeks between summer session and Fall semester going two chapters per day. If this is the first time you learn a language from a book, do a chapter per day. Steady and slow is better than fast because you will get annoyed or bored if you go too fast. Also, don't try to memorize every single thing. Fluency in a language is achieved after reading several books of it and a lot of practice. So, after this one you can grab one of the big books of Latin and feel at home with it. Personally, I will try Wheelock's Latin series and after that an Intermediate college Latin Textbook.

[Jenn · Rating 1 out of 5]

So far I've found this book and CD to be all together useless. The audio tracks don't match the text presented.

[Colin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun, if not especially deep, textbook for beginners in learning Latin.