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Summary: An Amazing Way to Learn Spanish
Review: After being frustrated with my high school for not offereing enough entry level Spanish courses, I stomped off to the library, determined to teach myself. Little did I know that I had swiped one of the best books for learning Spanish off the shelf. I practiced a couple of times each week with the simple lessons which build upon each other quite naturally. Within a few months, I knew more Spanish than the second and third years students. I got 100% in all of my high school Spanish courses, earned a 4 on the AP test, and am now minoring in Spanish after having been able to skip the first four courses at the university. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who is seeking an easy way to learn a new language.
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Summary: Madrigal's Magic Key to Spanish
Review: Before I started with Madrigal's Magic Key to Spanish, I was never one for carrying around those 3 x 5 index cards.
I thought that it was too much of a hassle. But in the first chapter of Madrigal's Magic Key to Spanish, you are advised to go down to the stationery store and buy some index cards and create some "reminder" cards.
I am so glad that I did it. By using Madrigal's Magic Key to Spanish and the Learning Like Crazy Spanish course, I am really learning Spanish vocabulary and grammar like crazy now. Thanks Margarita Madrigal!
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Summary: This is a great book!
Review: I don't know if I can put it into words. Most mortals don't pick up text books or language tutorials and read them cover to cover, mainly because most books of this type are boring. I'm not the kind of person that can do that. And yet I did . This book is very different. Vocabulary and Verbs are presented in a very simple format. It all makes perfect sense. The author makes it all fun ... somehow. She was a great writer. The book introduces the past tense first, which is how most of us talk to each other. To talk in present tenses is something to aspire to as Joni Mitchell reminded us in "Cari get out your key". In real life Madrigals approach makes perfect sense.
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Summary: The BEST Spanish guide
Review: I found this book by chance in a bookstore in Berkely California 12 years ago. At the time I had only taken 3 years of Spanish in high school. My spanish took off after studying this book and most people now think I am a native speaker of Spanish. I think this book boosts your confidence from the start by showing you all the Spanish that you already know (the conjugates) and by teaching you the past rather than the future first. I highly recommend it. Also remember to practice at every opportunity! Speaking a new language is like learning to dance. You feel silly at first and will make mistakes. But with practice you will become more confident and you will experience the joy of communicating with others in this beautiful language.
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Summary: Entiendo Espanol...
Review: I got decent grades in college Spanish; two “A-‘s” and a “B+.” However, when I needed to actually speak Spanish, I was lost. I couldn’t say much except “Mas cervezas, por favor (More beer, please)!” "Madrial’s Magic Key", along with the expensive (but quite worth it) Pimsleur tapes, have corrected the “mis-education” I was subjected to. The drills Ms. Madrigal presents are easy to remember and fun to do, not like those tedious translations and verb conjugations that college texts are so fond of. In two months, studying this book in my spare time, I retained more Spanish than I did in an entire academic year. And, for the first time, I can actually say that I understand Spanish. I would supplement this book with a comprehensive book on Spanish grammar (I have the Barron’s, but I suppose any would work) and a dictionary. I would definitely recommend “Breaking Out of Beginner’s Spanish” by Joseph Keenan for an in depth take on colloquial Spanish as well. Further, if you have the money, buy the "Pimsleur Comprehensive" series as well. Get vol.’s 1-3, even though they are pricey. If you are an audio/tactile learner like me, I guarantee that you will retain more Spanish idioms using the Pimsleur method than any other.
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Summary: Best book on Spanish I've read yet!
Review: I have been studing the language for five years and have read many books on the subject. Margarita's book is the best because she is an experienced teacher, very thorough and communicates with you as if she were right alongside you as a private tutor. She was raised and lived in both the U.S. and Latin America of bilingual parents and knows the nuances of both languages as only a native can. I say "Viva Magarita!" and "Comprelo"!
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Summary: Most user friendly Spanish book in print
Review: I have looked at about 20 Spanish books in the last 18 months, and this one is heads and shoulders above the rest. No dialogues to bore you, and a really innovative approach to teaching the verb tenses. (You're only taught 4 forms of each tense until the end, when you learn tu .)I actually took this book with me to the beach twice, it was so entertaining. If you find yourself putting down Spanish texts 1/4 of the way into them, try this book! It's good for beginners as well as "intermediates" who want a refresher course. I find myself going back to it frequently as a general reference. Can't be beat for the price.
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Summary: An Excellent Book for Teaching Yourself to Speak Spanish.
Review: I have searched for years to find good books to teach myself Spanish, and this one is head and shoulders above the rest. The clear structured organization and presentation make it easy to read and to study. Most others are too basic or, it seems, oriented to very young students. If you are seriously interested in teaching yourself conversational Spanish, then this book will be very helpful. It progresses at a good rate, integrates vocabulary painlessly and uses excercises that build conversational ability. If you are interested in teaching yourself Spanish, then this book is very effective. It uses some very effective shortcuts. For example, it omits the familiar form which reduces the number of verb forms without limiting your ability to comunicate. Many books seem oriented to college course work and seem tediously and academically oriented to stucture and detail, rules and form. This book does not suffer these defiencies. It is committed to teaching you to communicate in Spanish easily (at least as easily as possible)and effectively. I am just someone who wanted to learn to speak Spanish and for that purpose, I found it very effective.
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Summary: This is the book you really need.
Review: I just want to say that this book has proven to be better than all the other books or systems I have bought. My Spanish friend is teaching a group of us Spanish using another book. Frequently we need to refer to my Madrigal's book in order to explain or teach something that the other book just expects you to memorize for the sake of knowing it. Madrigal's helps you to really "know" what you're learning.
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Summary: The Best!
Review: I love this book. I recomend it to all of my friends and to anyone who is thinking of learning Spanish. I started reading one chapter a day and very quickly and almost effortlessly learned the rules of the Spanish language. I found the approach both logical, and in my opinion more practical than memorizing vocabulary.
The book uses a more "right brain" creative aproach to learning, which is natural and comfortable, as learning should be. It presents a gramatical rule and then lets you practice it over and over again in various sentence structures. It involves very little memorization, and is very "hands on" in its teaching technique.
For anyone who has been tottaly frustrated by trying to learn spanish in the traditional classroom style, I whole heartedly recomend this book.
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