Lonely Planet Lao Phrasebook (Lao Phrasebook, 2nd Ed)

Rating:
Summary: transliteration makes lao even more complex than it is
Review: The Lonely Planet phrasebooks are usually a great help travelling around the world. This one however turned out to be creating more problems than solving them. The transliteration is so weird that you actually have to learn two new languages before pronouncing anything closely right. I tried the book with several english speaking lao persons and lao speaking native english speakers while travelling around the country and all had problems with the transliteration. Nothing is like you would naturally pronounce it. For example who would say Khoj if you see Khawy?
Helpful is the lao bit so you can point, in the end its how I got around. A pity, there are much better transliterations around.

Rating:
Summary: Nifty little phrasebook
Review: The Lonely Planet phrasebooks have come a long way since the days when the foreign script portion was merely hand-written in the space beside the romanized portion. The Lao phrasebook is representative of that new generation, and it is pretty impressive. Along with all the usual categories of phrases one would expect to see (greetings, directions, lodging, food, shopping, health, numbers, dates, emergencies, etc.), the splendidly informative introduction provides an interesting background on the spoken language and script, followed by a great section on pronunciation and grammar. There are interesting cultural notes dispersed throughout the book, and a vocabulary list at the end. Its compact size makes it ideal to carry in one's pocket. On the down side the marking system used in the romanized portion to indicate Lao tones is a little confusing and under-explained, but all-in-all a great little phrasebook.

Rating:
Summary: It's a very through pocket book that can guide you in Laos
Review: This is an excellent book for those who wish to travel to Laos, or even those who wish to begin learning lao in small steps. I purchased this book in order to learn the language at a quicker and more simplified pace. It contains not only basic phrases that one might need to know in order to conduct ones self in the main parts of Laos but also be able to learn some of the country's culture as well. Even though studying an entirely new language can be laborious, Mr. Cummings has made it easy for anyone to be bilingual, even multi-lingual.

Rating:
Summary: Lao Phrasebook
Review: Very good book, especially for someone that don't understand a lot of English. They could always use as reference anywhere they go. Again, good book and excellent choice for someone who wants
to learn English. [reasonable] price and great book, what can I say.