Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)Spanish for Reading and Translation by Annette Cash and James Murray is said to be designed for graduate students who need to demonstrate a reading knowledge of Spanish as a requirement for a graduate degree; it presents concepts for RECOGNITION only, followed by AMPLE activities and reading .
The organization of the 12 chapters is as follows :
* a reading passage preceded by pre-reading activities focused on skimming and scanning, followed by post-reading activities
* vocabulary building information and exercises
* grammar rules and exercises
* a final reading passage, preceded by pre-reading activities to engage the student in the skills of skimming and scanning, then post-reading activities focused on translation and content
There are No exercises to PRODUCE grammatical structures , the exercises are there to RECOGNIZE the grammatical structures.
The readings increase in difficulty throughout chapters.
A preliminary chapter focuses on pronunciation , reading strategies, cognates, and use of the dictionary.
The text includes three built-in review chapters after 1-4, 5-8, and 9-12.
A very detailed index is provided, together with ( in my opinion a real TREASURE ) an appendix on reading and translation resources : dictionaries,newspapers, magazines, and journals.
A total of 174 pages , rather dense, and I would suggest you take the time(30 days) to go through and not rush.
All that said, in about one month of regular daily study, you will achieve the results promised. I know I did TREMENDOUSLY improve my Spanish reading of academic texts.
I have completed about 60% of the book and here is a sample of what I am able to read : " Las mujeres de esa ciudad (Chiapas) se quejan constantemente de una flaqueza de estomago tan grande, que no podrian acabar de oir una misa rezada y mucho menos la misa mayor y el sermon sin tomar una jicara de chocolate bien caliente y alguna tacilla de conserva o almibar para fortalecerse. "
Two missing features of this book : answers are not given for the exercises though it should be easy to get them on your own if you really study the text; the second feature not related to the text is the high price for the book; it should have been retailed around 20 dollars to increase its sales .
But you will get the results promised and that is why I granted 4 stars.
Click Here to see more reviews about: Spanish for Reading and Translation
Spanish for Reading and Translation is designed to prepare students to be able to read in Spanish, particularly for students enrolled in universities thatcall for a reading knowledge of a foreign language as a requirement for a graduate degree. Requiring only a recognition knowledge of Spanish, this text prepares students to answer content questions about passages and to translate English text into Spanish.
Click here for more information about Spanish for Reading and Translation
