Russian

by Pimsleur

Release Date: 01 October, 1998

Edition: Audio CD

Price:

More Info

This is the Best and Easiest way to learn!

I just finished the 8-lesson CD course in Russian and in only 2 weeks have been able to speak basic sentences to my Russian friends in Moscow. They are impressed and think I have a special "talent" for learning languages! I have tried 2 other Russian courses that are difficult and simply do not work. This course will teach you proper greetings, asking directions, ordering in restaurants, and how to buy and ask for things. The Pimsluer method is the way to go, no doubt about it. Dedicate the 30 minutes per day and soon you will be conversing in sentences. It is still absolutely necessary you learn the Russian alphabet so that you can read signs, ride trains, and use the metro when you go to Russia. I went last May to Moscow and St. Petersburg and knowing the Russian alphabet saved me. If you are serious about continuing to learn, buy the complete Pimsluer Basic Russian 1 CD set. Note: when trying to learn a new language I suggest using CDs instead of tapes. It is much easier to rewind, stop, pause, etc..from a distance with a remote control than having to physically be if front of the tape player the entire time. Just a suggestion!

So Easy

For half a year now I've been wasting my money on little travel-speak Russian books, not realizing Pimsleur was so easy. I took about five Spanish lessons a couple of years ago, mostly for fun (we got these from the library), and when I remembered how good they were I checked for them at the bookstore and found them in Russian. Pimsleur makes it easy to learn Russian, just thirty minutes a day, so I just get up in the morning, get ready, and do my tapes. It doesn't take tons of repition, yet it's also not like the Living Language tapes (sorry, but...) where you listen to it once at record-breaking speed and are expected to know it...twenty rewinds later.

However, just two notes: if you want to learn to read/write Russian, find a good book (or a little internet course like I did) to supplement this. Also, if you decide to buy Level I when you finish the first 8 lessons, you do have to repeat a lot because they teach you basically the same information in the first 8 lessons of the "big set" (Do you understand Russian? etc), but they also teach you a couple of things a little differently. For instance, the word order is a little different in a few instances, and instead of teaching you "I want" and "you want," it's "I would like" and "you would like." So you do have to repeat a little, but hey, it helps it stick in your memory. (And if you're impatient like me, you can always fast forward a little.)

I definitely recommend this course for the good pronunciation and realistic conversational skills, so go for it.