Portuguese for Dummies [With CD]

by Karen Keller

Book Overview

Quick What's the most widely spoken language in South America? That's right, Portuguese And what's the fastest, easiest, most enjoyable way to learn Portuguese? Portuguese for Dummies, of course This fun, friendly guide helps you start speaking Brazilian Portuguese immediately Whether you're a student, a traveler, or you work in business or government, you'll love its practical lessons, cultural facts, and handy references -- including a Portuguese-English...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0471787388
• ISBN13: 9780471787389
• Release Date: May 2006
• Publisher: For Dummies
• Length: 347 Pages
• Weight: 1.37 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 7.8" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

Excellent, different and fun resource

I bought this book before going to Brazil on vacation for 6 weeks. I didn't speak any Portuguese or Spanish, so I started reading the book a month before my trip and learned as much as I could. I found that the book helped tremendously - I felt competent and comfortable communicating with people. I received several compliments on my accent (some people have said this book teaches poor pronunciation but that's simply not true - you have to get used to the way its presented but it definitely teaches an authentic accent). The book also taught me a lot of fun cultural anecdotes that I noticed once I arrived in Brazil. It is well organized, easy to read, light-hearted and a good learning tool for anyone wanting a quick course before having the time of their lives in Brazil!

Wonderful self teaching book

I found this book a very good self teaching tool for who does not have a thorough or any knowledge of the brazilian portuguese language. I realize the person has to have a lot of self discipline to learn any language just from the book but it can be done. I bought this book for my boyfriend and he is doing very well; after he reads a chapter I help him with the pronunciation. The book does not cover everything, evidently since there is a lot to learn, but it does a pretty good job overall as far as vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation for beginners.

Cultural insights along with language learning

I travel to Brazil a lot for business and pleasure, and I have bought other language-learning books for Portuguese--but this is the one book I take with me when I go. I like it for a lot of reasons---the slang and idioms, the section on Carnaval, the way it makes the hard work of learning a language fun and engaging. I felt like the author was more of an encouraging friend than a teacher. But I think I like it most of all because of the way it gives me insight into the Brazilian culture along with the language learning. I don't agree with the previous reviewer about the pronunciation guides. Brazilians have said that my accent is pretty good, based on what I got from the book. This book is a well written companion to other books and courses on Brazilian Portuguese. And this one has a lot of features that I could not get anywhere else.

e bom demais

In the midst of my excitment preparing for my coming trip to Rio de Janiero, I was ecstatic to find "Portuguese for Dummies" in the language section of my favorite bookstore. What's even more amazing is that it focuses on Brazilian Portuguese. This book contains a wealth of information for anyone studying brazilian portuguese. It is both entertaining and informative. I especially like the "cultural wisdom" sections as well as the useful slangs at the end of the book. The CD, however, could use some improvement. I have combined my studies with this book along with the pimsleur method and Portuguese 10 minutes a day. And hopefully it will give me a solid background of the language once I attend my language school in Rio. I highly recommend this book.