In at the deep end
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I've borrowed this from the library, and intend to buy it.
The pace of many language books is very slow indeed. This book assumes you've a little dedication and don't mind a challenge, and gets straight to business. Resources like Ruslan Russian 1 (which achieves its own aims with aplomb) might aim to have you exchanging polite greetings and asking directions by the end of the book. But I find it inspiring that Ian Press's small, dense work aims to have you reading Pushkin by the end.
I knocked a star off the rating for two reasons -- one, because many people will prefer a less ambitious pace, and two, because I've not given it the attention it deserves yet, so I can't promise you it works!
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Learning Russian
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Yeah, this is an amazing book, it teaches you all about grammar and stuff. If someone asked me if i would recommend it. I would say "yes". Its quite funny in places 2
peace
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Covers a lot..
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I think this book provides a great deal of information on the Russian language but that is perhaps where it fails; it tries to pack far too much into each chapter. I also found that the explanations on using verb and noun endings was far too scholary and would be difficult to digest if you haven't already studied a similar language. On the other hand, the book does provide a very interesting insight into Russian culture, history and literature and is certainly well written from that point of view.
If you have already studied a language and have a good knowledge of language-learning terminology then this book will be a great asset to studying Russian. However, if you have not learnt a language before, try another book which is a little less concentrated.
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For anyone with an interest in the Russkiy Yazik
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I am about to purchase a copy of this book which I recently found in my local library. As a complete beginner in Russian, I found it interesting and informative, with insights into the Russian Language along with the histroy of the language and its speakers. Please do not expect a structured Russian course from this book, but a more unconventional approach to learning, which will complement your studies. Treat the "star mark" in that context - it only failed to get five stars due to a slight difficulty in the presentation of the Russian text. You may contact the author, which I did, and he agrees that the distinctiveness (?) of the Russian text is a little short of the mark - due to having to manage the typsetting himself! Learn some Russian poetry, and read "Pozhaluista" - it really is quite funny!
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