Thread: First reader

Hello All: I have always found this forum to be a place to get excellent advice and answers so I thought I would throw this question out there:

I've been studying Russian only a few months for a couple of hours a day. I have completed up to lesson 17 of Pimsleurs comprehensive 1 and have done the first few chapters of the New Penguin course. Im still very much a beginner, but it is going well.

I thought I might start to learn to read some basic stuff . I know the alphabet and can pronounce most word although I dont know what most mean. I found an online recomendation to start with "First Russian Reader" by Ann Rolbin. ISBN 0844242810. I think its Dick and Jane type of stuff.

Can anyone recommend this book? Is this a good idea to incorporate into my self study? Are there any books out there thet anyone might refer me to that may be much better. Just looking for an opinion.


Thanks Much. Scott

He means this book:



Apart from the cover it doesn't say much about it. But I would think it would be an excellent choice for you. Reading severely helps your Russian skills

Yes, Thats exactly what it looks like. After all I have learned throughout my years I have now reached a point where I am regressing back to Dick and Jane type reading. I guess its like they say " you start out in diapers and someday end up back in diapers" I will read it with the enthusiasm of a child.

Is there really a black man with a huge afro on the cover of that book? I wonder how many black people in russia really sport that.

Nope. At second glance shes just an old lady. False alarm.

dogboy

LOL

Sorry to revive this topic... Do you think I'd benifit from this book? Is it any good for someone at my level? Are there any other books you'd recomend?

What about this book? http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/de ... 9?v=glance

I have both of these books. The blue one is OK, you shouldn't have trouble understanding it, though the dictionary in the back sucks so keep a bigger one handy. It is very simple, but does an okay job of forcing you to see the same words over and over again.

The other book you mention is OK but has some bizaar mistakes in it. At the end of "Медведь и Девочка" there's a word spelled ысоты. And in another place they spell друзьями as друзьямн. I think it's mostly copy errors or something. Most of the mistakes are managable, but it is very confusing to see them as a learner. Well, for me it is.

It's an okay book but it uses more complicated constructs then the blue one. I read the blue book cover to cover about eight months ago or so, but over the course of several sittings. The other one I read idly every once in a while as I memorize vocabulary, to gauge how I'm improving. I don't like to try to 'study' from it as much because I don't trust it.

I have another reader which I like very much.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...books&n=507846

This one starts with little pieces that are very easy to understand, and sometimes whitty. The stories get a bit longer. It also has one interesting spelling twist, it tends to spell verbs like прийти as притти. I'm not sure this is actually 'wrong' though, since multitran.ru knows what it is. This book I treat differently, I copy out the stories to paper and then translate. This is for practice with my handwriting (my English handwriting is atrocious, I'm trying to do better in Russian), and because if I have to think about the sentance enough to copy it without looking at it word for word, I find it does more for my learning.

Good luck.

I like this one...


http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/de ... 8&v=glance

Scott

I think I need one, but I just need to know which one would benefit me the most.

Could someone who has the big blue book scan a page from it so I can see what the level of the text inside actually is?

That, or perhaps type out a paragraph or so.

Anyone?

I know that a lot of people here know my level in Russian. Which reader do you think would be the most beneficial to me?

I apologise but I did not read either book so I cannot make a good recommendation.