Summaries and Customer Reviews are supplied by Amazon.com
Summary:
The beauty and richness of the history and cultures of the Middle East are matters of increasing interest to the English-speaking world. As nations make their way into this new century, there must be dialogue and understanding--and language is the doorway into that new understanding.
This revised and updated second edition of Al-Kitaab contains new video and audio material on three DVDs, along with revised and updated texts and exercises. Following naturally on the introductory text, Alif Baa, for the Al-Kitaab Arabic language program, this initial Part One text further develops skills in standard Arabic while providing additional material in colloquial as well as classical Arabic.
The audio vocabulary portion of the DVDs allow learners to hear a new word followed by a sentence using it in context along with previously acquired vocabulary and grammatical structures, enabling students to build new vocabulary skills while reviewing previously exercised material. The video portion offers the option of seeing and hearing the video of each lesson in both Modern Standard Arabic and Egyptian Colloquial Arabic. The DVDs also contain substantial material exposing the learner to Egyptian Arabic (the most widely used and understood Arabic dialect), a short dialogue in Egyptian Colloquial Arabic appears at the end of each lesson. New video materials also feature subtitled interviews with Egyptians about various aspects of Arab culture, such as gender issues, fasting in the Muslim and Christian traditions, social clubs and their significance, and more.
Customer Reviews:
Average Customer Rating:
The Ultimate Source
Customer Rating:
This is the standart source for learning Arabic. With enough effort you can learn Arabic by yourself using the books in these series.
But remember, if you do not know the Arabic Alphabet, you should buy the Alif-Baa book first, by the same authors. It is also as good and comes with DVDs.
Al-Kitaab Part 1
Customer Rating:
This is a well designed textbook. Heavy on vocabulary, but presented in context. The DVD that accompanies it is very helpful for pronunciation and listening practice. Assumes a knowledge of Arabic script and the 150 vocabulary words presented in Alif Baa: Introduction to Arabic Letters and Sounds, so if you haven't already gone through Alif Baa, I recommend starting there.
Great book.
Customer Rating:
Great book. Despite it being a used one, it still consisted all it's dvd as needed, for almost half the price of my bookstore price. Thanks a lot!
Al-Kitaab
Customer Rating:
I but a lot of books and I do not expect to "review" my purchase each time. If I am swindled you will hear from me, otherwise thank you very much and don't bother me. Do you "preview" my response?
Al-Kitaab fii Ta'allum al-'Arabiyya with DVDs (Part 1)
Customer Rating:
No book, CD, DVD or other will ever teach anyone a language. However, this is the best that I have ever seen (but would still recommend using other materials to complement this combination of textbook/DVDs). The only disadvantage in my case is that it relies heavily on Egyptian Arabic instead of pure Modern Standard Arabic (but does throw in some regional dialect differences now and then, including that of Iraq). One should start with the "Alif Ba" series and buy the corresponding "Answer Keys". As good as it is, it was written to be used in a classroom setting; personally, I am using it for self-study and get help from Iraqi friends. Like any language, there is a need for much repetition and most people will have moments of frustration when they are tempted to quit. I congratulate the authors on an outstanding job. (One person I know, who may have a knack for languages but is a native speaker of English, is now able to hold basic conversation with Iraqis after ten months of study and has not even started Books 2 and 3!)
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