The best Vocabulary Books: Reddit reviews

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I have this one

https://www.amazon.com/Korean-Stories-Language-Learners-Traditional/dp/0804850038/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=korean+folktales&qid=1559590362&s=gateway&sr=8-1

It does the story in korean, then the same story in english, then a list of vocabulary afterwards. It's pretty good, very basic beginner level.

They’re books specifically created for beginners: Learn German With Stories: Café in Berlin - 10 Short Stories For Beginners (Dino lernt Deutsch) https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1492399493/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_M692X338DGSJCGW3VQPS

Start with this book: https://www.amazon.com/New-Penguin-Russian-Course-Beginners/dp/0140120416

Language learning is 80% about comprehensible input. Here is a list I made with all the YouTube channels you can watch once you've reached level A1:

https://www.notion.so/YouTube-channels-and-tools-to-learn-Russian-aedc894f52af42038ae8676aac5c0d7f

There are a lot of bilingual readers available as well on Amazon.

Japanese Stories for Language Learners: Bilingual Stories in Japanese and English (MP3 Audio disc included) https://www.amazon.com/dp/4805314680/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_YhEyCbZJE56CT

That are cheap and have vocab etc. I have this one and it's good for basic reading comprehension. Manga can only take you so far before you plateau.

Every Russian learner needs a copy of this textbook. I don't study the language any more, but it is a fantastic resource that somehow makes sense of the ridiculously complicated Russian grammar.

You may want to check out this book. It has stories ranging from beginning level to more advanced levels. It also has translations, Vocab, and comprehension questions as well.

Another good source is this book. It’s made by TTMIK. I practiced a lot with this book when I was lower level, but it mostly just caters to beginners. It offers pronunciation guides and vocabulary as well. Even little snippets of cultural things in English as well.

Have you tried looking for easy readers designed for language students instead of children's books? A lot of people think that because books are written for children, they will be simpler, but children's books actually use a lot of complex language. If you search for "German easy reader" on Amazon, you will come up with a lot of stuff designed for people learning the language. I would start there rather than with children's books. My colleague who teaches German uses a German easy reader in her classes, and I think it is this one or something very similar: https://www.amazon.com/Learn-German-Stories-Berlin-Beginners/dp/1492399493/ She said it was really funny.

I would recommend Handbook of Korean Vocabulary by Miho Choo and William O'Grady (Amazon). It's not exactly a dictionary but it lists root words alphabetically and breaks down that root in words (native or Sino-Korean) with a rough English equivalent. It also gives the 한자 for Sino-Korean roots, if you're into that. For example, 생(生) - be born, life, student, etc. would list 생일 - birthday [~day] [~日].

I find it helps me if I learn a new (unfamiliar) vocab word to put it into context with words with similar roots which increases meaningful prediction of future vocab. You can do more or less that same thing with Naver but requires a little more effort.

I just got this book on Amazon called Korean Stories for Language Learners. I like it a lot because it has traditional folktales. For each short story, it has its English translation as well as some vocabulary, culture notes, and comprehension questions! I would definitely recommend getting a good grasp on some grammar first, as the stories difficulty scales with each one. It also comes with a CD!

I have some friends there yes. Most of them are europeans and not Germans so learning the language by speaking with them is gonna be a bit hard.

The fact that in german you pronounce the letters in a consistent way makes it easy to learn like Spanish.

I also got a book to read along with the German course I am doing and it helps a lot.

I've been using this book and I'm only on lesson 5, but I've enjoyed the way they explain things. Like they explained the prepositional endings really well.

I have been using an earlier edition of this book for 20 years more out of occasional amusement on how some characters are derived.

Reading and Writing Chinese from Tuttle.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/080484299X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_imm_EMQ4YV1XCXW3FK8RK1XT

For example, 安, peace, roof over woman.

I think it's really admirable that you're deciding to take on the challenge of writing Chinese characters. I don't agree with the other commenters that writing is useless. I've met a lot of Chinese learners and I have met very few that couldn't write in Chinese at all but could read it well. The two skills go hand in hand the same way that listening and speaking do.

I think the best approach depends on your skill level as a student and your own learning style. You can use anything to learn (books, apps, private tutors), so just go with what you like. The going may be a bit slower with some methods, but as long as you stick to it, you can be successful. The easiest thing to do is practice writing new vocabulary you learn down. Just make sure to look up the stroke order before doing that.

Personally, I have had the best results when I buy specific textbooks for the specific topic I want to learn. I think that this is generally the best approach in terms of having comprehensive and organized explanations laid out for you. However, the tradeoff is that they can be pretty dry, can't be carried around in your pocket like an app can, and require some discipline to stay on track. For books, you can buy books specifically on characters or use a regular textbook. The book I used was Reading and Writing Chinese and I really liked it, but I think any book that mentions "radicals" or "components" in the description and has good reviews should be pretty solid.

Aah this is so sweet. Thank you for your kindness. I’ve been studying Japanese for a while, but the only resources I have are a few apps and Japanese children coloring books that I use to translate and get familiar with Hiragana. A friend of mine has told me this is a great book for learning and practicing so I’m hoping to get my mitts on a copy of it. Thank you so much!! Learning Japanese Hiragana and Katakana: A Workbook for Self-Study

It's definitely better than Rosetta Stone.

I think paired with something to really cement the grammar will be pretty effective.

Use it with the New Penguin book. (only $15 on Amazon) https://www.amazon.com/New-Penguin-Russian-Course-Beginners/dp/0140120416

I picked up this from Amazon to start with, but was thinking that I needed graph paper or something to practice writing on!

There is a series called Cafe in Berlin, they are really funny books, they use slang and are quite cheap on amazon. I found them really helpful.

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https://www.amazon.co.uk/Learn-German-Stories-Berlin-Beginners/dp/1492399493

Reading and Writing Chinese: Third Edition, HSK All Levels (2,349 Chinese Characters and 5,000+ Compounds) https://www.amazon.com/dp/080484299X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_GQGFFb8H5V23F

There is also this book on radicals.

I believe it is the "Learning Japanese Hiragana and Katakana" book by Kenneth G. Henshall, you can find it on amazon here: https://www.amazon.com/Learning-Japanese-Hiragana-Katakana-Self-Study/dp/4805312270

If you'd like to learn to read and write, I highly recommend getting this book: Reading and Writing Chinese:... https://www.amazon.com/dp/080484299X?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

It will teach you what a radical is, how characters are constructed and will get you on the way to learning them in a systematic way.

Try a book that has both languages in it so you can compare them. Something like this: https://www.amazon.com/Japanese-Stories-Language-Learners-Bilingual/dp/4805314680 This way you can try and read the Japanese but easily fall back on English if you need. I'm not specifically endorsing this book. There are lots like this that you can search for based on language ability.

I understand, it's often the same for me. It's like listening to a Wagner soprano not making it through the orchestral curtain.

Writing a lot is making a change for me, as the hand-brain coordination seems to improve my intuitive understanding of a word when I later see it in a different context. And starting to read. I am a very beginner, I bought this one: https://www.amazon.it/Korean-Stories-Language-Learners-Damron/dp/0804850038/ref=sr_1_38?__mk_it_IT=%C3%85M%C3%85%C5%BD%C3%95%C3%91&crid=2XHY3K81LP58W&keywords=korean+english+bilingual+book&qid=1666863609&sprefix=korean+english+bilingual+book%2Caps%2C77&sr=8-38

It gets better with time!

TTMIK did not do it for me, I prefer How to Study Korean (free, optional buy-ons) + Anki (free) + Pimsleur ($$)

”Have” ends with an ””E because English words can't/don't end with a ”U,” ”V,” ”J,” or ”I.” I believe the only exceptions to this rule are the words "you," "I," and "thou" along words that originate from another language (like "ski," "menu," and "alibi"). This book has more info.

If you're really just starting out, books from the Dino lernt Deutsch series such as Café in Berlin are a good idea. My husband read those quite early on in his German-learning-journey. They're quite simple and short so you'll have quick successes and that'll motivate you to continue. My husband also quite enjoyed the little stories. And there's little quizzes at the end of each story (plus English explanations for certain words, I think) so you can test how well you actually understood the story.

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If you're a bit more advanced than this, there's the Easy Readers (DaF) series that takes popular German books/ classics such as Die Wolke and puts them into a simplified form so you can read the story but they'll use less and easier words. The books are fairly thin too so you'll again have a quick feeling of success and motivation. They also come in different levels depending on how good your German is.

It's not an app, but Tuttle's Reading and Writing Chinese lists both the Simplified and Traditional characters. I suggest getting the printed book, since the ebook version is more difficult to use.

Look into Uncovering the Logic of English. It helps define English rules more precisely than is often taught in school. They have a website that can help you teach your daughter, but I've only read the book myself.

After looking through the book, maybe take a few samples of her writing and try to identify what commonalities there are in her mistakes. Address them individually.

First book I ever read in Korean was "Korean Stories For Language Learners: Traditional Folktales in Korean and English"

https://www.amazon.com/Korean-Stories-Language-Learners-Traditional/dp/0804850038

I would listen to the audio whilst reading. I would first read the chapter in my head, then go back to the beginning of the chapter and listen to the audio. Did this process until I finished the book. Also, everyday I would listen to the audio starting from the first chapter to the chapter I'm currently on, until I got to the last chapter. That's how I built up my reading comprehension in the early stages.

"I also recommend using a textbook. I've found this one ok:

https://library.teachyourself.com/id004325135/Complete-Russian

Also heard good things about this one:

https://www.amazon.com/New-Penguin-Russian-Course-Beginners/dp/0140120416"

Pasted from a recent thread I commented on

I also recommend using a textbook. I've found this one ok:

https://library.teachyourself.com/id004325135/Complete-Russian

Also heard good things about this one:

https://www.amazon.com/New-Penguin-Russian-Course-Beginners/dp/0140120416

Adding onto this, the duolingo kana section is fine, but something I would recommend is to write the characters out by hand as well, as it's better for retention and, you know, writing Japanese.

If you're willing to spend money, I used this and I highly recommend it!