Read & Speak Korean for Beginners (Read & Speak for Beginners) (English and Korean Edition)

I began learning Korean a month ago on Coursera and was in need of a supplemental guide and this book fills that need well. If you cannot read Hangul yet and have no command of how to conjugate words, this book is NOT for you. The Coursera course I took started from scratch from how the alphabets were formed so it wasn't hard to follow this book.I am yet to use the CD but I find the games and questions at the back of the book enjoyable to engage in. I recommend this book for anyone who wants to add more richness to their Korean-learning experience.

I finally found a Korean language that helped me make sense of learning Korean. The most important thing is the CD, which really makes the big difference in making this the best Korean language book I have found. The only problem is that the book does not do a good job of teaching the Korean alphabet/script. It assumes you did the previous book or already know it. But even if other Korean books I have bought did a better job with the alphabet, but after that they got very confusing.This book explains the words better, and the flashcards and games are a big help. The CD makes it much better, and the best reason to buy this book,I would recommend buying this book. There is a previous book YOUR FIRST 100 WORDS IN KOREAN, which introduce the Korean script, or there are many online sites that teach the Alphabet but get very confusing afterward.

I like about this book because it provides a framework for making conversations rather than just making me memorize a bunch of phrases. The topics are well organized and relevant. Key grammar points are introduced throughout. Audio is provided for each vocabulary section designated as "keywords". A well-written one-page summary in the reference section answers most (though not all) of my questions as to why some hangul characters are pronounced so radically different from that which is indicated in the hangul charts. Its 8-1/2" by 11" size is much more inviting than the paperbacksize. Though not a big deal,there are a few typos. More frustrating for me however,is the fact that throughout the audio dialogs, words or phrases that have never been introduced in the text are used. That's a problem for me because I often have difficulty "de-constructing" the audio so that I can try to look up the words or phrases elsewhere.This book has been really helpful in getting me off to a good start. The author's stated objective to impart "...a real sense of progress" to the reader has in my case been achieved. My wish is that there be a follow-up book by the author.

I got this book of course because i want to learn korean. I had already learned to read when i got the book, so i think it made the experience of going through the book quite different had i not known how to read already. Which brings me to one of my main points.in my opinion, this book has one major downfall: IT DOES NOT TEACH YOU TO READ. It claims you will be able to read by the end of the book, but I assure you, you won't be able to read just by the romanizations it gives you. If you want this book to be a lot more educating experience, GO LEARN HOW TO READ FIRST, then come and buy this book. SERIOUSLY- LEARNING KOREAN WILL BE SO MUCH EASIER IF YOU LEARN TO READ FIRST. I can't stress this enough, I can't imagine what it would have been like if i had not learned to read before delving into the language. Everything will make so much more sense. Plus, learnign how to read Hangeul is really, really easy! :D I mastered it in about 2 weeks. But it will take you only a couple of days to have a very good grasp of it. Another point I would like to make is that i used this book and more of a supplementary tool rather than my main source of learning. If you arent super serious about learning korean, then i don't think i'd recommend this because you will only know the bare basics by the end. I did like it, however, for the sample sentences it give- thise are very helpful. I actually kind of liked the cd. I put it onto my iPod and i actually used it with the book. The speakers are native which is a plus because you'll know everything is pronounced correctly and naturally, but they speak very slowly. Everything is sounded out- which i guess is also a good thing if you want it broken down, but won't hear what the language sounds like ntaurally spoken. If you want that, listen to k-pop or watch some k-dramas. They're awesome! And easily accecable.And one last point, I didn't actually play any of the games this book comes with, so I can't give any sort of opinion on those.So in one sentence i would say this book is good for a younger audience and for someone very new to korean, but already knows how to read, its a good introductory book.

I am finding this guide to learning Korean very helpful. It's put together in a very logical way; you learn what to say according to normal conversation. The CD helps with pronunciation and gives you a way to speak and respond. The setup may seem a bit childish but don't children learn languages very quickly? The only reason I withheld a star is because the book doesn't teach the Korean alphabet, something crucial to really learning the language and not very difficult to pick up.

I have only just begun reading this book, but so far it has helped me a lot in learning the basics of the Korean language. The way things are explained makes learning easy.I have purchased a few different books to help me learn Korean. This one is very good and helpful. The one that has helped me the most would be Speaking Korean: Book I (Second Revised Edition).

This book is simple to understand and straightforward in its approach to teaching Korean. The authors' choice of vocabulary and game building exercises are enjoyable and also achieve the aim of being memorable. Unlike the dozens of mindless repetition-based books, this book teaches you how to build thousands of sentences from a handful of key words. I study from five Korean books, and this is the only book where all terms and sentences are fully translated.Highly recommended++