Alif Baa with Multimedia: Introduction to Arabic Letters and Sounds, 2nd Edition

Though I like the old Alif Baa better. Some of the updated features were a pleasant surprise.

This is a book required for a college class I'm enrolled in. I was a little concerned when Amazon said it would take a few weeks to arrive, and later pushed back the arrival a few more weeks, but it arrived within a week of placing the order. The condition of the book itself was excellent; it was sold by the University of California Santa Barbara Bookstore and arrived with a receipt folded and placed between the pages. It did say the item was used, but there is no evidence of any use on any of the pages or the CD.The actual book is also pretty good, and could potentially be used to teach you the Arabic alphabet without outside help. It contains an introduction to each letter (in order), with uses of the letter, step-by-step instructions on how each letter is written, as well as guides for pronounciation, common phrases, and cultural lessons.Truthfully, my only real complaint is that on the cover of the book, the names of the contributors in Arabic don't follow the same order as the names written in English.

For a language that seems to have such an emphasis on beauty, precision and grace, this book is embarrassing. It is poorly laid out, with no chapter or section indication on each page, which makes the task of cross-referencing a big waste of time. (The Table of Contents is just not enough.) Plus the Arabic typography is so small as to require a magnifying glass for a reader with 20/20 vision.I understand the point of view not to include much transliteration. But why is there no unified table of all the Arabic alphabet, the multiple ways characters are written, and diacritical marks? The DVD has a table with just the basic alphabet, but nothing to show the nuance to writing the language. A chart like the Periodic Table of Elements could be beautiful and very helpful in learning the ways letters morph when they bond to form words and the subtleties of pronunciation of the vowels, etc.One strength of the book and DVD is the many different types of exercises it includes. In that regard it is stronger than other introductory language learning tools I have used.It would be simple to solve many of the navigation problems with this book and DVD. This would making working with the book and more importantly, that initial immersion in Arabic, much more enjoyable. On the other hand, if the goal of this text is to discourage all but the most zealous students, then it is perfect just the way it is.

Good book, it was required for a class, so I didn't have much choice. My first impression was that it was very academic and difficult for the beginner (I've used other Arabic text textbooks) The DVD is very helpful. One thing that is an absolute must is buying the answer key. There are several spelling dictation drills and other drills that are simply audio on the DVD. Without the answer key or a professor you have no feedback as to whether you're getting it right or not. My confidence and learning went up significantly after I purchased the answer key. Overall a good, thorough book.

Not easy to learn by yourself. You need some guidance from someone who knows the language.

Good Arabic textbook, but it is also my only one. It's a little dry (and that's coming from a language learner several times over). Love that though partially in English, it is bound right to left to get you used to Arabic formatting.

Needed this book for Arabic class but it was discontinued through our university bookstore. It stated there would be no CD, but for the price of this book, there was NO complaining about it. The professor didn't require the CD and the seller stated there would not be one anyway. Quick shipping and very happy with the book! Some of the exercises were filled out, but again, it did state that it was a used book.

I'm taking an Arabic class for which we use this book. I really like it, except for the fact that they don't always tell you what word it is (in English) that you are writing. Otherwise, it's great.

Ich habe mit dem Buch bereits als Schüler an einer Sprachschule gearbeitet und bin sehr gut damit zurecht gekommen. Die Multimedia-DVD hat - wie schon der Vorgänger - so ihre Mängel in der Abspielbarkeit und man braucht mitunter mehr als einen Anlauf, um sie gestartet zu bekommen. Aber wenn sie läuft, ... läuft sie.Das Lehrwerk ist sehr systematisch aufgebaut, und unterstützt durch die Verwendung einer (allerdings amerikanischen) Lautumschrift die phonetische Umsetzung der Schriftsprache. Wer aber englisch spricht, wird damit gut zurecht kommen.Gesamturteil: Sehr hilfreiches Lehrwerk.

It arrived quickly and was in good condition. I am sure it will be of great help when I am learning Arabic as part of my future university studies.

Thanks