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A free online copy (and downloadable .pdf).

In a departure from his Nobel prize-winning fiction, Garcia Marquez examines the November 7, 1990, abduction of well-known Colombian journalist Maruja Pachon and her sister-in-law by the "Extraditables," drug traffickers belonging to the Medellin Cartel. Among others kidnapped were the daughter of an ex-president of Colombia and the son of the owner of El Tiempo, Colombia's most important newspaper. The kidnappings were meant to force the government to take a stand against the extradition of drug traffickers to the United States. What ensues is a passionate account of the harrowing experiences suffered by the victims and the negotiations undertaken by Pachon's husband, Alberto Villamizar. A moving, dramatic account on par with the author's best works. - Jorge Gonzalez
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Las puertas retorcidas: The Scariest Way in the World to Learn Spanish is a unique book aimed at upper beginning and intermediate students. In fact, it is so unique that it's rather difficult to categorize, because it's all of the following rolled into one:

* Bilingual book (Spanish-English)
* Grammar book
* Audio book

The story relates the mysterious adventures of a girl and boy trapped in a scary house with twisted doors, and is illustrated with three dozen Victorian-like black-and-white illustrations. But there's much more to Las puertas retorcidas than just the story! Each chapter contains the following:

1. Passage from the book, in Spanish and English
2. Audio track of the Spanish passage
3. List of tricky vocabulary
4. Grammar lesson (mainly verbs and idiomatic expressions)
5. Grammar quiz
6. Answers to quiz

The first 12 chapters cover basic Spanish grammar in short, easy passages. From chapter 13 on, the story passages get progressively longer and more difficult, and the grammar lessons are very cleverly incorporated into the story itself. For example, in order to open locked doors, the protagonists have to recite certain vocabulary lists or verb conjugations that were dis

The superiority of Ollendorff's method of teaching languages is now universally acknowledged, both in the United States and in Europe. Divested of the ab-stractedness of grammar, it contains, however, all its elements; but it develops them so gradually, and in so simple a manner, as to render them intelligible to the most ordinary capacity. The difficulties are met singly, thoroughly analyzed, and made familiar by dint of a varied and interesting repetition. It is, therefore, hardly possible to go through this book with any degree of application, without becoming thoroughly conversant with the colloquial, idiomatic, and classic use of the Spanish language. Consequently, persons transacting business in the countries of which the Spanish is the vernacular tongue, will find this work to be their best guide in learning to speak it with propriety. For the benefit of persons grammatically acquainted with the English, or other languages, a Synopsis of the Spanish has been annexed as an Appendix, containing tables of the regular conjugations of the verbs, copious lists of the irregular verbs, general rules of etymology, syntax, etc., by means of which they may learn all the peculiarities of the Spanish, and make themselves perfect master

This is the companion book to Ollendorff's New method of Learning to Read, Write, and Speak. Both books are out of copyright and thus can be freely downloaded in .pdf from Google Books. This book might be even more useful for those already familiar with the grammar but who want to brush up with good sample sentences.

For the use of those who wish to obtain easily a practical knowledge of the Castillian language, with plain rules for its pronunciation, notes explanatory of the idioms and difficult expressions, and a copious vocabulary. It can be considered a sequel to Ollendorff's new method of learning to read,write and speak the Spanish language.

To its millions of fans, the Pattersons are just like their own families, facing universal issues among daily concerns. Containing a selection of 100 syndicated Spanish-language versions of the strip that is widely read in Latin America, Laugh 'n' Learn Spanish provides an entertaining and effective way to expand and polish conversational skills in Spanish.

Readers learn by understanding and learning natural, everyday verbal interactions at home and about town, following John and Ell Patterson as they attempt to come to terms with middle age; daughter Elizabeth as she spreads her wings and goes off to college; son Michael dating and then marrying his childhood sweetheart, Deanna; daughter April as she rebels against discipline, and grandpa who finds a second love in the autumn of his life. Each strip is graded by difficulty--Beginning, Moderate, or Challenging--and is accompanied by:
* Glosses that translate difficult vocabulary
* Usage notes to build proficiency
* A summarizing activity that tests comprehension
* Additional exercises for key idioms and word patterns appear at the end of each section

Featuring slang for both Spain and Latin America and indicates which expressions are used in which countries. Includes a section on native banter that will help readers make friends over a pitcher of Sangría and convince the local taco maker that it's OK to spice things up with a few fresh habaneros. The book also provides not-approved-for-nuns sex terminology graphic enough to embarrass the street walkers of Madrid's infamous Red Light district.

Speaking Spanish Like a Native makes eye contact with the reader. This book will awaken the student to a more lively way of learning while spicing up their Spanish speaking ability. Written in an entertaining and colorful style, Speaking Spanish Like a Native pulls you out of the classroom and places you into the huddle with native Spanish speakers—giving you the inside scoop on words, phrases, and expressions you cannot get from textbooks. While many books merely inform, this one also teaches, and it leads by example—practical and engaging examples that show the student how to speak in the context of real conversations with native speakers.

A complete reference grammar book of Spanish. Explanations are provided in English, examples translated, for easy understanding. The grammar is completely cross-referenced for quick access to further information if needed. Summary charts give an overview of each topic and enable readers to check information at a glance. Complete conjugation tables give immediate access to verb forms. The appendix contains a list of more that one thousand verbs with their complement structure. Another special feature of the book is the self-correction strategies which help users diagnose and correct their own errors, as they learn the language and use it to communicate their thoughts orally and in writing.

If you are at an intermediate level of Spanish, and can understand basic conversations and make yourself understood in most situations then this dual-language book is an enjoyable challenge to your Spanish reading skills.

You will need to have a strong grasp of Spanish grammar and verbs to be able to read the stories without checking a reference book each page, but the English translation provides a complete reference. The most advanced your Spanish is, the less you will need to rely on the translation. For this reason the book can be a useful tool in judging how your studies are progressing. Reading the book one month may prove tedious as you have to look up many words, while a few months later you may discover that you are able to read easily without needing to refer to the English version too much.

The stories are by notable authors such as Allende, G. Garcia Marquez, and Fuentes, and the English translations are true to the feeling and overall tone of the original Spanish, even when it is at the cost of providing a less literal translation. This is itself is an interesting element to the book, making you think about how context can affect word choice.

A variety of Spanish speaking countries are represented in the choi

Lights, Camera, Spanish! is a revolutionary, look-listen-and-learn approach to language skills, specially created for you, the movie lover, who wants a crash course in Spanish. The DVD includes a full-length feature film packed with passion, romance, danger . . . and dialogue that’s easy to learn and fun to watch. The workbook features dialog reviews, a Spanish-English mini-dictionary, and written and oral exercises to help you strengthen Spanish skills--while providing a front-row seat to the best Spanish class ever.

Grammar is the glue that holds language together. It governs how sentences are made up, how words change depending on subject and context, and how verbs conjugate to reflect whether something happened in the past, present or future. Unfortunately grammar is also one of the most detested and difficult parts of learning a language. Demystifying Spanish Grammar attempts to shed some of students’ anxiety about tackling these topics.

The book deals with some of the trickier elements of Spanish grammar, including accents, common irregular verbs, challenging tenses and common mistakes using prepositions. The tone of the author is at all times friendly and easy to read, while being very clear in his explanations of each element.

He makes it clear that these are common errors encountered by most Spanish students, so you don’t have that feeling that you just aren’t smart enough to get it right.

The book includes exercises to help you practice what you have learned and check your progress. This way you can make sure that you really understand what has been explained.

The mnemonic devices provided are a great way to help you to remember those important rules without feeling overwhelmed or trying to recite them all by rote.

Many language books are boring--this one is not. Written by a native English speaker who learned Spanish the hard way--by trying to talk to Spanish-speaking people--it offers English speakers with a basic knowledge of Spanish hundreds of tips for using the language more fluently and colloquially, with fewer obvious "gringo" errors. Writing with humor, common sense, and a minimum of jargon, Joseph Keenan covers everything from pronunciation, verb usage, and common grammatical mistakes to the subtleties of addressing other people, "trickster" words that look alike in both languages, inadvertent obscenities, and intentional swearing. He guides readers through the set phrases and idiomatic expressions that pepper the native speaker's conversation and provides a valuable introduction to the most widely used Spanish slang. With this book, both students in school and adult learners who never want to see another classroom can rapidly improve their speaking ability. Breaking Out of Beginner's Spanish will be an essential aid in passing the supreme language test--communicating fluently with native speakers.