Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I bought the product last year and have completed all of the lessons. Trust me - I agree with several of the other reviewers that it is really a great tool - if not the best that I've come across for dealing with everyday conversation. Being a very skeptical person with stuff like this, I admit that this is the only audio course that I have bought, and honestly don't think I'll purchase others. I did a lot of research before I tried the LSLC Level 1 system. I live in Trinidad and Tobago (unlike any of the other reviewers that I have seen so far). TnT is located just 9km (about 5-6 miles) off of the coast of Venezuela, and 99.5% of the population here knows just a handful of Spanish words. After taking a course at the Venezuelan Embassy here for two years, I still found it quite difficult to understand them when they spoke - especially among themselves! I can read and write it quite well, but still had great difficulty understanding the natives. After studying the first maybe 14 lessons, I visited some friends of mine over there in December, and to my surprise I understood them a heck of a lot more. By the way, these folks speak much faster than Mexicans and Colombians in normal conversation - particularly those from the Eastern part of the country, so most of you have virtually no stress, since most Americans interact with Mexicans or Puerto Ricans. Try conversing with someone from Guiria, Venezuela to see what I'm talking about! The Mexicans I have interacted with speak very clearly compared to most Venezuelans - and the accent is easier to understand. Of course the LSLC instructors were quite easy to understand, and YEAH - it's a CD, so you don't have to ask them to say something again! I would recommend the course for anyone, but would like to sort of categorize it (hope it helps somewhat): - Beginners: You need some good reference material and a tutor to work with, alongside the course. The course is not ALL! 501 Spanish Verbs by Christopher Kendris, and Dorothy Richmond's 'Practice Makes Perfect' series of workbooks - these are GREAT! A good dictionary such as the Oxford Spanish Dictionary is a must. NOT a pocket dictionary - at least not for serious learners. The Oxford is bulky, but it contains many idiomatic explanations and context-based translations for virtually all the words it contains, along with explanations of the nuances of using certain words - again, in context. Regional differences are well-covered in this dictionary. There is no dictionary out there that comes close - although the latest Collin's tries really hard. I have lots of reference books, but I have found these outstanding in building stuff clearly so one could understand without boring drills. - Intermediate: I think the best way to treat this is to relate my own experience. This course helped me to fill the gaps in my understanding of certain annoying things that you don't see in texts and that are not found in other audio courses - stuff like '¿Como?' meaning 'What was that?' or 'What did you say?' in English, clearly explained. Before, I used to say '¿Qué?' and any native speaker would look at me kind of funny, but I never knew my (potentially rude) error until I used the course material in Nivel 1. You can find yourself in some embarassing positions if stuff like that is missed in your speech. I did learn a lot of new stuff with the course as well, such as a few idiomatic expressions that you can't really translate directly. And yes - your accent becomes really HOT! My friends told me they were amazed at how I sounded when I visited. Of course I felt great, even though I knew that I still have much more work to do. - Advanced: Heck, you don't really need this stuff - this is for newbies and the peeps like me who are still striving toward fluency! Anyway, I think that even advanced non-native speakers may pick up something small in here, maybe as revision or something. Dive in, folks. For those of you who have used the more antiquated products that focus on mainland (Spain) Spanish, you'll really appreciate this stuff (it is for Latin American Spanish). The use of different people from at least two countries really helps you differentiate the accents. Remember, my problem was lack of listening skill (and still is to a great extent), so that's how I addressed it. LSLC allows you to attack both speaking and listening at the same time, so if they're your squeeze, get the course. The FSI material included is wonderful for rigorous reinforcement, but it's not as much fun as the LSLC. It's actually quite mechanical, BUT has serious material, so it should be used too. Hey, a tip I have tried is to buy some music in at least one genre that you really love, performed strictly in Spanish, and listen to it over and over. You will be amazed at how well your listening will improve and you'll be checking that dictionary pretty often too. I have several albums that I listen to, and I tell you - they've helped plenty. This also seems to reinforce your ability to hear words slumped together as individual or logical groups, and at least for me, allows you to start to figure out missed or unclear words based on the other words around them. Now handle yuh scene! Sweet TnT!!