Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

In the preface to this book, the author, Margarita Madrigal, promises that if you complete this book, you will then be able to go to a Spanish speaking country and understand them. I will now go that far and agree with the author because I believe that in order to speak and understand Spanish with confidence, you will need a learning-Spanish audio program to supplement this book. But as the author promises, I honestly believe that this book will help you to do the following: 1. Speak Spanish 2. Read Spanish 3. Write in Spanish 4. Think in Spanish There are so many things that I like about this book. For starters, the author of this book uses a very interesting method to help you quickly learn Spanish. What she does is teach the reader how to add hundreds and hundreds of Spanish words to his or her vocabulary by simply using the English words that you already know. For example, did you already know that the following words are both Spanish and English words: Actor Popular Animal Capital hotel Radio Conductor Probable Cable Ideal Flexible The only difference is the pronunciation is different in Spanish. But the words are spelled the same way and have the same meaning in both Spanish and English. In addition to showing the reader that he or she already knows many Spanish words because there are so many English words that are spelled the same and that have the same meaning, the author also shows how the reader can take many English words that he or she already knows and convert them into Spanish words just by making small changes in the words. For example, the author shows how we can convert many English words that end in “ist” into Spanish words by adding the letter “a” to them: Pianist – el pianista Violinist – el violinista Dentist – el dentista Oculist – el oculista Capital – el capitalista Communist – el comunista Novelist – el novelista Optimist – el optimista I also found it beneficial that there is a helpful pronunciation key at the beginning of the book. Another thing that I really like about this book is that after every 9 or 10 lessons, there are a series of tests that help you test your progress and see how far you have come. Near the end of the book, there is also a section called “Common Spanish Expressions” where you’ll find five pages packed with helpful Spanish expressions, such as: Acabar de (plus infinitive) - to have just A pesar de – in spite of Buena suerte – good luck Claro – of course Dar la mano – to shake hands Echar la culpa – to blame Esta vez – this time Me alegro de verlo – I am happy to see you No lo haga – don’t do it No es justo – it isn’t fair Otra vez – again Poco a poco – little by little Ya lo creo – now I believe it At the very end of this book, there is a handy 35-page “Vocabulary” section that is organized like a dictionary. You will find Spanish words from “a” (to, at) all the way to “zoologia” (zoology). Out of the 45 chapters covered in this book, my favorites were Chapter 41 and Chapter 42. In chapter 41, the author teaches The Present Subjunctive and breaks down how to express hope, fear, doubt and desire in Spanish. In chapter 42, the author teaches The Past Subjunctive and breaks down how to express past hopes, fears, doubts and desires in Spanish. She even explains how to use the conditional and past subjunctive together. In other words, you will learn how to express the following in Spanish: I would write a letter if I had the time. She would buy an airplane if it were possible. They would watch the movie if were interesting. In chapter 42, Madrigal also covers the Past Perfect Subjunctive which enable you to express the following in Spanish: I would have known the lesson if I had studied. We would have spoken Spanish if we had studied. If they had had time, they would have traveled to Spain. The reason why Chapters 41 and 42 are my favorite chapters is because these are the chapters that teach the Spanish subjunctive. I, like many native English speakers, find that the Spanish subjunctive is one of the most difficult areas of Spanish. In Chapters 41 and 42, Madrigal does a fantastic job breaking-down the complex topic of the Spanish subjunctive. The only thing that I did not like about this book is that the vocabulary does not cover modern technology. The first edition of this book was written in 1951. This book seriously needs to be updated. You will learn how to say the Spanish words for telephone, newspaper and telegram. But don’t expect to learn how to say cellphone, website or email in Spanish. Although this book does not teach you any Spanish words related to modern technology, I still recommend that buy this book because it will allow you to quickly learn hundreds of Spanish words quite easily – just by using the English words that you already know. By the way, this same author, Margarita Madrigal, has another helpful book that you will find available here at Amazon: If you have any questions about Madrigal's Magic Key, please post your questions below and I will do my best to answer. In closing, I’ll leave you with the 3 learning-Spanish resources which are currently my favorites. (My list of favorites changes from time to time so you may want to check my list periodically.): UPDATED: 1-25-2023 1. Learn Spanish for Beginners and Adults: Learning Spanish Like Crazy Level One – New and Improved Version (Lessons 1 to 30) This is my favorite program for learning how to actually speak the language and how to understand spoken Spanish even it is spoken by fast-speaking, everyday native Spanish speakers (as opposed to Spanish instructors and airline personnel). With that said, it is not one of the best for learning how to read and write the language. For reading and writing there are far better choices. But to accomplish spoken fluency which includes developing a native-like accent and pronunciation, and being able to understand even fast speaking native speakers, this is the best I've found. 2. 501 Spanish Verbs (501 Verb Series). If you think you can accomplish fluency in Spanish as an adult without mastering conjugating Spanish verbs, you are only fooling yourself. This book is an absolute essential resource for learning how to conjugate Spanish verbs. It will show you how to conjugate every Spanish verb tense imaginable. The version I have also includes a bonus CD which teaches both regular verbs and irregular verbs. 3. Learn Basic Spanish with Fast Lane Spanish: Get in the Learning Spanish Fast Lane - Get In The Learning Spanish Fast Lane. This is from the same publisher that created Learn Beginner Spanish. What I love about this audio program besides the fact that they use the same teaching style found in Learn Beginner Spanish which includes native Spanish-speaking actors to help you get an authentic accent, this program does a great job of teaching Spanish pronouns and prepositions in a natural way. Most programs seem to skip over this topic and only focus on conjugating Spanish verbs. I am also impressed with Learn Basic Spanish's bonus package which allows you to attend a free, live, interactive monthly Webinar taught by a Spanish teacher from Colombia.