English as a Foreign Language Books

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Longman Classics)

Mark Twain

List Price: $9.53 By: Addison Wesley Publishing Company Amazon Marketplace: 7 new & used starting at $3.00

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 511 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Huck Finn 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

This book is required reading for my 16 yr old son....the
book arrived quickly & in great shape! Saved me driving all
over town to compete w/ other parents also looking!! Thanks!

Huckleberry Finn 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Huckleberry Finn is a classic. Simple as that. It provides a look into what life was probably like for a 19th century boy. It was different than the life of children today, because today life centers around education. Back then, it was a regular thing to play hooky, even though they got in trouble for it when they were caught. And when they were punished, usually it was with a beating instead of `You're Grounded!'.

The book shows us how badly slaves were treated. They weren't even considered humans! It was like they didn't have feelings, and didn't see things the same way white people did. They way the slaves actually did think was odd. It was sad to see that they could slap a slave for no reason, and the slave would accept it either because they were used to it or they thought that whites were better than them.

Huck Finn is rather unrealistic in the aspect of adventure. I'm guessing most boys back then didn't run off with an escaped slave to Cairo. The way that Mark Twain wrote the book was different than other first/second person books I've seen. The dialogue was very much like the 19th century southern Mississippi talk. Sometimes it got hard to decipher what a paragraph in slave-speak meant because it was so obscure.

All in all, Mark Twain's writing style is different than the traditional Southern book, but that doesn't detract at all from the story. I liked it!

Editorial Review:

'Cordially hated and dreaded by all the mothers of the town because he was idle, and lawless, vulgar, and bad - and because all their children admired him so', Huckleberry Finn, the fourteen-year-old son of the town drunkard, joins runaway slave Jim on an exciting journey down the mighty Mississippi River on a raft.

Pride & Prejudice (Oxford Bookworms)

Jane Austen

List Price: $5.95 By: Oxford University Press Amazon Marketplace: 7 new & used starting at $19.55

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 904 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Worth paying for on the Kindle 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

Kindle owners hopefully are aware of the wealth of free editions of the classics which are available through Feedbooks and other sources.

I obtained a copy of P&P from feedbooks originally and while it was easy to get and the price was right, the overall quality of the text is not great. I've found several typos, presumably the result of OCR errors and it's somewhat distracting.

Since P&P is one of my wife's favorite books, I was delighted to see
Penguin had released an electronic edition for $0.50 complete with the usual footnotes, essays and maps that one's used to
finding in textbook editions of the classics.

The table of contents is pretty minimal. The headings include the editor's material, and the three volume headings.

Editorial Review:

It's time to rediscover the wonderful books we all cherish.

Originally published anonymously in 1813, Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice is one of the most widely read and most popular novels in the English language. The courtship between the independent Elisabeth Bennett and the handsome yet arrogant Mr. Darcy illuminates the page in this wonderful novel of comedy and manners.

Kaplan TOEFL iBT with CD-ROM 2008-2009 (Kaplan Toefl Ibt)

Kaplan

Amazon Price: $23.10 List Price: $35.00 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Kaplan Publishing Amazon Marketplace: 62 new & used starting at $19.90

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 11 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

PROS AND CONS 4 out of 5 stars.
14 of 14 people found this review helpful.

I bought Cracking the TOEFL IBT with Audio CD, 2009 Edition (College Test Prep)( Princeton Review) and Kaplan TOEFL iBT with CD-ROM 2008-2009 (Kaplan Toefl Ibt) .i read both of them for one month and passed the ibt by 97. This is what I think about these two books on all four part of ibt:
Princeton Review
Reading 3 out of 5: good strategies but the readings are simpler than the real exam
Writing 5 out of 5: great strategies and samples with good drills
Speaking 4 out of 5: good strategies and drills but difficult to use on exam
Listening 4 out of 5: good strategies and sample but limited number
Overall 4 out of 5: the most important negative point is that it comes only with audio cd and you can not experience the real exam condition.
Kaplan
Reading 5 out of 5: great strategies and samples
Writing 2 out of 5: some useful techniques but not so helpful
Speaking 2 out of 5: some useful techniques but too general
Listening 4 out of 5: good strategies and examples
Overall 3.5 out of 5: the most important positive point is that you can create the real exam condition by its cd-rom at home.

Editorial Review:

Includes:

-4 practice tests on CD-ROM in iBT format

-Audio CD and transcripts of authentic-language conversations for listening comprehension 

-8 comprehensive chapters of reading, writing,  listening, and speaking practice

-Hundreds of strategies for answering  integrated skills questions

Much Ado About Nothing (New Swan Shakespeare. Advanced Series)

William Shakespeare

Amazon Price: $7.15 List Price: $7.15 Usually ships in 1 to 3 weeks By: Kaplan Publishing Amazon Marketplace: 12 new & used starting at $1.99

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 289 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Much Ado about...Nothing 1 out of 5 stars.
0 of 3 people found this review helpful.

It's as the title implies..nothing this film did nothing for me. None of the actors really seemed to sparkle or stand out (maybe that guy from House but barely). This movie also features Keanu Reeves in one of his worst acting roles since Bram Stoker's Dracula. It seems to me I get Shakespeare's dramas better than I get his comedies.The lines are supposedly witty and funny, funny to who an audience from ol' Willie's century? Maybe, or maybe the performance was too dumbed down to make it either but I digress.
There are some scenes I find totally pointless and dumb. The opening shot of the menfolk returning homes from a battle or something riding thier horses over the hill to some extremely corny triumph music "RIDING HORESES YAH! WOO look how cool we look riding slow-mo on our horses while making constipated faces. And another shot of the men and women getting ready to go greet each other by getting cleaned up, they show [...] shots of both sexes (though I think they linger disturbingly longer on the women) just for the sake of having [...] shots. And be warned the lighting for the mens shot has you seeing a little more than you want to.
Tell me when there's a good Shakespeare adaptation I can rave about Ciao!

Editorial Review:

Part of the "New Penguin Shakespeare" series, this book offers a complete edition of "Much Ado About Nothing". It has been prepared from the original texts and is accompanied by an introduction, a list of further reading, a full commentary, and a short account of the textual problems of the play.

The Old Man and the Sea

Ernest Hemingway

List Price: $6.95 By: MacMillan Publishing Company. Amazon Marketplace: 9 new & used starting at $9.00

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 685 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

The sea giveth...and the sea taketh away 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 4 people found this review helpful.

"The Old Man and the Sea" was Ernest Hemingway's last important work. Written in Cuba in 1951 and when published, it became one of his most recognize pieces. The work won him the Pulitzer prize in 1953 and the Nobel prize in literature in 1954.

*SPOILER*

This is the story of Santiago, a poor, humble Cuban fisherman who has been down on his luck for some time i.e. no catches lately. However on this day he ventures father out to sea than usual in his tiny skiff, and hooks the biggest Marlin he's ever seen. Thus the real story begins; a battle of epic proportions, drawn out over several days, between man and fish, man and the ocean, and man and himself.

What really impressed me about this short novel was Hemingway's ability to conjure a slowly increasing sense of foreboding and fear as his hero is dragged farther and farther off-shore by his immense 'prize'. With only himself to talk to and an ever dwindling supply of water and food there is something primordial about this situation that creeps into ones subconscious. In a great book the reader will usually identify in some way with the protagonist of a story, transferring some of the fears and anxieties of the hero into the reader, making for a more 'personal' and intense experience; this book is no exception.

Conclusion:
A short, spelling-binding tale that is beautifully written.
5 Stars.

Ray Nicholson

P.S.
I originally read this work some time ago because, of all things, a crossword puzzle...The clue was, 'What book with six words in the title and each word having 3 letters, won a Pulitzer prize.' From there it was a mere formality that I had to read this intriguing work.

Editorial Review:

The Old Man and the Sea is one of Hemingway's most enduring works. Told in language of great simplicity and power, it is the story of an old Cuban fisherman, down on his luck, and his supreme ordeal -- a relentless, agonizing battle with a giant marlin far out in the Gulf Stream. Here Hemingway recasts, in strikingly contemporary style, the classic theme of courage in the face of defeat, of personal triumph won from loss. Written in 1952, this hugely successful novella confirmed his power and presence in the literary world and played a large part in his winning the 1954 Nobel Prize for Literature.

Four Weddings and a Funeral (Penguin Joint Venture Readers)

Richard Curtis

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 115 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

You have got to be kidding me... 2 out of 5 stars.
4 of 4 people found this review helpful.

I've finally seen what people have said is the "best modern romantic comedy" around. They're joking? There might be that movie in this mess somewhere, but the script and editing kill it.
Charles (Hugh Grant) is a very attractive character and nicely written in his strengths (friendship, openness to the possibility of true love) and flaws (perpetually late, a complete lack of discretion). Carrie (Andie MacDowell) is less engaging. For someone supposedly so "experienced" (she lists 33 lovers), she apparently has no idea what she's doing in her relationships. She's attracted to Charles from the beginning but does absolutely nothing to encourage him other than invite him to have sex with her. (If Charles is a "serial monogamist" then she's a "serial monogamist" who cheats.) It makes one wonder how much is really there, how long before she's explaining to Charles that it just isn't working out, and there's this new guy who's now the one. After all, according to the script as shown, they've barely talked to each other.
The script is much too obvious. There are real clunkers of forced scenes including one where it feels like someone said "oh wait, we haven't made this person awful enough for what's about to happen to her so let's give her one really bitchy line." Charles's friends are a fascinating group, but only good acting prevents them from being cardboard stereotypes.
The film has no idea whether it's making meaningful statements about relationships or being a screwball farce. It could have been cut either way. As it is, it feels as deeply real and as cheaply funny as the unmoving waves in one backdrop.

Editorial Review:

The hilarious, Academy Award-nominated screenplay that features six old friends, three disastrous receptions, a tongue-tied priest, and the role that made Hugh Grant the world's favorite bumbling bachelor.Toasted by romantics and cynics, critics and fans, Four Weddings and a Funeral grossed more than $250 million worldwide, garnered Academy Award nominations for Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay, and was unanimously pronounced the romantic comedy of the 90s.Richard Curtis's smart, irreverent, and brilliantly crafted screenplay will delight fans of the movie, as well as screenwriters and film students. From the first spoken line to the last ("I do"), it's a jubilant celebration of friendship, romance, and good humor.

American Accent Training (Book and Audio CD, 2nd Edition)

Ann Cook

Amazon Price: $26.37 List Price: $39.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Barron's Educational Series Amazon Marketplace: 37 new & used starting at $21.90

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 85 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

A fantastic, often nefarious theme made easy! 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

I have to say this book is for us people who would like to master American English Pronunciation...This book is fantastic in the whole theme. The way it explain the letters: There's a chapter tha deals with the "T", which Ann Cook explains very extensively, has more than five different sounds in American English. The final chapter (an appendix) deals with the most usual problems people from different etnicities face up to when trying to talk English.

Before coming to this material I "THOUGHT" I Knew English. But, confronting the issues presented, I deducted I knew just Spanish in English (What I call literally speaking a language). More or less, speaking English with a Spanish base.

I have these CDs on my car and here them over and over. I use to hear one for weeks and the turn it over to the other...and then circle back to the first...

I certainly recommend this book to anyone who has not been born in USA and would like to talk a better English (American Accent).

A WORD OF CAUTION: As everything in life, the whole thing is just as good as you prove yourself you are capable: MEANING? It require you to "work it out" and try the different accents, rythms and tones variation proposed by Ann. It's certainly not amateur stuff!!!

Editorial Review:

The second edition of the highly acclaimed American Accent Training, now on 5 audio CDs, is for foreign-born students and business people working, traveling or studying in the United States and Canada. Through extensive intonation and pronunciation exercises, students learn how to speak with a standard American Accent. At the same time, listening comprehension improves dramatically. Supplementary materials included detailed nationality guides for eight languages (Chinese, Japanese, Indian, Spanish, French, German, Russian and Korean), access to a comprehensive website, and referral to a qualified telephone analyst for an individual diagnostic speech analysis. Also included are colored markers for written exercises, and a mirror to practice accurate pronunciation.

Angela's Ashes (Scholastic ELT Reader) (Scholastic ELT Reader)

Frank Mccourt

By: Mary Glasgow Magazines Amazon Marketplace: 4 new & used starting at $6.80

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 1832 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Loved it, loved it, loved it. 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

McCourt's child protagonist and his over-riding optimism, his natural-born inclination to make the best of things, makes an otherwise grim tale not only bearable but uplifting and heroic. Despite the daily, brutal grind of poverty, this child still manages to experience, wallow in, simple joys. Due to McCourt's honest voice, I felt every one of this kid's untidy, conflicted emotions. I LOVED this kid.

But after reading some of the criticism here, I think some people forget that this is first and foremost a MEMOIR. Memoirs are subjective by nature. So if McCourt's personal experience shows prejudice toward the Catholic Church, or if he seems to present a "stereotype" of the drunken, morose, Irish----that's HIS viewpoint----naturally. If you want a more balanced view don't read memoirs! Read academia! (It's like reading an autobiography of a politician and complaining that it's too political).

I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone who loves to read. The naysayers included. It's not a pretty story, but it IS heroic.

Barbarians at the Gate (Penguin Joint Venture Readers)

Bryan Burrough, John Helyar, B Burroughs

By: Penguin Amazon Marketplace: 6 new & used starting at $14.74

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Total reviews: 87 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

A Big Deal 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

Barbarians at the Gate is a classic of the business book genre, and with the private equity boom we have seen in the last couple of years, it is still as relevant as it was when it came twenty years ago. It is the story or some extremely unlikable rich people brought low by equally unsavory, but much smarter rich people, and it gives you an inside feel for the major wall street deal like no other book can.

Barbarians at the Gate is the story of an attempt to take RJR Nabisco private, and then the series of take over attempts that were instigated by the original privatization plan. Johnson, the CEO of RJR, comes off as pompous, full of himself, and not very smart. He's like a frat boy who makes it by glad handing people and buying rounds of drinks. Kravis, of legendary private equity firm KKR, comes off like a financier god. Brilliant, pushy, and beyond your puny human morals. Guess who gets the company in the end.

A must read for anyone interested in modern Wall Street.

Editorial Review:

Barbarians at the Gate has been called one of the most influential business books of all time -- the definitive account of the largest takeover in Wall Street history. Bryan Burrough and John Helyar's gripping account of the frenzy that overtook Wall Street in October and November of 1988 is the story of deal makers and publicity flaks, of strategy meetings and society dinners, of boardrooms and bedrooms -- giving us not only a detailed look at how financial operations at the highest levels are conducted but also a richly textured social history of wealth at the twilight of the Reagan era.

Barbarians at the Gate -- a business narrative classic -- is must reading for everyone interested in the way today's world really works.