Learning Icelandic Paperback – January 1, 2016

FOR CONTEXT: I am a native English speaker learning Icelandic on my own, and I have a background in intermediate-level Norwegian. From my experience, this book is amazing. Makes sense, as it was explicitly the only book recommended to me by a native Icelandic speaker who is a PhD student in linguistics. Here are some tips and tricks to get the most out of this book!On first impressions, the book LOOKED thinner than I had expected, as I have had huge French books in the past in school; however, this book is truly packed with information.My book didn't come with a CD, as I bought it used; however, there is a link online to follow along with the audio, which is much more convenient, in my opinion. I just googled the book name + 'audio' and found the link.The audio is VERY helpful. I wish there were many parts that could be slowed down, but it is super useful because each segment is short, and there are a variety of ages & genders of speakers. They are speaking slowly but naturally.****TIP: What you HAVE to do before actually setting out to explore the book though is LEARN THE ICELANDIC ALPHABET AND ITS DIFFERENT PRONUNCIATIONS. This is on the INSIDE COVER. Go through each letter THOROUGHLY. It helps to have a background in Old Norse or Norwegian, but if you don't this will be a godsend.I have run into parts of this book where I hear how something is pronounced but don't know how to create that sound. If you hear something and don't know how to physically make that sound with your mouth, go on the Internet and search! YouTube is great in aiding with the visual aspect or just further explanation. The Internet is always a great resource for nuanced questions. I have improved this way.Great as a workbook and as a reference guide, too. It's multifunctional.

Exactly what I expected. I bought a used copy, and, since there are exercises in the book, there is some writing in the book. However, the writing is not a detraction and the book is a great way to start learning the language. I would recommend googling icelandic orthography to help with pronunciation beyond the alphabet listed in the front.

My used copy lacks the CD files, but as a resource, despite the limited evaluation I can offer, this is considered the best self-teaching workbook. Exercises are immersive and this is aimed at learners from any background. It favors a more conversational, everyday tone than Teach Yourself/ aka Complete Icelandic. And compared to Colloquial Icelandic, it has four teachers instead of one working on it who also guide second-language courses in this language at the national university. There is a grammar exercise book to accompany this, at nearly twice this 160 pp. pagination.The 2001 ed. contents are fifteen lessons in conversation, a glossary, and a beginner's grammar. The lessons progress in typical pattern for primers. The glossary is featured at the bottom of the lessons as vocabulary as well as alphabetized in total halfway in. The grammar is more in-depth than you may encounter in textbooks for beginners. Finally, an answer key (small type) allows the self-taught learner to check accuracy.Icelandic is difficult as the endings remain on many words due to isolation from Danish or Norwegian, and those languages simplified in the thousand+ years since they shared a common ancestor with Icelandic, which is therefore closer to Old Norse. That alone might make it daunting for some but given I studied Old English three decades ago, I figured I'd find out more about this challenging language, little heard abroad.

Save your money. $75 for like 150 pages is a rip-off. I was expecting something that actually explained clearly and in detail the language, this does not do it at all. It's haphazardly constructed and throws way too much information at the learner with minimal explanation. Just go with Penguin or something else, this is a joke.