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Title: Reading Greek: Text by Joint Association of Classical Teachers ISBN: 0-521-21976-0 Publisher: Cambridge University Press Pub. Date: 02 November, 1978 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $20.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.33 (12 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: Tough going, but valuable
Comment: Before you buy into this book series, go clear off your desk. You're going to need a lot of space to spread out your Reading Greek library.
At a minimum, you will need two books: the "Text," which includes Greek readings with brief English introductions, and "Grammar, Vocabulary and Exercises," (GVE) which includes the actual pedagogical materials to guide you through the Text's readings. You'll need both books open at the same time to do your work.
Two books might not be enough if you're studying on your own. You will also want to pick up "An independent study guide to Reading Greek." This book gives slightly more in-depth discussion of the vocabulary and grammatical points covered in GVE, translations of the Text, and answers to the GVE exercises. And if you're teaching yourself, you can pick up "The teachers' notes to Reading Greek." This book gives tips on how to manage the materials in the two basic books. If you know a little Greek before you start, this book helps you figure out what strategy the authors are pursuing.
But you're not done. There's a thin "Greek vocabulary" that goes with the series. It provides all the vocabulary for the Text in one place. And there is a nice history of ancient Greece that complements the text, "The world of Athens." This book provides background on Greek culture, politics, and arts. The independent study guide cross-references sections in "The world" to chapters in the "Reading Greek" books. Very helpful when you come across a cultural reference and wonder what it means.
But wait--that's not all. If you can make it through all these books, there are two readers to continue your studies. One is an anthology of classic Greek texts, the other an introduction to the later, New Testament Greek. I hope someday to be in a position to make use of them.
One last thing. If you're like me and need to hear a language to learn it, you should listen to the audio tape that accompanies the series. Be warned that the audio quality is not so good. The recordings are rather noisy, making it hard to hear exactly how the speakers are pronouncing things. But since no one really knows how Attic Greek sounded, maybe you don't need to listen that closely.
Finally, concerning the value of the texts themselves: I find this series difficult to use, but worthwhile. In lesson one, the authors teach you the Greek alphabet and then drop you right into a seven page Greek story. (Perhaps the authors were inspired by that girl in Nabokov's Pnin who thought that, "once you learn the Cyrillic alphabet, you can read 'Anna Karamazov' in the original!") The vocabulary for the first lesson alone must number over 150 words. This approach makes for tough going at first. I can imagine many people give up half way through lesson one. I know I did. Then I spent a few months with a good Koine Greek program, one with better scaffolding for the beginner (William Mounce's,) before coming back to Reading Greek.
Bottom line: these books are well done, but dense and very demanding. If you're studying Greek on your own, you'll require either a lot of persistence--or assistance from other texts--to get you over the hump at the beginning of the course.
Rating: 3
Summary: the weak part of reading greek
Comment: I like Reading Greek, because as an experienced language learner (Latin and/or other foreign languages) you can read really quickly and fluently. But if you're looking for a clear exposure to grammar, with nice charts etc., the book is not for you. And using the book, I'll need an additional reference grammar soon.
Rating: 4
Summary: good if you have no problems with grammar
Comment: In my view the book (along with the exercise and the self-study book) serves its purpose to make the adult learner read original greek as quickly as possible. It has 19 sections and several sections have a common theme (Socrates, Aristophanes, women in Greece etc.) what I like a lot. I am doing 1 section per week, so it leads me to (adapted) Platon in 5 weeks and I hope reading the first unadapted textes within three months. This is really exciting ! I've learnt Latin in school and I remember years of textbook work without much reference to original literature. I agree however with other reviewers that the grammar and exercise book is poorly organized. If you know latin and have no difficulties in learning grammar, the book is good for self-study. But you will have to redraw some charts on your own or use a reference grammar. If you prefer a clear exposure to grammar and don't mind reading original textes a little later, choose another one.
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Title: An Independent Study Guide to Reading Greek by Joint Association of Classical Teachers ISBN: 0521478634 Publisher: Cambridge University Press Pub. Date: 20 July, 1995 List Price(USD): $26.00 |
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Title: Reading Greek: Greek Vocabulary by Joint Association of Classical Teachers ISBN: 0521232775 Publisher: Cambridge University Press Pub. Date: 09 October, 1980 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
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Title: Morphology Charts: Reading Greek by Joint Association of Classical Teachers ISBN: 0521220521 Publisher: Cambridge University Press Pub. Date: 22 February, 1979 List Price(USD): $16.00 |
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Title: The World of Athens by Joint Association of Classical Teachers ISBN: 0521273897 Publisher: Cambridge University Press Pub. Date: 30 January, 1984 List Price(USD): $30.00 |
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Title: Speaking Greek Cassette by Joint Association of Classical Teachers ISBN: 0521239133 Publisher: Cambridge University Press Pub. Date: 30 April, 1981 List Price(USD): $26.00 |
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