Linguaphone

Unless you are near fluent in French and can therefore study Assimil's 'Le Norvegien sans Peine' this is probably the best Norwegian language learning tool in English. Unfortunately, the set is quite rare. This set of two books and the four cassettes is produced in Britain, but is still usable for North American English speakers. The tapes are entirely in Norwegian, and so are the lessons, so one must use the handbook for translation help. The Linguaphone system is quite complex. I have never seen any language book provide so many pages of instructions, in multiple ways, for how to use the system. In fact, I had to draw up a grid on paper so I knew in what order I was to listen, listen and repeat, read the lesson quietly to myself, read the lesson aloud, read along with the tape (shadowing), etc. However, the system really does work, and one will begin to pick up Norwegian quite well. The text is getting a little dated, as are the beautiful drawings that accompany each chapter. The drawings show lots of people smoking and drinking - a real martini culture, all standing around in very 50s homes having a great time. The language itself is a bit dated as far as their use of the formal you ('De') is stressed, something that is falling by the wayside in modern Norwegian as most people now use the informal you ('du'). Still, it's about the best thing going if you can find a copy. One last tip: learn each chapter's new vocab by making flashcards and drilling to perfection.… (meer)