Let's Read Latin with Tape [With 60 Minute]

by Ralph McInerny

Book Overview

At last, a user-friendly introduction to Church Latin using church and scriptural documents themselves, allowing the student to build up knowledge with meaningful texts. All paradigms, grammar, and... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 188335725X
• ISBN13: 9781883357252
• Release Date: November 1995
• Publisher: St. Augustine's Press
• Length: 184 Pages
• Weight: 0.60 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 5.5" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Where is my "TAPE"? Just received the book, no tape!

Where is my "TAPE"? Just received the book, no tape!

A great source

I really am impressed by this book. It gives a Catholic what he needs to begin saying his prayer in Latin. This book's main purpose is not to teach Latin but to teach what the Prayers are in Latin as a way to a fuller understanding of the prayers. English speakers tend to argue over this or that little word or even just where the word is placed in the sentence but to understand the Latin form really clears it up. This is a text not just to be studied from but to be used in my opinion. It is like a prayer book not just with the English translation but a way to Understand what the prayer really means. I would recomend this book to any Catholic who wants to say some or all of their prayers in Latin and understand them. I would not recomend this book to those that want to just learn Latin for Latin's sake, there are plenty of other books about pagan gods and ancient Rome and you will not find that sort of stuff in this book (thank God). This book moves from the Our Father, thought the various prayer of the rosary and psalms, to eventually get to the Summa Theologia. The explanations in the book for why something means what it does are really simple to understand but also insightful. More insturction could have been included but that would have moved the text away from focasing the reader on the prayers. It is the Prayers in this book that are the greatest value and the tape can help with the pronunciation and rythm.

EXCELLENT

I think this book is ideal for getting a good start on Latin. It is obviously best suited to those from a Christian (and especially Catholic) background. But from a Classical perspective, I think this text is the best of its kind for approaching Latin from any period, useful also for those who have no background or interest in Christianity. It gets the reader immersed in "real Latin" from the start, and the basic vocabulary and grammar here holds, overall, for Classical Latin prose. Highly recommended for any student, teacher, self-learner, or homeschooling family who wants to learn Latin.

a good supplement

I like this book despite the faults accurately documented byother reviewers here. This book gives you the ability toparse and understand some important selections ofEcclesiastical Latin. Earlier generations would have pickedup most of what this book offers simply by following theLatin liturgy. Since few of my generation have thisknowledge, this book makes a good and fun prequel to a realLatin textbook and to the necessary hard work andmemorization.It's also a good supplement to a real textbook in that itteaches you the prayers in Latin that you probably won'tfind in many textbooks. After just a few chapters, you canpray the complete Angelus and Rosary (including the Fatimaprayer, Creed, and everything else) in Latin.Of the faults mentioned by other reviewers, the mostserious in my experience is the lack of guidance inpronunciation. To a self-teacher this is especiallynoteworthy. The introductory section on pronunciation needsto be beefed up, and accent marks need to be added to thetexts to indicate stress.If you're going to teach yourself Latin, this book will notsuffice. You will definitely need a real textbook like theone by Scanlon and Scanlon or the one by Collins. However,you'll find "Let's Read Latin" a fun and helpful diversion from your regular exercises.

Excellent

I had been looking for a good introduction to Latin when, as Divine Providence would have it, I met the author of this work at a conference on the liturgy. He graciously gave me an autographed copy.I put it to use, and found it wonderful. The texts the author uses to teach Latin are the Church's basic prayers such as the Pater Noster (Our Father), Ave Maria (Hail Mary), and the Credo (Apostle's Creed as well as Nicean Creed). From these prayers, the author teaches Latin grammar, syntax, vocabulary and declenchants.I found it immensely useful, as well as a practical, especially for those who are looking to learn ecclesiastical (as opposed to classical) Latin.

NOT BORING

Even though I had taken 4 years of Latin in high school, I had lost proficiency in grammar, syntax, and vocabulary. Latin text books are BORING requiring tons of grammar and syntax review before reading anything interesting. This book helped bring me back up to speed in no time. Others have told us that it helped them start praying in Latin in a short time. To really become proficient you must USE the language. Get the Liturgy of the Hours in Latin and pray the psalms next to a Douay-Rheims bible translation. You will be reading Latin proficiently in no time.