No comments about A Mussalmani Bengali-English Dictionary.

No comments about Bengali Language Handbook.

No comments about Learn Bengali yourself.

3 comments about Lonely Planet Bengali Phrasebook.

1. The author could have expressed more of desire to understand than explain. The phrases are allogorical of the many multilingual facets available in such a small country. Yet she does give some adequate examples of rudimentary uses of phrases. Thus, one can view Bimal Maity's efforts to categorize variations in the languages of Bangladesh fruitless at best. But the truth is, I have not read the book and can only surmise of the book's content by reading the title.



2. I spent 25 days in West Bengal with this book on me at all times. After leaving Calcutta, I found very few people who could speak much English. As it was designed for, it was fast to use to find a phrase, and pretty easy to be understood when reading. I needed few words that were not included in the book. I intend to use phrasebooks every time I want to learn a language - before I leave for the country.



3. I bought this book as one of the several "tools" I am using to learn Bengali. The book starts with an explanation of the transliteration used and a brief explanation of grammar. It then goes into common words and phrases. The book provides both transliteration and the Bengali script for many phrases. There is an excellent glossary at the back of the book that is listed alphabetically in English. It also includes transliteration and Bengali script. This is excellent for building your Bengali vocabulary. For information on how to incorporate a phrase book into your language learning process I recommend "How to Learn Any Language: Quickly, Easily, Inexpensively, Enjoyably and on Your Own" by Barry J. Farber.

No comments about Mother of My Heart, Daughter of My Dreams: Kali and Uma in the Devotional Poetry of Bengal.

1 comments about Grandma Nana (English-Bengali) (Veronique Tadjo).

1. This is a great book for my students from the African continent. The book comes in French and Somali so I can cover many students from that region. Grandmothers are very important to their cultures so it is very refreshing and nice to see books created to enhance literacy and cultural development for these students. I'm going to get it in Vietnamese also.

4 comments about Milet Flashwords (English-Bengali) (Milet Flashwords series).

1. I speak to my son in Portuguese. I find it extremely difficult to find quality reinforce materials to use. I enjoy the durabilty of the cards, they have held up to my 2 year old son. The pictures are good and easy to understand. I use them as flash cards as well as scavenger hunt tickets.



2. The cards are attractive, but too many of the words turn out to be merely transcriptions of English words into Bengali script. Yes, Bangla has adopted English words--and English has absorbed Bangla words--but as a tool for learning the language, a different set of images/words or an attempt to find a Bangla equivalent for the image would have been much more useful.



3. The cards are simple but nice- Very good way to start teaching the little ones the language.
   
   However as there are many terminology for the same word, depending on wether you are Northern, Southern or Middler, you may have to change the word a little bit.
   
   Diem-Tu



4. These cards are good quality. I bought them to help me teach my sons Portugues for when we go to Brasil next year. I want them to be able to ask for simple things like water, juice, fruit etc. I was hoping these cards would have more pictures of every day things like spoon, fork, cup, etc. The boys enjoy them though! They are 6, 5 and 16 months old.

5 comments about Bengali: A Complete Course for Beginners (Teach Yourself).

1. I've been to B'desh and one MUST be able to read Begali script to get around. I especially like the way it pushs you early on into reading the Begali sript instead of transliteration. I have found it more useful than the HEAD language modules that I have. His grammar sections are well presented and drilled. GET the tapes. Yes, the language is phonetic, but practicing comparison with a native speaker can't be beat. Also check out other languages in this series. I have Norwegian as well and found it equally useful.



2. I nedded to lear bengali because I was going to work as a Volunteer for the missionaries of charity (Mother Teresa) in Calcutta, India. At the begining, it can be hard, but if you want, it works, but also I had to practice a lot in the streets, that was the mos important part, but now I can say I can comunicate in bengali. Ekon ami bangla Jani!



3. If you want to learn Bengali there are very few resources available, which makes this book a must have to learn grammar.

   The book is divided up into four major sections:
   * Teaches all the major Bengali letters
   * Grammar - each section includes a conversational portion (which has an English translation), an explanation of the grammar used in the conversation, and then some exercises (which I found very helpful for reinforcing the concepts).
   * Bengali literature and poetry (with English translations)
   * An extensive glossary of Bengali words using both script and transliteration, which is great if you don't have a dictionary.

   The two tapes included are very useful for learning the proper pronunciations.

   The one issue I had with the book is that the author uses a lot of grammatical terms such as "diminutive form of the article", "locative case" etc. without explaining what they mean. This made it a little difficult to understand what he was explaining at times.

   I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn Bengali. You will learn to speak, read and write the language by the end.




4. This is meant for those who really want to learn the language as opposed needing a few phrases on their round-the-world trip.

   It's particularly strong at the beginning as it walks you through the process of learning the Bengali script. A good tool to coach you into genuinely 'reading' the Bengali script rather than always trying to think in the English equivalent.

   I wanted to learn Bengali because I'm married to a Bengali and I wanted to communicate with my in-laws. After studying the book, I was ready to start really trying to pick up words while I was in Calcutta. The problem was, I only got about halfway through the book before it seemed to accelarate too quickly without offering enough to help build my vocab. Translating Tagore by the end of the book? Ummm...yeah, I think that's a bit unrealistic. I learned most of my vocabulary from the Lonely Planet Bengali phrasebook and from talking to my in-law's maid.

   Considering there aren't many options, it's probably the best place to start, but at the very least you'll need a good Bengali-English dictionary to accompany it...and I have yet to find a good one of those that's geared for English speakers.




5. I was terribly disappointed that the CDs do not include the phrase in English. You have to have the book in front of you or you will not know what is being said. Not good for listening while exercising or driving. Also, the phrases come pretty rapidly, not enough time to do a careful pronunciation and absorb the meaning.
   
   For the serious student who wants to sit down and learn to read and write Bengali as well as speak it, it is a good textbook.

2 comments about Rama and the Demon King: An Ancient Tale from India (Bengali-English Bilingual Edition).

1. Whether you are familiar with the Ramayana or not, this is a wonderful introduction to the main plot and characters. My 4-yr old daughter likes this story and actually has grown to love it more. It is very difficult to create a kid-friendly version that is nonviolent but also educational. Jessica Souhami does a wonderful job. I hope such a book will come out regarding the Mahabharta.



2. My children have loved this book since I purchased it about 2 years ago (they are now 4 and 6). The illustrations are wonderful and the story beautifully told. I would highly recommend this to any parent for their young children.

1 comments about Milet Mini Picture Dictionary: English-Bengali.

1. Sturdy book. Colourful pictures. Simple everyday words to start off with. A good place to begin.