This extensive guide to mastering the local Spanish idiom includes an extensive section on the flora and fauna of Costa Rica; food, accommodation and getting around; clear guides to grammar and pronunciation; and a comprehensive two-way dictionary.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
By Tom Sawyer
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
At last a phrasebook that is logically organised, with a clear and conscise style. Everything you need to get you through the airport, travelling onwards to your final destination and surviving once you get there. The phrases cover most situations you are likely to meet and the colloquialisms are accurate. This book should provide for non Spanish speakers as well as those requiring a practical, more detailed pocket reference....look no further
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
4.0 out of 5 stars
26 reviews
49 of 53 people found the following review helpful
1.0 out of 5 stars
Buy a good bilingual dictionary instead
14 Dec 2003
By Dr. John Mitchell Hall
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Paperback
As a professor of Spanish I was hoping to find a good phrasebook on Costa Rican Spanish for a group of students that will be studying in San Jose next summer. I have always used Lonely Planet's guides when travelling abroad. However, I was very disappointed with this phrasebook. Beginning with the explanation of pronunciation, which is basically a guide to pronouncing Spanish with a strong American accent, the book is full of elementary mistakes regarding grammar, vocabulary and phonetics. For example, the "o" in Spanish is never pronounced as the "o" in "hot". There are similar mistakes throughout the pronunciation section. Perhaps one of the most important facts about Costa Rican Spanish is the complete absence of the subject pronoun "tu" (you) and its accompanying verb conjugations, as is the case in most of Central America, Argentina and many regions throughout Latin America. All Costa Ricans either use the more formal "usted" or the less formal "vos". You will never hear "tu tienes" (you have) in Costa Rica but rather "vos tenes". But this phrasebook claims that the "vos" forms are less common than "tu", when in fact the later doesn't even exist there. There are many more mistakes in the explanation of grammar, the subjunctive, "ser" and "estar", and others. The rest of the book is a series of phrases with the English translation. You would assume that Lonely Planet would have the resources to provide better material for travelers.
23 of 23 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
a taste of home
6 Sep 2000
By Juan Marroquin
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Paperback
As a Costa Rican living in the US, I often think of my beautiful home country. This book, by Thomas Kohnstamm, brought back many memories of home and brought a smile to my face. It is accurate and contains many quirks of Tico culture and language that I had started to forget about. I especially like it because it is respectful of our culture and appreciates our land and people. It does not treat Costa Rica just as another travel destination. If you plan to visit Costa Rica you should definitely check out this book.
20 of 20 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Travel more intelligently with this phrasebook
19 July 2000
By stephen newman
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Paperback
I was extremely pleased to see that Lonely Planet came out with a phrasebook specific to Costa Rica. Prior to this, they (and most other guidebook companies) had only general Latin American Spanish phrasebooks. This was silly as Spanish varies considerably from country to country in Latin America. The author, Mr. Kohnstamm, does an amazing job of including the nuances of the Costa Rican dialect while offering interesting cultural insight and traveling tips. This book is perhaps a little over the head of your average tour group or package tourist. However, for those who see travel as a way or life and as an art form, this is an indispensible text. Costa Rica is a travel hot spot and sees greater numbers of foreign visitors each year. This phrasebook will help the reader to respect the local culture and conduct themselves in an efficient, responsible manner while traveling in Costa Rica. I highly recommend this phrasebook to anyone plannning to live, study or take an extended trip to Costa Rica.
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