Easy Russian for English Speakers Vol. 1 & 2: Learn to Speak and Understand Russian; From everyday essentials to Chekhov, Pushkin, Gagarin and Shakespeare: Amazon.co.uk: Max Bollinger: Books

Book Description

Publication Date: 27 Sep 2010

For Students and Travellers

The Russian audio course that jumps right into learning the language with expertly designed structure of the lessons and their thematic organization to benefit English Speakers. Engaging, attention grabbing, infused with cultural content to deliver immediate results for those who needs to master Russian fast. The first CD in the set includes essentials such as greetings, travelling, numbers, food and drink, shopping, getting around town, business meetings, dating and telling the time. Followed by more detailed explanation of Russian phonetics, Russian names, birthdays, taking about planet Earth, flying on a Russian space ship, and cultural content with fragments from Chekhov stories, Gagarin's speech, and Shakespeare in Russian, included in second CD . No special equipment or software required. Audio CD can be used with PC, lap-top, home stereo or transferred to ipod, cell phone or MP3 player.

Russian Language Qualifications

Qualifications available from various examination boards outside Russia include EdExcel in the UK offering GCSE and A-Level exams in Russian Language and expects students to learn not only the language itself, but also about the culture and traditions of the native countries. Easy Russian will be most valuable in achieving such objectives. It includes rich cultural content and insights into Russian literature, humour and etiquette. Volumes 1 and 2 aim primarily to develop speaking, listening and understanding skills. In Volume 2 students are also given the opportunity to download free PDF materials for each unit in order to improve their understanding of written Russian. These free text materials can be downloaded from www.easyrussian.co.uk. Future releases of Easy Russian materials will make it a complete and comprehensive resource for students wishing to develop fluency in Russian language

For Teachers

Easy Russian audio materials offer some tuition, phonetics, grammar and native Russian audio content. It will be possible for adults and younger students to achieve good understanding of Russian language outside classroom through Easy Russian. Volume 2 in particular provides PDF downloads which can be used by tutors in classrooms. Additional feature of Volume 2 which will be useful for teachers running Russian language classes is inclusion of Chekhov, Gagarin and Shakespeare texts both inside longer modules and separately at the end of the CD, so that each text could be played back easily without English tutorial.

Vol.1 CD 1

01 GREETINGS, WELCOME
02 ALPHABET, SPELLING
03 SPEAKING AND UNDERSTANDING
04 TRAVELLING BY TAXI
05 THEATRE TICKETS, NUMBERS 1-10
06 HOTEL, CONCIERGE
07 ORDERING FOOD AND DRINK
08 SHOPPING, POSSESSIONS
09 DIRECTIONS, GETTING AROUND TOWN
10 SUGGESTIONS, NUMBERS 10-100
11 TELLING THE TIME
12 MAKING PHONE CALLS
13 APPOINTMENTS, WEEKS, MONTHS
14 BUSINESS MEETINGS
15 DATING SOMEONE
16 MYSTERIOUS RUSSIAN SOUL
17 SAYING GOODBYE

Vol.2 CD 2

01 INTRODUCTION
02 UNDERSTANDING RUSSIAN NAMES
03 LEARNING RUSSIAN LIKE A NATIVE
04 TO BE OR NOT TO BE IN RUSSIAN
05 SPEAK RUSSIAN LIKE A RUSSIAN
06 TALKING ABOUT OUR PLANET
07 READING CHEKHOV IN ORIGINAL
08 GAGARIN ABOUT PLANET EARTH
09 GAGARIN ABOUT LANDING
10 SHAKESPEARE IN RUSSIAN
11 CHEKHOV IN RUSSIAN

#outer_postBodyPS { display: none; } #psGradient { display: none; } #psPlaceHolder { display: none; } #psExpand { display: none; } For Students and Travellers

Russian Language Qualifications

For Teachers

Vol.1 CD 1

Vol.2 CD 2

Frequently Bought Together

Easy Russian for English Speakers Vol. 1 & 2: Learn to Speak and Understand Russian; From everyday essentials to Chekhov, Pushkin, Gagarin and Shakespeare

Easy Russian for English Speakers Vol. 3: Speak Russian in Colour; Express Emotions; Discuss Weather, Art, Music, Film, Likes And Dislikes

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This item: Easy Russian for English Speakers Vol. 1 & 2: Learn to Speak and Understand Russian; From everyday essentials to Chekhov, Pushkin, Gagarin and Shakespeare by Max Bollinger Audio CD �15.06
Easy Russian for English Speakers Vol. 3: Speak Russian in Colour; Express Emotions; Discuss Weather, Art, Music, Film, Likes And Dislikes by Max Bollinger Audio CD �14.00

Product details

Audio CD: 120 pages
Publisher: Interactive; 1st edition (27 Sep 2010)
Language: English, Russian
ISBN-10: 1907832432
ISBN-13: 978-1907832437
Product Dimensions: 18.8 x 13.2 x 1.6 cm

Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (58 customer reviews)

Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 235,976 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #83 in Books > Languages > By Language > Russian

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Review

"There aren't very many audio resources (at least not stocked on the shelves of your local Barnes and Noble) in Russian, and this second volume is, like the first, a valuable resource for anyone trying to learn the language. I'm not sure if all copies are packaged this way, but mine came with quite a lot of written material on learning Russian as well that was very helpful. On its own merits, though, I'm not sure that you could learn Russian only with the aid of the CDs, though that may not be what Bollinger is going for. At the beginning of this one, he states that he wants you to learn Russian like a native, and I think he succeeds in that - when I learned English as a child, no one sat me down and said, 'This is English, and here's how we're going to sequentially learn it.' Instead, you learn new words as the need arises, in life, which is a lot like what happened as I listened to the CD." -- Annie Janicki, Colorado, USA

"I did a year's course in Russian as a subsidiary module at university a number of years ago and reached a stage where I could speak it reasonably well (although far from fluently). Since then I have made several attempts, mostly working from books, to revise my Russian skills but have not retained a very firm grasp on the language.

In addition to covering a range of grammatical points, there is quite a lot of discussion about points of pronunciation as well as Russian culture, both of which are important in order to gain a good working knowledge of the language.

This strikes me as a well-produced and well-structured course. Although it lacks the true interactivity of working directly with a teacher, it provides a very useful complement to other study materials for anyone studying without easy access to native Russian speakers." -- Magnus Forrester-Barker, Cymru (Wales)

"Overall, I like the CD. It is easy to follow and language lessons seem well thought out and grouped in a logical manner. My only real complaint is that the CD is supposed to be stand alone and honestly I do think that the first volume is needed prior to listening to the second volume. I feel like I would have much better comprehension of the lessons if I had begun with volume one. Still, all in all, I feel like the CD is good." -- Nancy Cox, Houston, Texas, USA

"In terms of the content, I like the approach a lot. There is a heavy focus on phonetic accuracy, which is obviously super important but which books can only touch indirectly and even a high number of sound-based language-learning media think it's good enough to just say things and let us figure it out and not walk us through it and that's not good enough; there is also a heavy focus on cultural things (he starts with patronymics, e.g., and there are passages from Chekhov and Shakespeare in Russian and you can hear the voice of Yuri Gagarin) and it seems to me there's no point in learning a language unless beyond learning how she is spoke, you also learn the shape of the world in which her speakers exist. So in short there's a lot of interesting stuff here, and it's well worth a listen." -- Martin McCarvill, Vancouver, Canada

"This is a really helpful series starting with the alphabet and 'hello' (vol.1) and graduating to brief extracts from Chekhov and others (vol.2). The 28 units are excellent not just for learning the subtleties of pronunciation, but for understanding how the Russian language and Russian minds work." -- Rachel Redford (UK) --EasyRussian.co.uk

"These audio lessons jumped right into learning the language and moved briskly. I also enjoyed the structure of the lessons and their thematic organization. Unlike other audio language learning tapes the tracks were engaging - my attention was kept and I felt like I was actually absorbing Russian. Overall, this audio training is excellent for those who need to learn Russian fast, or may only need to learn enough for a specific situation." -- Kara Schimmelfing, USA

"Super. Often one is demotivated by legions of grammar to wade through before you get to saying 'hello',in some language guides. On the other hand this audio guide is going straight for useful phrases to get you by; to increase your motivation and to give you a taste of the language itself." -- Stephen Dunne, Australia

"Great CD. Easy to pick up on Russian words pronunciation and also a little bit about Russian culture and the background behind certain phrases. Really interesting and informative."-- Sara Georgieff, Canada

"I've tried several methods for learning foreign languages: Spanish was classroom instruction, both in high school and college. French was audio instruction via Pimsleur and Berlitz. This CD reminded me of a Berlitz course; Russian words and sentences were pronounced twice and then the instructor moves to a different phrase.

The CD's categories were a good selection, and included the Russian alphabet with each letter's correct pronunciation. Other categories included greetings, directions, food, and numbers. This one CD will not make you an expert, but it can be a valuable help in learning pronunciation and some basic vocabulary." -- Noel Lytle, Philadelphia, PA, USA

"Max Bollinger, a native Russian speaker has composed an excellent guide to learning basic Russian for your next trip. Everything from greetings to dating a Russian beauty. Like other language software it works by repeating the words then using them. However unlike other language programs that slow down the words so you can hear each syllable, Easy Russian for English Speakers keeps everything 'live'. As an audio book you are able to transfer the tracks to a media player and learn on the go." -- Jodie Clements, Canada --EasyRussian.co.uk

About the Author

Max Bollinger, a Russian born British producer and actor with credits including Easy English for Busy People Audio training (Pan MacMillan), Doctor Who: The Waters of Mars (BBC), Doctor Who: Singularity (Big Finish), The Ghost Boat (ITV), Short Stories by Anton Chekhov audio book series, Mumu by Ivan Turgenev Audio Book and others; He held management posts at The Cambridge University Local Examination Syndicate (now Cambridge Assessment), various management and consulting posts in British Telecommunications Plc (BT), British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC).

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars It's very useful as an "aid" 1 Aug 2012

By Duncan Beesley TOP 500 REVIEWER VINE™ VOICE

Format:Audio CD|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

I've been learning Russian a while now and found that (whilst this isn't strong enough to learn by itself) it does fill a gap none of the other resources I've used does, and is therefore reccomended if you are serious about learning Russian.

Obviously the best way to learn is in a classroom or with a tutor, but given the scarcity of Russian courses and tutors (unless you live in a city) and the costs involved, if (like me) you're forced to learn at home, then I think it is best to approach it with several learning resources.

Prior to owning this, I was using a 2-pronged approach (learning with comprehensive course-books and a set of CDs that simply spoke words in English and then Russian--to build a vocabulary and get a grip of the pronunciation).

Whilst this is a good way to go, thankfully, I can now approach it with 3-prongs. There are many times when I feel like listening rather than working through a book, but with the CDs I had only building vocabulary, I was somewhat limited in this respect. Easy Russian for English Speakers fills the gap just about right. It is a basic course, with the narrator gently guiding you through the basics at a pace that is easier to consume--than with vocabulary CDs.

It is true (as others have mentioned) you will not get further than "travel Russian" with this course, but as a reasonably priced motivational aid, something simple that will help build your confidence in the early stages, and is always there for those moments when you need some gentle learning, it certainly has a place.

Personally, I'd reccomend seeing about a good tutor or enrolling in a class first. If that isn't viable for you (either), then I'd reccomend this along with either The New Penguin Russian Course or Colloquial Russian (I use both and they are both very well structured--there is also a version of Colloquial Russian" that comes with CDs). I'd also reccomend the vocabulary CDs (Russian in your Car), which are now only available as MP3 downloads on Amazon.

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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Russian Language Audio CD 11 Jun 2012

By Mr. S. C. Warburton VINE™ VOICE

Format:Audio CD|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

I have been to Russia -Moscow, Kazan and Tartastan many times with my job. I have managed to pick up the bare bones of getting by in Russian including using airports, taxis, hotels etc -and managing to decipher some of the Russian road and shop signs -which can be frustrating and fun (like CCCP is really SSSR in English!)
I thought I would have a look at the "Easy Russian" 2 CD's and see how they compared with stuff I had alread used
The first CD is packed full of phrases and "get you by" words and they come to you at rapid fire rate -so you will need to play the CD many times to get some bare essentials out of it. At one point I felt a bit swamped by the amount of information coming at me -some I had heard before but much I had not
The Russian speaker on the CD's is very good at giving you inside knowledge -like a person's middle name is a variation on his/her father's christian name and that it is usual to call a person by their two names like Eugene(christian name) Ivanavic (variation on dad's christian name)
The second CD also has many cameos of Yuri Gagarin speaking, Shakespeare in Russian etc. For me the second half of the second CD was only of passing interest as it has many sentences in Russian and I tended to tune out of them as I felt overloaded
For a novice like me, "Easy Russian" is a good "scene setter" as it is presented by a Russian speaker and gives some good insights into the Russian culture. However, I prefer to see words and phrases in order to have any hope of some of them sinking in and being retained long enough to be of use
If that describes you too, then after listening to the "Easy Russian" CD's I recommend you get "BBC ACTIVE Russian" (ISBN 0-563-52028-0). This has 2 CD's and a booklet. My other recommendation is "Russian in 10 minutes a day" (ISBN 0-944502-47-4). These two are excellent if you just want some grounding in the Russian language.
So I think "Easy Russian" is like your starter course at a meal, you need to move on to a simple main course -like the other 2 items above in order to make best use of "Easy Russian". It does have internet links too for phrases and words, but by itself I don't think it will help you survive in the Russian speaking countries

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Only useful as a refresher 17 April 2013

By Dr. I. Cox VINE™ VOICE

Format:Audio CD|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

Easy Russian for English speakers ( Vol 1 & 2 2 CD)
Max Bollinger

I may be out of touch with current methods of language tuition but normally there is a written text book - with description of the alphabet , pronunciation , common words with phonetic spelling , supplemented by a CD with pronunciation of key words / phrases by a native speaker. Most of this is missing on this " Easy Russian" offering
My initial impression on checking the CD's
Good examples of spoken Russian but little background paperwork - not a "stand alone" learning system
As a first primer CD1 lacks any written words / phonetic spelling. This is particularly critical in the case of the Cyrillic Russian characters ( normal and capital) .There is a card showing the alphabet but is it the Capitals or the
CD2 has web links to written text
I suppose for the money ,this product it may provide a useful "reminder" if you have some previous Russian training / experience but for me it failed to even get me started in Russian.

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