Icelandic: Grammar, Text and Glossary [Paperback]

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1) INTRODUCTION (page I - XXVII)
* preface
* preface to the second edition
* how to use the book
* topical index
* bibliography
* abbreviations
* contents
* list of illustrations

The target of the introduction is to learn how to use the book. Everything is well done here, but it's a pity that the bibliography does almost only mention books that are out of print.
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2) GRAMMAR AND TEXTS (page 1 - 293)

* contents of grammar
* grammar
* texts I
* texts II

This is of course the actual heart of the book. The grammar is build up of three parts: pronunciation, inflexions, and syntax. The pronunciation is very profound and every possible sound is mentioned. The inflexions teach the possible forms of ANY wordtype (and is therefore very valuable), while the syntax focusses on WHEN everything is used, and also explains what "cases" are, etc. etc.
The texts come in two varieties, the one kind being texts with references to which grammar to learn, the other kind being texts without that. While the themes of the first are sometimes unsignificant, the latter are really about parts of Icelandic society. And, remember, each text comes with a separate glossary to learn.
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3) GLOSSARY (page 295-502)

The glossary may be the best reason to buy the book. In fact, it's an Icelandic/English dictionairy, with reference to the grammar part for the inflections of the words. Honestly, this is the only book which contains (something close to) a dictionairy, with the full forms of any word. Too bad it isn't English/Icelandic!
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I hope I've helped you with my review, just remember that you won't regret buying this book! =)

It employs an interesting methodology. In my 1945 edition, pages 1-31 give a very thorough introduction to the pronunciation. (too bad there are not accompanying tapes.) Pages 32-104 give the grammar (nouns, pronouns, verbs, in table form). Pages 105-180 covers syntax, with English translations of all sample phrases and sentences. Pages 181-246 is the pedagogical "heart" of the book; it consists of "aefingar" (exercises, drills). They are short readings with vocabulary. Before each of these, the author tells you what sections of the grammar and syntax sections you need to learn before going through the reading. For example, for the very first reading, you are instructed to learn the present indicative of the verb "to be"; the personal pronouns; and the weak declension of masculine and feminine nouns. So what you do is dip back, again and again, into the grammar and syntax, gradually learning more and more. At the same time, you're learning vocabulary through the readings.

This "learning" section is followed by about 50 pages of readings, and there is a complete glossary at the back.

Bottom line, it's a big book (about 500 pages), and if you work through it conscientiously, you'll have an excellent READING knowledge of Icelandic. For spoken Icelandic, you'll have to look elsewhere.

- Very complete. Everything is included in a huge grammar.
- Lots of readings. Not just the sagas, not just the everyday dialogues - actually, you get a lot of both.
- quite a lot of exercises.
- much better than the OTHER book. (which, I believe, you should have as well.)
- a glossary so large that it would cost about the same if you were to buy it separately.
- where else do you get 500+ excellent pages for this price?

However, this book is not written the way you would expect it. Of course, it is about as old as my grandmother. For starters:

- A topical index and a bibliography at the very BEGINNING of the book.

- A rather thorough and very technical grammar before any introductory exercises. (Yes, I know, it says right after the preface that the absolute beginner should start by the exercises, but it is not very usual to start a book on page 181)

- No discussion of vowel changes before a lot of exercises where they are needed. "Teach yourself" has the same problem. However, it is not something easy to explain, but future authors should at least try to either discuss each vowel shift just before it is needed or to use as few as possible in the first exercises.

- You need a good memory. As an example, in order to go through the first group of exercises, you have to memorize (I couldn't do it in any other way) 6 different forms of the verb to be, about 40 different pronoun forms and about 12 different kinds of endings for nouns. Of course, no one said it was going to be easy. Icelandic has three genders, four cases and a huge amount of different verb forms... but this is HARD.

- An old-looking rather small font that makes you read slower than on a modern book. Besides, it does not have a lot of white space. Pages are thick with text. This gives you the impression that you are going very slowly.