365 consejos para mejorar tu inglés is a useful book that includes, as the title suggests, 365 tips and mistakes Spanish speakers usually make while l365 consejos para mejorar tu inglés is a useful book that includes, as the title suggests, 365 tips and mistakes Spanish speakers usually make while learning English, which thus might turn into Spanglish. Daniel Smith is an English teacher who lives in Spain. The reader will find everyday Spanish words and sayings and their BrE versions, including some colourful aspects of the British way of life. Since I'm from Argentina, I had to look for a few Spanish words I’ve never heard before. (Although, when Smith mentioned “agujetas” and then talked about feeling stiff after playing pádel, the meaning wasn't such a mystery.) In the end, I discovered a couple of interesting idioms I didn’t know about, and others I didn’t recall (I'll probably forget all about them in a few days, that's just how this works). I also wrote down some tips I know will come in handy. However, I’d recommend this book to beginners:
DO YOU CONFUSE "HE" AND "SHE"? This is one the great mysteries of the world. Why do Spanish speakers mix up these two all the time? This is an example sentence that I hear very often in class: "Yesterday I went with my SISTER to the shops and HE told me that there are some amazing offers at the moment" When you mix "he" and "she" up it becomes extremely difficult for someone to understand WHO you are talking about. Your English might be brilliant but a native speaker will be completely confused. I have asked many students why Spanish speakers mix "he" and "she" so often and I have never had a convincing answer!
DO YOU KNOW HOW TO SAY "LOS DEDOS DE LOS PIES" IN ENGLISH? Many Spanish speakers don't know how to say this in English. Most of the time they say "fingers of the feet" but, of course, they know that this is not correct. The correct translation is "toes" which is pronounced exactly the same way as the famous brand of jewellery called "Tous".
Judging by the last example, the teacher taught them how to say "fingers of the feet" and forgot to mention "toes". Blimey.
Overall, it is a book that serves its purpose: to reduce Spanglish in a fun and relaxed way (or is it "descontracturated"?). Smith’s writing oozes warmth, kindness and playfulness—qualities you’d probably wish to find in a teacher, especially if you’re having too much trouble learning the language. Nevertheless, I must say that, sometimes, I found myself disagreeing with the author:
"NEVER IN MY LIFE"? Spanish speakers sometimes say: "never in my life" which is a direct translation from Spanish: "nunca en mi vida". I probably don't need to tell you that "never in my life" is spanglish. You were expecting that. The best way to translate "nunca en mi vida" is "I have never" (this is the way your English teacher will say it) or "I've never" (this is the way most native speakers say it). The "I have never" construction is generally easy to use but you need to have knowledge of the present perfect tense to be able to say it properly. So, yes, you need to know those three horrible columns of irregular verbs that you hated so much when you were studying English at school: put, put, put! Once you have learnt those you can create a sentence like this: "I've never been to Japan, but I would like to go"
Are you drinking my hair?** "Never in my life" is a delight; it should be considered proper English.
Aug 22, 21 * Later on my blog. ** Spanglish for Are you kidding me?...more
Feb 07, 18 No, I can't do this right now. I don't know why but I started a freaking literature course - when From piza o kudasai to pizza, per favore.
Feb 07, 18 No, I can't do this right now. I don't know why but I started a freaking literature course - when I already had a billion things to read; oh yeah, I thought it would be fun but books, deadlines and my attention span? WAKE UP - and I really want to finish it but I can't as long as I see this book on my currently-reading shelf. My mind is not in the right place to absorb another language for now. Maybe in a couple of weeks, reading just this one....more
はじめまして。フィレンツェ です。よろしくお願いします。 – Introduction. ありがとう ございます。 – Thank you. ごめんなさい – Sorry. すみません、ほんや は どこですか? – Bookshop! コーヒーをください。– Asking for all drinks anはじめまして。フィレンツェ です。よろしくお願いします。 – Introduction. ありがとう ございます。 – Thank you. ごめんなさい – Sorry. すみません、ほんや は どこですか? – Bookshop! コーヒーをください。– Asking for all drinks and food you can think of. その 本 をください。 – Asking for that book. I think. すみません、病院 は どこですか? – Hospital, just in case. 。。。 が 食べたい です。– I'd like to eat - じゃ、行きましょう。It just sounds awesome. 大人、一枚。– Tickets. これはいくらですか？ – How much is that? 領事館 は どこ ですか – Where is the Consulate? 警察 – Police わかりません。– I don't understand. お勘定 お願いします。– Check, please.
Yeah... That's pretty much all I need. I would bring my books anyway and colorful pictures to point out. We lose all shame when we want people to understand us.
I have learned some sentence patterns (polite Japanese, mostly), quite helpful for a tourist. I repeat, a tourist. So I cannot even imagine what it would be like if I ever started studying the language seriously, like taking real classes and such. Something I will never do because then comes the sense of obligation. When I know that every Monday or Thursday at 4.00 p.m. I have to get out of my house and attend to class or whatever, to learn what I voluntarily decided to learn, I start seeing it as an obligation, a duty. And I lose encouragement. That stage of my life disappeared when school ended. I enjoy being a self-taught kind of person. I like the freedom that it entails. I like reading and learning things while sitting next to a window, with a big bowl of coffee (or a latte, perhaps some cookies or cake...) on the table by the couch, and my slippers ready to assist me when I have the need of revisiting the coffee maker. I dislike schedules and formalism; I enjoy reading at home. The simplicity of home. Of course, it is more difficult, with a major tendency to mistake because I do not have a teacher here (and I would not have one, either). However, I am always willing to take the risk.
So, I read this book, I wrote on three different notebooks—grammar, notes, culture and vocabulary, examples—, I sighed, I cursed, I forgot, I read again, I sighed some more. My brain was briefly replaced by a giant question mark and later came back; exhausted, with a feeble pulse. Oh, alive, nonetheless! Hiragana tends to do that. Counters tend to do that. I understand the need of three scripts (one that I did not even try to study yet), but why couldn't you just count with the same words, most of the objects of this planet? I mean, in Spanish, no matter the physiognomy, we say one elephant, two tickets, eleven balloons, fifty cats. But no, I got lost, drowned in a deep sea of suffixes. A hitotsu-futatsu-mittsu fan, all the way. Do not make me count fifteen little animals or vegetables because I will not survive. And yes, I know, Spanish is not a walk on feathers, either. All languages have endearing quirks. We have our “sheets” and “slices” but nothing too complicated. Unless you add a million verb forms (the unforgiving subjunctive), gender issues, articles, prepositions, pronunciation (the inexorable letter “R”), dialects, false cognates. Oh, nothing major...
There is some sunshine in this strange adventure. I got used to the sounds (such a delicate music can be found in some syllables), the word order—even though I still struggle with some particles because my memory is not that good. Adjectives are a bit tricky also and the complexity of the system of honorifics stole some tears from my eyes so I will just stay at the safe polite-language zone. But I love it. A tortuous passion. It is a dare. A lovely, melodious and captivating dare. A dare that always leave other people wondering why the hell I am doing this. There is no reasonable answer. Or maybe there is. I read some aspects of their fascinating culture, intriguing habits, rich history, numerous social conventions. All things absorbed my interest and led me to that distant language. Okay, maybe there is not a reasonable answer. A simple “why not?”. I am now starting reading about the Italian language (a homey feeling), but I see German quite appealing too. I feel too awkward speaking in French (when I say awkward I mean stupid) but Russian calls my name. So, why not?
Anyway, I spend many hours of the week reading and rereading, pronouncing words and practicing. It is almost therapeutic. Especially in those places where time feels like a turtle running a marathon while wearing a cast. For instance, at the bank. At any doctor's office. At any government office. All those places where you feel like time stands still, where you see people standing up because they have been called, they have been chosen and yet, you are there, longing for someone to call your name and end this tedious, frustrating, mind-numbing waiting. So, yes, reading helps me remaining a somewhat sane person during those motionless situations. And Japanese was and is a beautiful escape.
And this book gave me some tools to make that escape possible. No, it is not that easy. At least, not for a person whose first contact with the language was a rōmaji "Moonlight Densetsu" at age 11 and that was it. I bet you didn't see that one coming... Oh, don't judge, I was a kid.
This book is a fine introduction to Japanese. It contains many sentence patterns, the usual verb forms that will allow you to sound human, a lot of vocabulary, notes about many aspects of their culture to help you understand more by giving a little context, activities so you will not immediately forget what you just learned, etc. Its structure is predictably convenient: the book is organized according to the complexity of the study material, one that covers many grounds. It is a clear path. The organization, I mean. As you read, the path will bifurcate until you feel like a weary Minotaur in the middle of a paper labyrinth. It is a constant challenge but Saint Google will be there to assist you. You will need other resources. Beware of rōmaji, a dangerous acquaintance. I cannot give it up.
So no, my friend. Do not be afraid. Grab your pencils and mugs, your notebooks and Kleenex, and dive into this sublime ocean of kana characters. Dō itashimashite.
Sep 25, 2015
* Feel free to recommend me some other books. Even if it doesn't have “easy” on the title, I swear I'll give it a try anyway. ** Also on my blog....more
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