Customer Reviews
Great once you find a good method - By: Mr. S. A. Brown, 13 Jul 2008 
Essentially what you get with this product is a CD featuring 100 short dialogues (each about 3-5 minutes long)in German. In addition you are given a booklet which gives you a transcription of these dialogues, some notes on the grammar illustratedin the speech & an English translation of what it all means.
The basic method is to first listen to a dialogue & continually repeat it until you have a grasp of what is being said. Next, you continue repeating the dialogue but whilst reading the textin German so that you get a grasp of the wayin which the words you're speaking are representedin writing & finally, you read the English translation to discover what the words you've been speaking actually mean (though by the end of this course you usually have a good idea of what the dialogues are saying before looking at the translation).
This may sound like it lacks a great deal of substance, but this method of language learning actually makes a lot of sense when you consider the wayin which a native speaker learns to communicate. Focusing on sounds before text & before you have an idea of the English equivalent is a much more effective method from my experience than just looking at a translation of English text into German & then trying to remember it (in addition to learning grammar rules & verb conjugations). The Assimil method gradually teaches you grammar & conjugationsin a relatively painless way which sticks effortlessly because you already know what the words are by the time you look at the translation.
Overall, I found this a very effective technique for picking up the language & this is the only course which has brought me anywhere close to fluencyin German. Of the two most comparable courses (Pimsleur & Michel Thomas) it has far more content & teaches you a wider variety of skills which can have you on your way to fluency within 6-12 months.
Be sure you know what you get - By: Ruben Sanchez, 24 Mar 2007 
I ordered this item thinking it would be a German course with audio CDs, but it turned out to be the other way around, audio CDs with a book containing the transcriptions & explanations. I must admit I wouldn't have bought it if I had knew this. Having said that, I'm giving it a try & I have to say it works. It consists on small audio lessons & exercises, where grammar points are slowly introduced. The quality of the audio recordings is very good, & it is very well-thought & cleverin the way of presenting the material & making the most out of each lesson. On the other hand, I think this method is best as a complement rather than an alternative to standard language learning (classes!) & requires constant daily work (around half & hour a day).
Allin all, be sure that you know what you get, but if you think this type of learning suits you, I would definitely recommend it.
