|
 |
FelixKatze’s German Log! | ||
Tags: German | ||
Share with:
| ||
 Language Learning Forum : Language Learning Log |  | |
| FelixKatze Newbie United Kingdom Joined 4165 days ago 20 posts - 23 votes Speaks: English* Studies: German | Message 9 of 14 29 April 2014 at 5:19pm | IP Logged |
|
Long time no update-- I've finished Deutsch, warum nicht?, have gone through Essential German Grammar (saving the exercises, for a second go-round), and am now slowly working my through Schaum's Outline of German Grammar.
The Schaum's is excellent so far, and by far my favourite of any elementary grammar resource I've used. The exercise-based hands-on approach suits me very well, and I would strongly recommend it to anyone looking for a decent entry-level grammar. Aside some minor improvements in grammar, my abilities haven't progressed much since my previous post, I'm still at an overall A2ish level (by my own estimation). I've signed up for the Super Challenge, which I'm very much looking forward to. My initial reading for the challenge will be done on the Kindle Paperwhite using the Collins German-English dictionary-- this is significant because recently there was a firmware update adding a new 'Vocabulary Builder' feature, which automatically adds all words you look up while reading, to a simple flashcard program. Each card incorporates the word, the dictionary definition, and the context of the original sentence from the book you were reading! This should be very helpful I hope, particularly as I have put Anki aside, though if I later feel a need for stronger spaced repetition, I may choose to make Anki cards based on these cards. I've still yet to have my first real-time conversation with a native, as I've let shyness discourage me, but within the next month or so, I'll certainly start that as well. Probably via instant messaging at first, before moving to Skype, as that's much less intimidating during these early stages. Edited by FelixKatze on 29 April 2014 at 5:20pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| patrickwilken Senior Member Germany radiant-flux.net Joined 4534 days ago 1546 posts - 3200 votes  Studies: German | Message 10 of 14 29 April 2014 at 5:37pm | IP Logged |
|
Good luck with the Super Challenge. I completed the challenge last year, and it was immensely helpful for my German.
Have you decided what books you are going to read first? 2 persons have voted this message useful | |
| FelixKatze Newbie United Kingdom Joined 4165 days ago 20 posts - 23 votes Speaks: English* Studies: German | Message 11 of 14 30 April 2014 at 11:08am | IP Logged |
|
Thanks Patrick. :)
Yes, I plan to start with fairy tales, Grimm's along with German translations of Hans Christian Anderson. From there, I hope to make the move to Kafka and Hesse, who I've heard are not too difficult. I have a high tolerance for ambiguity, which I hope will be a help. Of course, if I find a book is too difficult, I'll put it aside in favour of something more manageable. Oh, and I forgot to mention before-- I'll be aiming for 10,000 pages rather than 5,000, as I had already mentally committed to that before the rules were changed, and I'm confident I can manage it; I've plenty of free time, and reading is a passion. Edited by FelixKatze on 30 April 2014 at 11:09am 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| patrickwilken Senior Member Germany radiant-flux.net Joined 4534 days ago 1546 posts - 3200 votes Studies: German | Message 12 of 14 30 April 2014 at 12:19pm | IP Logged |
|
If you want children's books I could recommend the Pippi Longstocking's stories. They are Swedish (?) originally, but well loved as an anarchic feminist icon by German children and an easy read.
I have heard Hesse is pretty easy - not sure about Kafka. A lot of the ease in reading comes when the text is fairly concrete. As soon as it gets too philosophical it becomes very difficult. I spent the first year just reading teenage/young-adult literature. Harry Potter is excellent and gets progressively harder. The Percy Jackson series is easier than HP and good (no comparison to the horrible movies). I also read the Hunger Games trilogy (a bit harder than HP) which has the advantage of being all written in the first-person present tense. For more adult literature I would recommend Murakami. Make sure it's an edition translated direct from Japanese-German and not Japanese-English-German as some of the earlier books were. I read and enjoyed his latest book this month and pleased/surprised to realize that the English translation won't appear until late in the year. The crime writer Jo Nesbø is also excellent and pretty easy. As you can tell I am not really wedded to German writers per se, but my perspective here in Berlin I am reading what I see others reading in the bookstores so don't feel under any strong pressure to start reading German classics just yet. If you want to try out contemporary German literature I have heard that Wolfgang Herrndorf is pretty easy and good. Check out his books "Sand" and "Tschick". The author sadly died fairly recently. Have a look here: http://www.new-books-in-german.com/english/1047/335/335/1290 02/design1.html 10000 pages is definitely the way to go. :) My own private challenge is to aim for 25000 pages - but I won't reach that till spring/summer next year - hopefully I'll make 20000 by the NY. Edited by patrickwilken on 30 April 2014 at 12:34pm 2 persons have voted this message useful | |
| FelixKatze Newbie United Kingdom Joined 4165 days ago 20 posts - 23 votes Speaks: English* Studies: German | Message 13 of 14 01 May 2014 at 12:01pm | IP Logged |
|
Excellent post, thanks! :)
I prefer adult fiction, mostly the more 'literary' stuff, though I've nothing against the occasional light or youth novel. For the time being, my plan is to try and stick with things I might also have chosen to read in English, but we'll see, as that will depend on how well I am able to handle the challenge presented by such authors. It's nice to hear that the German Murakami translations are good; I'll keep an eye out for them. Herrndorf looks quite interesting as well. 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| patrickwilken Senior Member Germany radiant-flux.net Joined 4534 days ago 1546 posts - 3200 votes Studies: German | Message 14 of 14 01 May 2014 at 12:15pm | IP Logged |
|
If you can read interesting adult literature go for it! I'll be interested to follow your progress.
One thing I picked up from the SC is that (at least as far as German language progress is concerned) it's the quantity as much as the quality that is important. So if a book is really hard to read and so slows you down a lot, it might be worth stepping down a bit and reading something a bit simpler and then coming back. Anyway trying to read 10k pages for the SC should keep you on track in terms of quality vs quantity. Good luck! 2 persons have voted this message useful |
If you wish to post a reply to this topic you must first login. If you are not already registered you must first register
|  | 
Printable version
|
| Copyright 2024 FX Micheloud - All rights reserved No part of this website may be copied by any means without my written authorization. |
