Teach Yourself Dutch is the course for anyone who wants to progress quickly from the basics to understanding, speaking and writing Dutch with confidence. Although aimed at those with no previous knowledge, it is equally suitable for anyone wishing to brush up existing knowledge for a holiday or business trip. Key structures and vocabulary are introduced in 16 thematic units progressing from introducing yourself and dealing with everyday situations to using the telephone and giving opinions. The emphasis is on communication throughout with important language structures introduced through dialogues on the accompanying recording. There are plenty of exercises to practise the language as it is introduced and tips throughout to help with grammar. Cultural information boxes give useful advice and information for anyone planning a trip to the Netherlands.

The new edition retains the tried-and-tested structure of the lessons but has been completely rewritten to reflect changes such as the introduction of the euro and the internet and bring the book right up to date. Grammar explanations have been changed to make them even easier to understand and dialogues and authentic texts have also been updated.

The page design has been improved and section headings given in English to make the course easier to use for the self-access learner.

The accompanying recording has been increased to two accompanying cassettes which amount to approximately 150 minutes of listening material. The cassettes (0 340 85832 X) are available separately or in a pack with the book (0 340 85830 3).

A double CD pack is also available which can be purchased on its own (0 340 85831 1) or as a pack with the book (0 340 85829 X).

Gerdi Quist is co-author of the current edition of Teach Yourself Beginner's Dutch, Teach Yourself Dutch and Teach Yourself Beginner's Dutch Grammar, a native Dutch speaker, and lecturer at University College, London.

Dennis Strik is a part-time lecturer at the University of Kent at Canterbury and part-time post-graduate language assistant at University College, London. His previous publications include Teach Yourself Beginner's Dutch Grammar, Teach Yourself Beginner's Dutch Grammar, Dutch on the move (Hugo) and Just enough Dutch (Hugo).

2007-09-20 Spot on.

I'll keep this short as it need only be short. I wanted to learn Dutch from scratch. I had no experience with Germanic languages and so was at the mercy of this book to guide me, and it has done exactly that. It is an excellent book in all respects : the content is useful, practical and realistic, the grammar is introduced constantly at the right pace and with clear explanation, the vocabulary is extensive and not always confined to turgid and overdone topics as in other books (not always, I emphasise, there is always an element of this whatever book you choose) and finally the presentation is excellent.

6 months after I purchased this and worked through half of it, I went to the Netherlands and was shocked at how much of the book was actually useful in real life - that is the real bonus of this book. You will absolutely find it useful in reality, as well as catering for reading original texts such as the Diary of Anne Frank in its native Dutch (only after you've completed it all thoroughly for that, though!) It will get you to beyond GCSE at whatever pace you want. However, experienced with languages or not, this book is excellent. Buy it and for a few months of study you can enjoy the language and culture of the Low Countries forever!