The Arabic Alphabet

A really good book for absolute beginners. I would not have beleived you could learn to read Arabic so fast, it looks so complicated and alien from English. The book is well laid out and introduces you to the alphabet in small chunks, with practice exercises after each part. By the end I found I could read most words correctly.Of course that is transliteration, and not translation. I now have to learn what all these words mean! But I feel as if I'm half way there and very much motivated to start increasing my knowledge of the language.

This little book promises little but delivers quite a lot and does so in a structured, progressive manner. As new letters are introduced so words constructed of what one has learned up to that point are shown, so that one can see the letter in its natural context. Hence, one also learns some Arabic vocabulary which is a useful bonus. It is probably most effective if combined with an audio-visual course on the Arabic alphabet (this is how I used it) although as a standalone resource I think it would still be an effective learning tool.

Interesting and absorbing. Not easy for a westerner of course, but not totally impenetrable. Would be better if it came with an audio disc for help with pronunciation. Content seems satisfyingly comprehensive for such a slim volume.

Like (I believe) a lot of people, I began learning Arabic by getting hold of a basic phrase book and trying to learn it parrot fashion. This is all well and good if you want to learn a few useful phrases, but if you want to truly learn Arabic as a language, as it says in this book, you've got to learn the alphabet and the basics first. The book isn't an 'Arabic for Dummies', although it is written in a technical and intelligent format, its explanations and logical layout make it very easy to understand, even for relative simpletons such as myself. After just a few weeks I can recognise and pronounce Arabic writing on the television and shop signs. What Awde and Samano have produced is an excellent piece of work and should be a must for scholars, tourists and business folk alike.

This is my first review on here after years of buying from this site; I simply felt compelled to say a thing or two about this book.So, straight to the point, this book, quite simply, will teach you the Arabic alphabet, help you understand how to roughly pronounce each letter and then show you how to write each letter in all of it's forms (all letters have multiple forms, some more than others). Going beyond that, it will also teach you about extra letters and such which arn't necessarily part of the Arabic alphabet, but are commonly used anyway.If you've ever looked at any Arabic text and felt completely overwhelmed by it, by the end of this book you will, instead, be able to actually read the words you are seeing, albeit with rough pronounciation. The point being, you'll understand what's written even if you don't know the meaning of the words. It's not a big book, you could easily get through it in a couple of hours at a slowed pace to take in the information. But the information that's given ultimately serves the purpose of this book, and that makes it a fantastic starting point to learning the Arabic language.Highly recommended!

Good for starters. However, I recommend checking Adrian Wood-Smith's 'Fundamentals of the arabic alphabet' on youtube for a more in-depth study and better understanding.

I'd recommend this book to anyone either starting Arabic or just interested in the Middle-East. Many people interested in the language get put off by the exotic Arabic letters, but with the right material it is actually a simple alphabet to learn. It is aimed at Westerners and it uses a good technique and covers all the Arabic letters in high detail, as well as giving plenty of practice-words. It will take a normal English speaker, with this book, about two weeks to learn the alphabet, doing 20 minutes a day.

Simply brilliant introduction. Well structured, excellent snappy delivery by author with just enough additional detail to maintain interest. Met my needs exactly as I'm now able to start to recognise the letters and translate texts. Any chance of a 'Part 2'?