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One of the great complexities in French, like English, is subtleties of verb usage (think in English of the differences for the verb "put" accompanied by "out," "on," "to," "through," and "aside," and you can get a sharp sense of how much a preposition can change a sentence). Michel Thomas does a fine job with many interesting linguistic tidbits and with a fair degree of charm. A good intermediate grammatical review, but nothing advanced. Thomas touches hardly any of this, but without such information it's very difficult to read a simple newspaper headline. His grasp of English is not perfect, and he sometimes succumbs to that teacher/Gallic hubris (E.g., "Que sera, sera" is Italian, not Spanish, Michel), but on the whole it is a very well done course. It is not, however, advanced at all.
The advanced course is actually much better in quality than the beginning course, and the two "students" that he uses for demonstration are much more capable, so it flows better. If you are looking at the advanced course, then you have probably completed the beginning course, so you already understand this method. I highly recommend. I haven't tried all of the French study programs out there, but of the ones that I have tried, Michel's method is clearly the best. If you want to systematically understand how to express ideas in French, rather than just memorizing phrases, then you will love his method.
But this course prepares you well for the next step: practice. "Speak French Advanced" picks up more or less where "Speak French for Beginners" left off - that is, you don't really need to buy the booster package. You will have covered, for instance, all verb tenses except the past historic and the past subjunctive, which are rarely used in conversation anyway. "Speak French Advanced" is one such course.
There is not a single course on earth that can impart mastery of a language. The best ones provide the knowledge and inspiration that one needs to keep trying. All of these additional measures are vital to learning any language. Much vocabulary and reinforcement of grammar comes also from reading (with the help of a good dictionary, of course).
Finally, you will have had ample opportunities to listen to Michel Thomas's pronunciation and use it to improve your own.Like the beginner's course, this one neither promises miracles nor creates them. The same goes for speaking. The approach to learning is the same as for the beginner's course, providing comfortable continuity - although the students on the recording are different.By the end of this course, you will have gained a rather thorough grounding in French grammar. After finishing this course, you can start listening to French radio, television, or Internet broadcasts, and although you may not pick up much at first, understanding will come eventually.
By the end of this course, you will probably be able to get around France on your own, but a true comprehension of everyday spoken French may still lie beyond your grasp. Also, you will have increased your vocabulary somewhat, albeit with the caveats mentioned in my review of "Speak French for Beginners". However, also like the beginner's course, it deserves five stars because of its very fair price, the efficacy of its technique, the efficient pace of instruction, and - above all - the confidence that it provides to keep learning.
He makes it all understandable and relatively "easy." The two together are very very good as a way of emersion into the language. I love Michel Thomas CD's. I am also using Rosetta Stone and it is very good, but Michel Thomas explains the very core and structure of the language.
The course is the most practical one for the people who has no time and travelling like me, , you put it in your car CD player or mp3 , while doing sport, and you dont have to try to remember, it makes it itself.Warmly recommended.
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