Language
Learn Arabic
Arabic is the language-of-the-moment of terrorism. The alphabet is strange, they read it backwards, and the U. S. intelligence community is desperate for Arabic speakers. Ready for the CHALLENGE?
With
ArabicNow!, you'll learn by immersing yourself in Arabic. You'll participate
in real conversations, read interesting articles, and watch intriguing videos
from the Middle East. ArabicNow! also includes six language-learning titles:
The Most Common Words in Arabic, Survival Phrases in Arabic, Unified Arab
Market Still a Dream, Dialogues with Naguib Mafouz, Morocco: A Tale of Two
Cities, and Transliterated Survival Phrases for Arabic (using the Roman
alphabet). Buy
Arabic Now! 8.0 
This
program teaches the beginner general information about the Arabic culture,
how to read and write classical Arabic, basic grammatical concepts of the
Arabic language, and dialogue in the Egyptian dialect. The intermediate
to advanced student will also be challenged, and will enjoy conversing in
the dialogue section of the program. Buy
Arabic Made Easy 
Your
First 100 Words series removes intimidation from learning a foreign language
that uses a non-roman alphabet or characters. Learners are shown how to
decipher and read the new script while they learn 100 primary words in a
new language. Flash cards illustrate each of the words and make learning
a foreign alphabet easy. Fun activities-- such as word searches-- reinforce
recognition and reading skills. Tackles the primary obstacle-- a strange
script-- which often scares away learners A great supplement for those learning
on their own, those taking a class, or parents introducing a new language
to their children. A one-of-a-kind tool for the foreign language learner.
Buy
Your First 100 Words 
Unlike
many Teach Yourself books, which can be more attuned to the prospective
tourist who wants to get familiar with the language and be able to travel
using it rather than a student of the language, this book covers Modern
Standard Arabic in a traditional "grammar" sense - it starts with
nouns, then adjectives, some verbs, various clauses, etc. and really gets
you feeling how to express things in Arabic, even without the vocabulary
- it is more or less a grammar reference, with sample dialogs and readings
on Arab culture serving as backup to the points in each unit that Smart
wants to impart. A great starting point, not at all too weighty, and a good
reference for the beginner or intermediate student. One plus: he omits the
noun endings (genitive, etc.) which are mainly unvoiced but indeed the realm
of the proper, highly-educated Arabic speaker in reading and writing. Although
this may leave out a large part of Arabic grammar, Smart is pragmatic in
that leaving this out early on will get the student familiar with the basics
of grammar, and then move onto that next if he chooses (depending on what
level he wants to study or use the language.) Other texts either introduce
the endings and "heavy" grammar early, alienating the student,
or go all out and focus on a colloquial dialect, which means you can't read
a newspaper or listen to the media without confusion, although you can order
your falafel effortlessly in the souq. The usual dilemma for the Arabic
student, but Smart helps you start without much pain. A must for the elementary/intermediate
student. Buy
Arabic (Teach Yourself)
This
book has a list of 201 extremely useful verbs that the student of Arabic
will want to remember, as they can be used on a daily basis. Additionally,
these verbs are common in Arabic literature, so learning them will decrease
the need for dictionary reference. Buy
201 Arabic VerbsConversational Arabic in Seven Days
This book and 2 cassettes provides a good foundation in Egyptian Arabic. The instruction walks you through several tourist related instructions like how ask for time or order fig jam for breakfast. The cassettes put you in mock conversations and are a joy to use.
Egyptian arabic is the standard dialect as most film and radio uses it, so if you wind up somewhere else in arabia, you will still be well understood. Some letters are pronouced differently in Egypt (eg: the J is a G) and some times other words are used entierly (eg: the word for coffee and bread). Just don't be suprised if a non-Egyptian corrects you.
If
your looking for something to help you speak Arabic this is for you. As
soon as you get it, you can speak a couple of sentences. Buy
Arabic Cassette Pack