The ultimate rapid language-learning guide For those who ve despaired of ever learning a foreign language, here, finally, is a book that will make the words stick. At thirty years old, Gabriel Wyner speaks "six "languages fluently. He didn t learn them in school -- who does? -- rather, he learned them in the past few years, working on his own and practicing on the subway, using simple techniques and free online resources. In "Fluent Forever" Wyner reveals what he s discovered.
The greatest challenge to learning a foreign language is the challenge of memory; there are just too many words and too many rules. For every new word we learn, we seem to forget two old ones, and as a result, fluency can seem out of reach."Fluent Forever"tackles this challenge head-on. With empathy for the language-challenged and abundant humor, Wyner deconstructs the learning process, revealing how to build a foreign language in your mind from the ground up.
Starting with pronunciation, you ll learn how to rewire your ears and turn foreign sounds into"familiar"sounds. You'll retrain your tongue to produce those sounds accurately, usingtricks from opera singers and actors.Next, you'llbegin to tackle words, and connect sounds and spellings to imagery, rather than translations, which will enable you to"think"in a foreign language." "And with the help of sophisticated spaced-repetition techniques, you'll be able to memorize hundreds of words a month in"minutes"every day. Soon, you'll gain the ability to learn grammar and more difficult abstract words--"without "the tedious drills and exercises of language classes and grammar books.
This is brain hacking at its most exciting, taking what we know about neuroscience and linguistics and using it to create the most efficient and enjoyable way to learna foreign language in the spare minutes of your day."