Uploaded January 2012 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Visit The Mezzofanti Guild - mezzoguild.com
Sorry about the shitty quality of this video. I'll be getting some better gear shortly.
This is my video response to the criticism made by Steve Kaufmann from LingQ of Benny Lewis' latest mission to learn C1 level Chinese Mandarin in 3 months.
I don't mean to take sides here and I respect both of them for the record.
Visit The Mezzofanti Guild - mezzoguild.com
Sorry about the shitty quality of this video. I'll be getting some better gear shortly.
This is my video response to the criticism made by Steve Kaufmann from LingQ of Benny Lewis' latest mission to learn C1 level Chinese Mandarin in 3 months.
I don't mean to take sides here and I respect both of them for the record.
![Egyptian Arabic: Easy Stories With English Translations is now available [Paperback]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/whs9-is6Pjc/mqdefault.jpg "Egyptian Arabic: Easy Stories With English Translations is now available [Paperback]
Egyptian Arabic: Easy Stories With English Translations available here: https://amzn.to/2TjQgAk
Page sample images here: https://www.talkinarabic.com/egyptian-arabic-short-stories/
The first paperback edition of our new series called Egyptian Arabic: Easy Stories With English Translations is up now on Amazon. It consists of 12 mini stories in colloquial Egyptian that incrementally rise in length and difficulty.
Here’s what you’ll find in the book:
* 12 mini stories on various focus topics, full of high-frequency vocabulary and expressions pertaining to those topics.
* Stories that incrementally rise in length and difficulty.
* Each story has a comprehension exercise section at the end of the chapter.
* Key vocabulary lists for each story (most of the main vocab used throughout the story).
* Full English translations in the back of the book (away from the Arabic so you’re not tempted by it).
* Large, clear font and moderate use of tashkeel (vowel markings) to improve readability for lower-level learners.
* All dialogues are bolded so they’re easy to distinguish.
* Lined, note-taking sections.
I really need to emphasize that this book is NOT for absolute beginners. If you’ve never studied Arabic before then I’d advise coming back to this later on.
Since it’s a first edition and a totally new venture for us, I’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback on the book.")
![Korean Stories For Language Learners (Review) [Traditional Folktales]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/xoY6mH7Y4TM/mqdefault.jpg "Korean Stories For Language Learners (Review) [Traditional Folktales]
More info about the book here: https://www.mezzoguild.com/review-korean-stories-for-language-learners/
Other Korean resources here: https://www.mezzoguild.com/korean-resources/
I recently received a copy of Korean Stories For Language Learners by Julie Damron and EunSun You (Tuttle Publishing).
The book covers 42 total short stories in Korean with English translations, comprehension exercises, vocab lists and full audio listening material.
Since the short story niche of learning material seems to be trending at the moment, I thought Id take time to check this one out. Rather than covering typical dialogue material, it focuses on traditional Korean folktales. The audio is a pleasure to listen to.
A few minor things to point out: absolute beginner material is inappropriate for this book (theres not much of it so its not a major issue) and some exercises are borderline bizarre (but still funny).
Something a dedicated Korean student who loves Korean history and culture would definitely enjoy reading.")
![Learning *about* a language does not mean youve *learned* a language [Re: MT method devotees]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/yY8_TAOfok4/mqdefault.jpg "Learning *about* a language does not mean youve *learned* a language [Re: MT method devotees]
This is in reference to: https://www.mezzoguild.com/michel-thomas-review/
I get that we all have our favorite methods, products, courses, etc. for learning a foreign language. I have mine.
Over the last year in particular, Ive received a lot of pushback on my comments re: Michel Thomas. People seem religiously devoted to this method. It may just be because Im wrong and the methods amazing but I think theres another reason:
Learning a lot *about* a language can leave you feeling as if youve *learned* the language.
Theres a big difference.
What are your thoughts?")
