CARAMBA ! IT WORKS AND IT'S FUN

Buenos dias, habla Espanol? No? Well, you will before you know it by listening to Dr. Blair's Spanish In No Time. Just forget the drudgery of your high school language class, learning Spanish with Dr. Blair is fun.

And, to make it pleasurable Dr. Blair has come up with a game - pretend you're vacationing on a Caribbean island (don't we wish!). However, in this game it isn't all sand, sun, and margaritas. There's an evil industrialist who's trying to take over the island and you can save it by learning enough Spanish to accomplish this task. (Told you this wasn't your high school Spanish class!)

Believing that learning isn't possible without interest, Dr. Blair catches listeners immediately as they become engrossed in the game and learn along the way. Included in the package is a practice CD-ROM.

Now, we're not saying that after one listen you'll be able to carry on a dinner table discourse, but you will be able to find your way around a Spanish speaking country with ease. Listen a second time, and who knows? You may be giving a speech.

In the Southwest where we live, the Latin American population is growing rapidly, so at least a familiarity with Spanish is not only a pleasure but sometimes a necessity. Granted, my Latin American friends smile a lot when I speak to them. But they know I'm trying and they appreciate it.

Muchas gracias, Dr. Blair!

- Gail Cooke

Spanish class was never this much fun

This is I think the first of a new line of language CDs, and for once it really sounds new. The box says that the man behind this series believes that you have to be engaged to pay enough attention to learn a language, and he makes sure you're engaged by keeping you entertained. Games, stories, even something that sounds a lot like Spanglish -- You never know what's going to happen next on this CD.

The good news is that it works. Big time. I feel like I can travel to South America and get around, do my business and enjoy myself, just by listening to these three CDs. And I'm pretty sure that if I listen to them again, I'll learn even more.

The whole thing costs under $18. And the CD-ROM that comes with it is worth that much on its own-with a dictionary and practice exerices as well as lots of information about Spanish culture. I've never seen a combination of audio CD and CD-ROM in the same foreign language package before, but it sure seems like a great idea to me!