I've found it helpful. It's important to keep in mind the type of book it is---it's not a textbook with grammar explanations.
I've been pecking away at learning Italian for a long time, including some work at the Italian Cultural Institute in Florence. As a classical singer, I have the advantage of having studied pronunciation and inflection, yet Italian is a very complex language and I have found it difficult to find reading material that doesn't just jump very quickly into the more complex aspects of the language.
Really enjoying using this book with a group learning Italian, helps to read and have the vocabulary list after each section.
Purchased this because a friend recommended it... turned that two of my classes are using it at least part time...
I have bought several readers. This is the best to date, although is so dated.
This reader is well thought out for someone who has had an intro course in basic Italian. The short stories continually expand the vocabulary, grammar, and idioms.
This book is one of the best tools to build vocabulary and useful sentence structures for beginning students. The first section, or book, is by the editor/author, and provides an introduction to some basic ideas of the language.
