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Author: Raymond Murphy
By Cambridge University Press

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Simply superb!, 2010-03-26
As a student, I remember using the 'English Vocabulary in Use' book in secondary school: a clear, comprehensive and very practical and enjoyable coursebook indeed.
As a teacher at university college, I was looking for extra coursebooks/material to recommend to my students and this book has been a real revelation. Complex grammar issues or even simple issues but difficult to explain ("I simply sense this is the correct answer") are clearly illustrated with nice example sentences and images! The exercises on the right pages offer students the possibility to practise the newly acquired knowledge.
I look forward to reading/using 'English Collocations in Use' this summer (it's already on my reading list!)

Author: Martin Parrott
By Cambridge University Press

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Improved edition of great reference book, 2010-02-15
I bought this new edition when I did my CELTA course and it's fantastic! The old edition is already really good and very thorough as far as the content goes. However, the big advantage of the second edition is the new layout. There are coloured headings, tables and boxes with examples which make finding specific content and reading in general much easier (especially for a visual learner like me).
I have used it a lot during the course and found the timelines especially helpful. There are also some exercises at the end of each chapter.
I can really recommend this book if you want to do a CELTA or similar English teaching course.

Author: Guy Consolmagno, Dan M. Davis
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book on astronomy, 2010-03-30
delivery was earlier than first indicated and the price very competitive.
a five star transaction !

Author: William Shakespeare
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Romeo and Juliet, 2010-03-29
This edition of Shakespeare's `Romeo and Juliet' has much to recommend it, not simply for students. Accompanying each page of text is a study section explaining the language and context, but also engaging the reader in a series of questions about their own feelings of what is happening, or what Shakespeare might have intended?
Differing opinion on these questions is inevitable. The play of course, deserves the reputation of the ultimate expression of romantic love in western literature, and we are forced to look for credible reasons for its tragic conclusion. It addresses timeless issues that matter to all humanity.
To ask how `real' is this story, is to ask the wrong question. Read criticisms of any work and it becomes all too apparent that today, we feel uneasy when the playwright demands we suspend reality, as to time and place, or the likelihood of the events occurring.
Shakespeare's players, although individuals, also represent stereotypical `everyman' characters. Hence, Juliet, the impeccable pure and genuine heroine, Romeo, the popular, earnest young lover, the Nurse, the old gossip, the Friar, the meddling, misguided schemer, the Capulets, the parents who would not understand their daughter, and maybe Mercutio, best friend until true love overtakes all. Shakespeare also personifies, in the style of Medieval tales, Love and hate, Fate, and above all, Death, that `lean, abhorred monster', taking a form as real in the context as the other players.
It works so well, not least because of the contrasts. The youthful inexperience of the lovers adds to the inevitability of the tragedy, but of course, the sublimity of the language, so important here, should belong to older lovers. Is it not though, the innocence, the feeling we want it to be `alright in the end' what we love about this play?
`Verona is a patriarchal city. Fathers held absolute sway over their daughters. They may give them to whoever they choose, and feel deeply insulted if their daughters choose otherwise. Juliet makes that choice and incurs the unmitigated wrath of Capulet'. . "Out you green-sickness carrion! Out, you baggage! You tallow-face! . .disobedient wretch!" (Act 3, Sn5)
What is it like to be on the receiving end of such a tongue lashing? What is it like to undergo such emotional abuse? Surely even harder for Juliet, as her father is so admired by others, and we too, can see his naturally protective role perverted. Even so, you might argue he is himself a victim of circumstance, Tybalt being the active protagonist in the feud. By this point in the play, it is clear Juliet will be forced to choose between her former, sheltered life, and an uncertain future with her lover. It becomes even clearer though, she chooses Romeo not just for love, but honesty. To go back, marry Paris, be loyal simply because she was born a Capulet, would betray who she really is. Her parents do not want to understand her, they have a different agenda, even her nurse deserts her, she has no other confidante. We are forced to ask, `What would I do in this circumstance? Would I have the courage Juliet displays?'
What of the other characters? Shakespeare allows them almost enough space to compete with Romeo and Juliet, and yet they do not. Perhaps this is why Mercutio denounces love, and has to die, and the Nurse, while yet genuinely affectionate, fails in her role as Juliet's comforter.
You may blame Romeo and Juliet, in their exuberance, as creating their own tragedy, as if adolescent love automatically becomes a recipe for future disaster. This does not ring true. Shakespeare presents other alternatives, the family feud, also coincidence and the element of chance, `time and unforeseen occurrence'. Reading the text or viewing the play, it is impossible to avoid asking `What if the nurse had not used the death of Tybalt to defame Romeo? What if Juliet had awoken before Romeo drank the poison? What if the friar had arrived before Romeo?' It is in this way of course, the play builds to its logical climax, `what must be shall be.'
We see Juliet as vulnerable, we pity her, we understand her conflicting feelings. We focus on her age `not yet fourteen'. Her honesty, self-reliance and resolve, we accept, for it is a consequence of her love for Romeo, we might say he brought out the best in her. We understand the nature of the tragedy , and yet it is not a morbid tragedy, but a truly inspiring testament.

Author: William Shakespeare
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Make sure you get the version you need (if not two or more), 2009-04-13
'Othello' is one of Shakespeare's later plays and one of his great tragedies, penned sometime between 'Hamlet' and 'King Lear'. It's a play which emphatically presents cultural tensions - gender, race, religion, nation, role. It's a play which, perhaps more thoroughly than any of his other works, relies on the potency of opposition and contrast, the characters being polarised into black and white.

Othello is a Moorish general who has saved Venice and who is now based on the exotic Mediterranean island of Cyprus. Here is a man who, despite his 'alien' origins, is hailed as the saviour of his community, a man who is universally loved and admired, except by his lieutenant, Iago.

In Iago Shakespeare beats out with blacksmith rhythm one of his greatest creations, a man fired by jealousy, tempered by hatred, a man whose determination is hammered into shape and whose evil expresses itself in duplicitous twists and malignant turns enough to topple Othello. It is the nature of Shakespearean tragedy that the hero should plunge from the sublime heights to utter destitution, despair, and death.

The cornerstone of Othello's triumph is his great love for his lady, Desdemona. Winning her hand, securing her devotion is his greatest achievement and elevates him to unimagined happiness. Yet it this very foundation which Iago undermines with the seed of jealousy. As suspicion takes root, the whole edifice of Othello's power and completeness collapses about him. He murders his wife, faces the realisation of what he has done, and recognises that eternal damnation is less of a punishment that enduring life aware of his own guilt.

Shakespeare is a major architect of English. His phraseology permeates the language like the mortar binding together a building. 'Hamlet', it has been said, is a play written in clichés, so commonplace have become the scores of quotations which have been lifted from it. 'Othello' has had a less dramatic impact on the language, but it remains one of the great examples of the tragedian's craft.

'Othello' embodies Shakespeare's oft-repeated theme of love and duty as the mortar mix which binds society. It is Othello's tragedy that he should adulterate both, exposing them as weaknesses rather than strengths, the alchemy of his emotions reducing them to acids which will eat into his soul and corrupt his very nature.

Shakespeare took characterisation to a new level. His triumph is not only in his invigoration of the English language but in his psychological awareness and insight, his ability to get inside the minds of his characters long before social science was conceived or psychology became the lingua franca of literature. Shakespeare's characters have a realism which contrasts with the earlier role of the staged character as a mouthpiece for words and vehicle for action. Shakespeare's characters breathe, their dilemmas and tragedies are painfully human.

Othello and Iago are two of his greatest creatures. Villainy, we discover, can be as enthralling and dramatically dynamic as any heroic role. A play which can pit such characters against one another is a play which will provide lasting rewards for both its audience and its actors. Shakespeare's plays, remember, have thrilled and inspired actors for centuries: they continue to do so, and each generation of actors wrings new interpretations and understandings from performance.

There are many published editions of the play available - your choice may reflect your pocket, it may more likely reflect your need to study for school or college. It's worth contrasting the various popular editions available and considering which most adequately meets your needs.

My first choice, for any student or anyone seeking a sound understanding of the play, is the Arden edition. It provides the most extensive notes, offers insights into the play and its performance, explores the dynamics of its characters, and offers you an excellent appreciation of the text. The textual notes are comprehensive and readily comprehensible. They are included on the same page as the text - text at the top, notes at the bottom - and make it easy to follow the meaning of the dialogue. Add to this good quality paper and printing, and you have a robust edition and an exciting resource for the student.

The Penguin Shakespeare edition offers an excellent introduction - some seventy pages of analysis of the play's themes and dynamics. This is well worth reading by any student. A small, pocket-sized edition, it is also convenient for carrying around. However, the notes on the text, while excellent, are confined to the back of the book - you have to keep turning backwards and forwards to refer to them, and this can be a drawback. Note, also, that there are three Penguin edition available. The Penguin Shakespeare is more up-to-date than the New Penguin Shakespeare, and the Penguin Popular Classics simply delivers the text of the play with little or nothing in the way of notes.

The New Cambridge Shakespeare is a sophisticated resource - it provides a dynamic Introduction, analysing the play and providing the sort of intellectual baseline sixth form and first year university students need. It offers further analysis at the end of the play. The text, itself, is beautifully printed, with tight little notes at the foot of each page (you may find you need glasses to follow these, however). Still, an edition to be recommended.

The Cambridge School Shakespeare provides lots of ideas for groupwork and class analysis of text and themes, and must provide teachers with an excellent practical resource with which to engage their class. The text appears on the right hand page, notes and commentary are kept to the left hand page - making it very accessible and readable. There is also a quality feel to the paper and printing.

The Heinemann edition is aimed at 'A' level students in the UK. It offers page by page notes on the text plus an overview of what is happening on stage to give you an insight into this as an active dramatic production, not simply words on a page. It's well laid out, well produced, well printed, making the text easy to follow. There are questions posed about the drama and characters, providing stimulating material for teaching and learning in groups, or for individual thought. There's a significant section at the rear of the book exploring themes and the major questions in the play, leading the student (and teacher) into a deeper awareness of language, setting, characterisation and drama. Designed emphatically for 'A' level students, it will nevertheless prove useful for first year at university (and possibly beyond), thanks to its ability to generate ideas and questions.

The Longman's School Shakespeare also provides notes on the left hand page, text on the right. The text is, perhaps, better presented than the Cambridge 'School' edition - it is slightly more expansive and lucid. The notes, however, don't feel as robust as in the Cambridge edition - they're more limited and less comprehensive.

The Oxford School Shakespeare is, I feel, the weakest of the 'school' editions. Overall, I didn't find it as dynamic or thought-provoking as the others. It provides a brief synopsis, a scene by scene analysis, and some useful notes. But text and notes run together on the same page, giving it a congested, claustrophobic feel which I found disconcerting.

For school work, I'd go for the Cambridge, Heinemann, or Longman's, for the keen student, the Arden edition is my top recommendation, followed by the New Cambridge. However, if you are studying the play, it's worth collaborating with your fellow students - you each acquire a different edition of the text, then you can compare and contrast the notes and commentaries.

Author: Raymond Murphy
By Cambridge University Press

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very useful book, 2010-07-03
I would recommend this book to people who already have some knowledge of the English grammar, but want to expand that knowledge. It is very good for self study, as there are both explanations of grammar rules as well as exercises with answers. The book's layout is very clear and the explanations are not too complicated. It can also be used by teachers as an additional source of grammar exercises.

Author: Cambridge School Classics Project
By Cambridge University Press

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fantastic book, 2010-02-11
Unlike many books, this book doesn't start off by giving you irrelevent phrases, but istead enables you to have the ability to form sentences in Latin at a very early stage.

Author: Raymond Murphy
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:), 2010-07-03
The book is very useful for people who just started learning English. A learner can use it on his/her own as there are explanations of certain grammar rules and exercises with answers. Also teachers can find it useful in their classroom as an additional source of grammar exercises. It's simple to use. The layout is very clear and there are some colourful pictures.

Author: Cambridge ESOL
By Cambridge University Press

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The best way to prepare for an exam, 2010-06-16
This book is very helpful because it includes genuine material from previous IELTS exams. The answer key enables you to check your progress. There are tapescripts and sample answers for writing tasks. All these things are great!!!