Jeff's language log

[jeff_lindqvist]

Interesting. I used to have that problem, because I tried to learn Dutch (not terribly successfully, but over at least a couple of years) long long before I seriously tried to learn German, and in that time, I'd listened to a fair amount of Dutch / Flemish. It took me a while to "unlearn" it for German-learning purposes. Now my inner voice would probably pronounce Dutch as German...

Same here, Flemish/Dutch audio input is the main culprit. For the past weeks I watched a tv series and listened to a youtube channel. That alone was enough to program my brain.

I have a "real book" that might possibly be at the right level, and for which I know a German unabridged audiobook is available. It also has the advantage that it has been widely translated, so if you chose, you could almost certainly find a Swedish or an English translation of it, if that helped. The book is:

"Emil und die Detektive" by Erich Kästner.

Who knows, maybe I have it... It definitely rings a bell although I haven't read it. If memory serves, I saw a movie adaptation in black and white, some 30 years ago... (Alright, my Google-Fu says it was the 5th of January 1988.)

The book is available at the library - in German. I might start with that, then see if I have the audio somewhere. Ah, found it. Maybe time for a listening-reading project...

Thanks for the recommendation!

[jeff_lindqvist]

2021 - Summary of week 1

I watched the remaining episodes of The Name of the Rose. By the end of the week, I found a youtube playlist about the history of D&D. Of course I had a dream about being in "the home where I grew up" and in a bookshelf on the 2nd floor (in reality, it's a one-story house) there was a huge collection of AD&D tomes (which don't exist...).

DE: I finished another easy reader. Now I will follow Montmorency's suggestion above.

NL: More short stories from Radioboeken. Typically one or two every day. If my morning walk ends halfway into one story, that's it for the day.

ZH: Reborn / 重生, episode 17-18. I also watched the movie The Man of Tai Chi (mixed dialogue in English / Mandarin / Cantonese).

[jeff_lindqvist]

2021 - Summary of week 2

I finished some RPG material and started reading Player's Handbook from the 5th edition of Dungeons & Dragons. (Funny how all previous editions used an ampersand in the acronym - D&D / AD&D - but the current one is mostly referred to as DnD.)

DE: I started reading (and listening to) Emil und die Detektive. Thanks Montmorency!

NL: More short stories from Radioboeken.

ZH: Reborn / 重生, episode 19-20.

[jeff_lindqvist]

Sometimes language exposure is unplanned. Yesterday a friend and I were browsing a website on how to pronounce certain terms and names in D&D.

Lycanthrope seems to have a different logic than hyperbole (mentioned here: Random interesting things I found in the English language).

Mordenkainen - morden-[keɪ]-nen, despite the Finnish look (implying [ʌɪ])

..and then today's moment of ragtime guitar on Youtube (I listened to some Ralph McTell the other night). There it was - a tutorial in German of all languages. I was even more surprised finding out that the teacher in question (Ian Melrose) was British. And then, even more surprised that he'd been touring with the Gweedore band Clannad. Small world.

[jeff_lindqvist]

2021 - Summary of week 3

I finished Player's Handbook and started Dungeon Master's Guide. I also finished a contemporary edition of Vid vansinnets berg (At the Mountains of Madness) by Howard Phillips Lovecraft. I'm sure it was the first story I read by him back in 1990 (also in Swedish, but another translation - I can't really say which is best since it was a long time ago, and moreover I've never read the story in English).

DE: I finished reading Emil und die Detektive. A few days ago, I watched RDearman's talk about the L-R method. The talk inspired me to try it out. Again. But I haven't yet chosen a title.

NL: More short stories from Radioboeken.

ZH: No series this week.

[jeff_lindqvist]

2021 - Summary of week 4

I finished Dungeon Master's Guide, then spent some time in the dark corners of my lair looking for something else to read in English. I found a rather thick book which I don't remember having bought / found / been given. Anyway, there it was: The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon. It seemed interesting enough, and the Pulitzer Prize note on the cover ought to mean something.

I also finished the latest Michel Bussi thriller (translated to Swedish) - Se dig inte om / Ne lâche pas ma main. By the way, I'm still reading his first (in Swedish, that is) - Trollsländan / Un avion sans elle. I think I started it before Christmas, but the one I finished today had to be returned to the library. There are two more in Swedish - also by the bedside, waiting to be read.

NL: More short stories from Radioboeken.

ZH: Reborn / 重生, episode 21-22.

Nothing in German this week. External factors are in the way.

[jeff_lindqvist]

2021 - Summary of week 5

A lot of reading this week. A little here, a little there. Only one book finished: Jorden runt på 1000 dagar by Fredrika Ek. She decided to bike around the world in 1000 days. There was an interview with her on Swedish television some years ago. My Dad read the book, then my Mum, and now it was my turn. Yesterday, I watched a Masterclass Q&A with Dan Brown.

NL: More short stories from Radioboeken.

ZH: Reborn / 重生, episode 23-24. Four episodes left, I think.

Still no German.

[jeff_lindqvist]

2021 - Summary of week 6

Another week of reading. Four books finished - three of them crime/suspense (in Swedish translation). The non-crime novel was The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay which I mentioned the other week. A blogger whom I've been following for years had it on their to read-list in yesterday's post. I always find good book suggestions on the blog, but on this list I had already read two (!) titles. After finishing the Chabon novel, I opened Refuse to Choose again. (Spooky - I wrote about it exactly four years ago.)

NL: More short stories from Radioboeken.

ZH: Reborn / 重生, episode 25-26. Two episodes left.

[IronMike]

The non-crime novel was The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay which I mentioned the other week.

Holy crap that is one of my favorite books ever. Have you read his The Yiddish Policeman's Union? Also awesome.

[jeff_lindqvist]

Holy crap that is one of my favorite books ever. Have you read his The Yiddish Policeman's Union? Also awesome.

No, this is the first book I've read by him. I still don't know how the book ended up in the cupboard. Before I found it the other week, I had no idea what it was, nor who Michael Chabon was. But I wan't to read more by him. Thanks for the recommendation!