Schaum's Outline of Russian Grammar

I started using Schaum's Outline of Russian Grammar after I already knew the basics of Russian grammar and found it very useful. One of the difficulties with Russian grammar is remembering all the rules and applying them correctly. This book is ideal for practice as it contains hundreds of grammar exercises with answers. The author, James S. Levine, begins each section of the book with a clear explanation of the grammar point to be studied. The exercises then test the learner's understanding of this point. The key to using the book successfully is to do all the exercises. This requires a certain amount of discipline, as it has to be said, this is a fairly dull book. There are no stories and no pictures, just grammar and more grammar. It is for this reason that I would not recommend this book for someone who has no knowledge of Russian at all. Moreover, although all aspects of Russian grammar are covered thoroughly including the basics, Levine often assumes the reader already has a reasonable Russian vocabulary and has a fair grasp of Russian sentence structure. A complete beginner would find doing some of the exercises almost impossible.

The key to speaking Russian correctly and fluently is for the grammar rules to become automatic. If you constantly have to work out the case of the noun, the aspect of the verb and so on, you'll never get anywhere. With practice even the complexities of Russian grammar become a matter of routine. Any reasonably serious student of Russian will benefit from Levine's book and will also gain a good degree of satisfaction from completing the exercises. This book will definitely improve your Russian.

This is one of the best grammar books I have used!
Having studied Latin, French, Spanish, Hebrew, German, Russian and English, there is no doubt in my mind that Russian grammar is up there in the first or second place in difficulty. This book does an excellent job of presenting complex material in a clear and straightforward manner. Dr. Levine organized the material so you can use the book as a study aid and as a reference book. He introduces each topic with definitions and general rules, and follows with numerous examples with corresponding English translations. He summarizes the topic with appropriate tables and a thorough review, using extensive exercises, with answers in the back of the book.
Worth mentioning is the particular sensitivity of Dr. Levine to the English-speaking student. Subtle points which are common pitfalls for English speakers learning Russian are brought up and examples given.

Schaums outline of Russian Grammer is structured like a workbook, with brief explanations of different aspects of Russian grammer, followed by numerous exercises. It is helpful if you are taking a Russian language course as well, but if you are not taking a course, this book alone cannot help you. I have used many of the grammer books, and the source that has worked best for me is Master the Basics by Natalia LUsin. For people taking a language course, it is a great study guide, and simply the best for teaching grammer to yourself if you are not enrolled in a class.

I recently went on an Amazon.com shopping spree and purchased about 10 different books designed for learning Russian. It is now almost a month later, and I can honestly say that Schaum's Outline of Russian Grammar is head and shoulders above the rest in terms of how useful it is for an independent, self-studying student like myself.

The book is organized into several chapters, each covering a major part of speech (Nouns, Pronouns, Adjectives and Adverbs, Prepositions, etc) and each of these chapters contains MANY practice exercises so you can test yourself on the things you've learned. Each of the 239 practice exercises is made up of between 10 and 20 questions that review the grammatical concepts discussed in each particular section. They vary in format, from fill-in-the-blank, to combining two sentences into one, indetifying the case of underlined words, changing the tense/case/number of words, and more.

So in summation, if you are learning Russian then BUY THIS BOOK! For the serious independent student it will give an extremely thorough grounding in Russian grammar with practice and drills exactly like you'd find in a standard Russian course at a school. And for those taking Russian courses at a school, it will prove to be a very valuable reference and practice book to help brush up for exams.

I am only giving this book 4 stars instead of 5 because the front cover says "Ideal for independent study" and I think an individual who wants to begin learning the Russian language will have a hard time with this book. It is hard to find a stopping point in the chapters.
If you are taking university classes this will help you understand anything you might miss in class. The MANY drills and exercises help your brain convert its thinking into a different alphabet.
Also, the binding and page size make it easy to photocopy if you don't want to write in the book or you want extra copies for yourself.
Overall, this book is great.