Due to the structural context being so different from what we are familiar with, it is difficult to write a book on a non-European language that can walk the line between a specialist work and a phrasebook. If Professor Bevington's work is more of the latter, it is still a noble effort and if that is what you are looking for, there is none better available.

11 of 11 found the following review helpful:


An immersion in the Maya culture and language  Jan 12, 2005 By Guido Giuntini
I strongly suggest this book to the travelers going to the Yucatan peninsula. If you plan not just baking under the Cancun sun and get drunk every night, you will enjoy this book as I did. It really gives you an insight into the modern Mayan culture and will help you understand the people that built the bautiful monuments we enjoy today. It is a great guide if you plan in leaving the beaten track and loose yourself in an ancient and interesting society. It is a little bit hard, at the beginning, to get into the spoken Maya. The pronunciation is not easy and the grammar somewhat confusing. They are not used to hearing gringos speaking their native language (and Spanish is understood everywhere, if you need it), but even if you just start with few words, they will open their hearts to you and you will enjoy a great experience. I did. I just learned a few words and grammatical constructions every day, and by the end of the second week I was able to have a basic simple conversation. If you go to any archeological site, like Uxmal or Chichen Itza, you know you will be assaulted by people tying to sell you something. But try to speak to them in Maya, and they will forget you are a tourist. I have seen people jumping for the surprise and forgetting they were trying to sell me useless overpriced stuff. In a small village where we stopped for lunch, one day, in about 30 minutes the entire population was at the door of the family reastaurant to listen to the gringo speaking Maya (with a funny accent). I have really to thank professor Bevington for this book. It takes a little work and effort but it is really worth it.

9 of 9 found the following review helpful:


Finally! A practical, (albeit complicated) guide to Maya  Jun 20, 1998
Thank you, Gary Bevington, for providing a practical guide to help "gringos" understand the basic workings of the Maya language and how it is used in their daily life! Although this book uses complicated linguistic terms and explanations which are most likely beyond the average 'traveler and student', it also clarifies many of the basics of the Maya language. This guide and its English/Spanish/Maya glossary is indispensable for those of us who are intrigued by the Maya and wish to be able to communicate more fully and learn more about their culture by means of their own language. The author also helps the reader to better understand the culture (and therefore the language) with interesting observations based on the time he and his wife have spent amongst the Maya people of Quintana Roo.(Bonus! There's a separate tape set to help with pronunciation!)

5 of 6 found the following review helpful:


Mayan Overview  Dec 10, 2004 By Laura Redish
This is a good book to introduce general-interest readers to the widely-used Maya language. The book is light on linguistic and historical information but contains lots of interesting cultural insights and photographs as well as a good grammatical overview and brief dictionary. There are also accompanying audio cassette lessons at you can even buy accompanying audiotapes at ISBN#029276040X. If you're looking for something more in-depth, there is a truly comprehensive linguistic dictionary of Yucatec Maya at ISBN#0874805694, but it is Maya-->English only. Finally, readers interested in the ancient Mayan writing system (hieroglyphs) should try ISBN# 0781808626.

Enjoy!


Good Book  May 22, 2008 By Joshua L. Peterson
I'm Glad i bought it. As the person before me said, it's a bit of work. At least i should be able to speak "broken maya" on my next trip. Between this book and some help from the movie Apocalypto, i should have quite a bit more fun next time. All i got down now is "oolaak" from the movie and "box in toon" from the book. It's worth buying if your into the Mayan people, pick one up, you wont be sorry. I thought it was cool to know what the Ha ment in Xel Ha from the book.... Ha is water. More place names in the book would have made it even better.

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