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The Way of the Linguist: A Language Learning Odyssey
The Way of The Linguist, A language learning odyssey. It is now a clich¿ that the world is a smaller place. We think nothing of jumping on a plane to travel to another country or continent. The most exotic locations are now destinations for mass tourism. Small business people are dealing across frontiers and language barriers like never before. The Internet brings different languages and cultures to our finger-tips. English, the hybrid language of an island at the western extremity of Europe seems to have an unrivalled position as an international medium of communication. But historically periods of cultural and economic domination have never lasted forever. Do we not lose something by relying on the wide spread use of English rather than discovering other languages and cultures? As citizens of this shrunken world, would we not be better off if we were able to speak a few languages other than our own? The answer is obviously yes. Certainly Steve Kaufmann thinks so, and in his busy life as a diplomat and businessman he managed to learn to speak nine languages fluently and observe first hand some of the dominant cultures of Europe and Asia. Why do not more people do the same? In his book The Way of The Linguist, A language learning odyssey, Steve offers some answers. Steve feels anyone can learn a language if they want to. He points out some of the obstacles that hold people back. Drawing on his adventures in Europe and Asia, as a student and businessman, he describes the rewards that come from knowing languages. He relates his evolution as a language learner, abroad and back in his native Canada and explains the kind of attitude that will enable others to achieve second language fluency. Many people have taken on the challenge of language learning but have been frustrated by their lack of success. This book offers detailed advice on the kind of study practices that will achieve language breakthroughs. Steve has developed a language learning system available online
140 pages, Paperback
First published December 5, 2005
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352 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
December 5, 2023
This was a quick read, and the version in French is written in simple enough syntax for an intermediate French student to read. There are several good suggestions, and they mostly mirror my experiences in learning a second language, and now in learning a third:
- Study every day, at least 20 minutes or so, and more is better
- From the beginning, speak paragraphs or dialogues out loud, and record yourself
- Write essays in the language, once you have achieved enough fluency to do so.
- Learn some new vocabulary words every day - a set number, maybe twenty or thirty.
- Learn and practice grammar (more on this below)
- Correct your mistakes and practice again until you can know the material without error
- Find a native speaker to practice with, or, much better, go to a country that speaks the language you are studying and immerse yourself. An immersion program is absolutely the fastest way to learn.
Following the above, depending on the amount of time committed to study and practice, one will soon start being able to think in the new language. Kaufmann is against worrying too much about learning grammar rules, and I disagree on this point. I found it very useful to know grammar rules in Spanish, and I always felt a little lost in German because of not having studied that language's fairly complex grammar.
All in all, not a bad book, though there is a bit more about Kaufmann's career than is absolutely necessary.
- Study every day, at least 20 minutes or so, and more is better
- From the beginning, speak paragraphs or dialogues out loud, and record yourself
- Write essays in the language, once you have achieved enough fluency to do so.
- Learn some new vocabulary words every day - a set number, maybe twenty or thirty.
- Learn and practice grammar (more on this below)
- Correct your mistakes and practice again until you can know the material without error
- Find a native speaker to practice with, or, much better, go to a country that speaks the language you are studying and immerse yourself. An immersion program is absolutely the fastest way to learn.
Following the above, depending on the amount of time committed to study and practice, one will soon start being able to think in the new language. Kaufmann is against worrying too much about learning grammar rules, and I disagree on this point. I found it very useful to know grammar rules in Spanish, and I always felt a little lost in German because of not having studied that language's fairly complex grammar.
All in all, not a bad book, though there is a bit more about Kaufmann's career than is absolutely necessary.
March 1, 2010
In THE LINGUIST: A Personal Guide to Language Learning, Steve Kaufmann promises to impart to you the insights that he has gained over a lifetime of learning several languages. The way the book was published and the amateur typesetting that greets you as you open the volume don't augur well. And indeed, the author ends up being something of a doddering old man, who goes into long tangents that have little to do with his proclaimed mission of language education, e.g.:
"As a poor student, I did not often have the chance to enjoy haute cuisine. However, it was not uncommon when I was hitchhiking in Southern France for truck drivers to share with me a full course lunch, including wine. How they continued driving after that was a bit of a mystery to me. I understand that the control on drinking and driving in France has become more severe in recent years."
After this there then follows a long explication of his hitchhiking experience with no connection to language learning. Virtually every stage of Kaufmann's life is marked by a long series of reminisces on local cuisine or geography with language learning being an afterthought.
After Kaufmann's biographical and philosophical musings, one finally comes to a chapter entitled "How to Learn a Language". But here the real tips are obscured by what is essentially a long sales pitch for Kaufmann's own website. A 7-page long appendix is just a collection of views on immigration to Canada.
My training is in linguistics and I travel most of the year seeking out new languages to learn, but I try to give only vague answers when asked by others what languages I speak for a number of reasons, among them 1) retaining a language after you've learnt it is a lifelong effort and your skills can atrophy without you even realizing it, and 2) the matter of what is really means to speak a foreign language fluently is difficult to pin down -- for example, I might comfortably immerse myself in village life in many languages, but the language's literary standard may remain a challenge. Presenting yourself as an authority on language learning is just to invite people to find cracks in the facade -- certainly for all my own personal achievements, I too would ultimately sound ridiculous if I wrote as Kaufmann does.
I suspect that this book will be of little use to most linguaphiles, who tend to establish their own methods through their own personal experience and not that of others. The general public wouldn't even ever come across this.
"As a poor student, I did not often have the chance to enjoy haute cuisine. However, it was not uncommon when I was hitchhiking in Southern France for truck drivers to share with me a full course lunch, including wine. How they continued driving after that was a bit of a mystery to me. I understand that the control on drinking and driving in France has become more severe in recent years."
After this there then follows a long explication of his hitchhiking experience with no connection to language learning. Virtually every stage of Kaufmann's life is marked by a long series of reminisces on local cuisine or geography with language learning being an afterthought.
After Kaufmann's biographical and philosophical musings, one finally comes to a chapter entitled "How to Learn a Language". But here the real tips are obscured by what is essentially a long sales pitch for Kaufmann's own website. A 7-page long appendix is just a collection of views on immigration to Canada.
My training is in linguistics and I travel most of the year seeking out new languages to learn, but I try to give only vague answers when asked by others what languages I speak for a number of reasons, among them 1) retaining a language after you've learnt it is a lifelong effort and your skills can atrophy without you even realizing it, and 2) the matter of what is really means to speak a foreign language fluently is difficult to pin down -- for example, I might comfortably immerse myself in village life in many languages, but the language's literary standard may remain a challenge. Presenting yourself as an authority on language learning is just to invite people to find cracks in the facade -- certainly for all my own personal achievements, I too would ultimately sound ridiculous if I wrote as Kaufmann does.
I suspect that this book will be of little use to most linguaphiles, who tend to establish their own methods through their own personal experience and not that of others. The general public wouldn't even ever come across this.
January 4, 2009
I read it in French and am currently reading it in Spanish. Very interesting language-learning auto-biography that makes it clear how and why Steve developed his listening-plus-reading no-grammar methodology and why it worked. Serves as a good background to using the LingQ website (www.lingq.com).
November 8, 2010
The Way of the Linguist was a great read. The way he explained language learning was very clear and made sense. His experiences were real and instilled a sense of hope for language learners. I really learned a lot from this book.
January 28, 2024
Libro corto y fácil de leer en el que Steve Kaufmann da consejos valiosos para llegar a ser un lingüista.
June 30, 2011
This book is fantastic. It gives you a whole new view on language learning, a view that will empower you for the rest of your life. I actually translated it from English to Italian for www.lingq.com, the author's language learning web-application.
August 30, 2020
“Il ne sert à rien d'être "pour" ou "contre" quelque chose qui est inévitable. Il est plus utile d'investir du temps et de l'énergie à profiter et tirer avantage de la (situation).
Apprendre une langue est comme voyager. Les deux choses sont des aventures. Cela est inutile de voyager à l'étranger si c'est pour se comporter comme si vous étiez restés chez vous. (...) Dans les classes les plus efficaces ce n'est pas la langue qui est apprise, mais d'autres sujets qui intéressent les élèves. En étudiant un autre sujet les élèves absorbent la langue, et sont moins conscients de leurs propres difficultés linguistiques, dans leur enthousiasme de communiquer à propos de quelque chose qui les intéresse.”
Apprendre une langue est comme voyager. Les deux choses sont des aventures. Cela est inutile de voyager à l'étranger si c'est pour se comporter comme si vous étiez restés chez vous. (...) Dans les classes les plus efficaces ce n'est pas la langue qui est apprise, mais d'autres sujets qui intéressent les élèves. En étudiant un autre sujet les élèves absorbent la langue, et sont moins conscients de leurs propres difficultés linguistiques, dans leur enthousiasme de communiquer à propos de quelque chose qui les intéresse.”
July 21, 2018
If you ever wondered exactly how and why Steve Kaufmann acquired all the language he knows, this book does just that. However, this book didn't really teach me anything new about learning languages. Most of the book was just Steve Kaufmann explaining his experience with languages and lots of stories about himself in different countries and so on. The part explaining how to learn a language was very basic and mainly just gave a summary of everything. I would have liked to see a more in-depth explanation of learning languages, but perhaps that wasn't Kaufmann's goal for this book.
September 19, 2014
interesting as a wholistic approach to language learning, but kind of poorly written. the first part - personal experiences of the author - takes up half the book and is basically irrelevant.
still, worth reading and checking out the linguist system.
still, worth reading and checking out the linguist system.
December 20, 2020
Steve’s personal stories were fascinating and he is certainly impressive. Sadly, his writing and language strategies were a bit repetitive and uninspiring.
February 10, 2022
Rounded up from 3.5 stars. In terms of the language-learning advice, it's all really good, but it could fit into a couple of pages at most (something along the lines of: read a lot, listen a lot, maximise comprehensible input, do a bit of writing, focus on material you're interested in, don't worry about perfection, and don't start with grammar books). The rest of the book is memoir and anecdotes. Pleasant enough, but not what I was after.
July 27, 2019
This book mixes Steve's autobiography with his own tips on how to learn languages. I believe that the first part is somewhat unappealing to those who do not follow Steve already. Since I have watched many of his videos and read his blog posts, I was curious enough to learn about his life and how he came to be who he is.
On the language learning part, there is good advice there, but nothing new from what you can read from Steve's posts. That said, don't expect him to unveil the secret of language learning in his book. I'm giving it four stars really for the story on Steve's journey to becoming one of the most influential people nowadays on the language learning scene as well as his enthusiasm. He talks a bit at the end about the history of his product (then The Linguist site, now LingQ). I wish it was a bit more accessible. I tried it already and found it to be amazing, but it's too expensive when converted to my country's currency/reality.
On the language learning part, there is good advice there, but nothing new from what you can read from Steve's posts. That said, don't expect him to unveil the secret of language learning in his book. I'm giving it four stars really for the story on Steve's journey to becoming one of the most influential people nowadays on the language learning scene as well as his enthusiasm. He talks a bit at the end about the history of his product (then The Linguist site, now LingQ). I wish it was a bit more accessible. I tried it already and found it to be amazing, but it's too expensive when converted to my country's currency/reality.
April 15, 2018
While speaking 16 languages, 6 of them fluently, Steve Kaufmann is a bit of a language guru. Steve presents his linguistic journey from his early days studying in France and backpacking across Europe to his career in international business in Asia. In the second half of the book, Steve goes into the details of what is required to effectively learn a language and shares his systematic approach to language acquisition.
The Way of the Linguist: A Language Learning Odyssey is an interesting read for those looking to develop their own language learning strategy or for language enthusiasts, in general.
The Way of the Linguist: A Language Learning Odyssey is an interesting read for those looking to develop their own language learning strategy or for language enthusiasts, in general.
August 22, 2020
Speaking from my own experience, I found Steve's book to seamlessly align itself with my own strategies and philosophy of language learning. The bit in which he discusses acting as though you were a native while reading aloud to yourself or while speaking with others was brilliant and, as I've come to understand, does indeed add new flavours to your character while swapping languages. I'd recommend this read to anyone keen on "working smarter, not harder" in regard to the effectiveness of their methods or to an experienced languge learner interested in a little encouragement reading through the experience of another. Cheers!
April 29, 2023
A fascinating polyglot and a learning method that makes a lot of sense
Steve is one of those polyglots like Benny Lewis or the late Moses McCormick that redefine what's possible for a motivated person to achieve which makes my own modest aspiration to learn French and Spanish fluently seem more feasible. This book is quite short but gives an effective method for a solo learner to approach their studies. Before buying I would seek out interviews with Steve Kaufmann on YouTube to see if his strategy and learning philosophy is a good match for you.
Steve is one of those polyglots like Benny Lewis or the late Moses McCormick that redefine what's possible for a motivated person to achieve which makes my own modest aspiration to learn French and Spanish fluently seem more feasible. This book is quite short but gives an effective method for a solo learner to approach their studies. Before buying I would seek out interviews with Steve Kaufmann on YouTube to see if his strategy and learning philosophy is a good match for you.
March 9, 2021
The author shares his long journey of his language learning, and I found it is really inspiring for all people who are involved in language learning. The spike for me was his attitude towards languages. Languages are deeply interrelated with its cultures and histories, and all learners should appreciate the different way to describe the world. His every sentence has made me a better language learner.
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October 6, 2025Ich habe dieses Buch auf der App LingQ gelesen, wo ich jedes neue Wort und jeden neuen Satz markieren zur späteren Übung konnte. Es war unglaublich hilfreich, mein Wortschatz und Lesefertigkeit zu verbessern.
Das Buch war ok. Ich glaube, dass „Fluent in 3 Months” hat mir mehr zum Theme Sprachenlernen beigebracht, aber „The Linguist“ war auch auf seiner eigenen Weise schön und hatte auch interessante persönliche Geschichten.
Das Buch war ok. Ich glaube, dass „Fluent in 3 Months” hat mir mehr zum Theme Sprachenlernen beigebracht, aber „The Linguist“ war auch auf seiner eigenen Weise schön und hatte auch interessante persönliche Geschichten.
January 15, 2023
Nothing really special
At first, I was looking for a more detailed answer about learning languages and to be honest this book was not a powerful tool in terms of learning. Most of the story is about discovering the author’s life - how had he been in several countries becoming more and more fluent in foreign languages. I was expecting something more that just last chapters going briefly through methods of learning.
At first, I was looking for a more detailed answer about learning languages and to be honest this book was not a powerful tool in terms of learning. Most of the story is about discovering the author’s life - how had he been in several countries becoming more and more fluent in foreign languages. I was expecting something more that just last chapters going briefly through methods of learning.
November 7, 2021
This was the first entire book I read in French so I’m quite proud of myself for that. As a language learner I found it really reassuring and comforting when such a talented polyglot candidly shares his trials and tribulations. Some chapters resonated with me a lot more than others, but overall a great read.
September 20, 2025
Es war ein Vergnügen das Buch durchzulesen. Für mich Steve war immer ein Vorbild dafür wie man Sprachen lernen muss. Solange es Spaß macht, es ist gut. solange es für dich interessant ist, es ist gut. Und solange du meistens verstehst, es ist ja gut.
Ich bin dankbar für das Wissen, das er mit alle geteilt hat, und besonders auch mit seinem App. Es ist 100 ein Gamechanger.
Ich bin dankbar für das Wissen, das er mit alle geteilt hat, und besonders auch mit seinem App. Es ist 100 ein Gamechanger.
June 10, 2018
Incredible!
June 20, 2019
Steve is an inspiration. I love his enthusiasm towards learning.
September 17, 2019
Excellent. Read the French version. He’s such an inspiration for language learners.
October 17, 2019
Fascinating for anyone who is learning or wants to learn a new language.
April 19, 2020
One of the best book which shows you some ways to boost languages learning
September 28, 2020
C'est bon et simple guide avec la meilleur methode d'apprentissage des langues differentes.
Après ce livre, vous ne voudrez plus payer pour formaliste académique apprentissage des langues
Après ce livre, vous ne voudrez plus payer pour formaliste académique apprentissage des langues
June 27, 2021
This book was inspirational to me and I think that is what pushed me to keep learning new languages, I recommend it, it is a worthwhile reading!
March 7, 2022
3.5/5⭐
June 28, 2020
Learning languages
I enjoyed reading this book very much, especially the middle part where he explains how to learn a language. That was worthwhile.
I enjoyed reading this book very much, especially the middle part where he explains how to learn a language. That was worthwhile.
March 3, 2020
La experiencia sin pretensiones del políglota.
Le doy la calificación de cinco estrellas por que me identifico con este libro. Decidí aprender el idioma ingles a los 35 años ahora tengo 40 años, y estoy en un nivel intermedio, batallando cada día con el idioma, mas que batallando disfrutando, y el fin es comunicarme, leer, redactar, escribir.
El libro.
Cuenta primero como aprendió el idioma francés, su experiencia en Francia de más de dos años. Su predisposición para aprender el siguiente idioma el mandarín y cantones, todo un récord para aprender su segundo idioma (mandarín) en 9 meses. Luego aprendió el Japones y así sucesivamente, el italiano, alemán a lo 41 años, el sueco.
Lo más importante para aprender un idioma es la predisposición, el compromiso, el ver al idioma no como una materia del colegio, sino verlo como una habilidad, una necesidad para comunicarse, con otras personas de otras culturas, es el fin, aprender a tu ritmo.
Al final de libro cuenta que no hay una regla única para aprender un idioma, es en la variedad de recursos, de métodos, en el que uno aprende un idioma y al final el resultado no es pasar una prueba de examen, sino el placer de poder comunicarse con personas de otras culturas.
Frases que me marcaron del libro:
1. Para aprender un segundo idioma es ser consciente de que el éxito no depende del maestro sino del estudiante. El maestro sólo puede estimular e inspirar.
2. Hablo nueve idiomas.
3. Me di cuenta de que sólo podría aprender cuando tenía el deseo genuino de comunicar o aprender significativo en otro idioma. Me resistía cuando el tema de estudio estaba basado en los detalles de la lengua misma. Permanecía pasivo cada vez que los maestros trataban de imponerme principios abstractos de gramática y luego evaluarme.
4. La razón por la cual los lingüistas pueden dominar varios idiomas es que su confianza se ha incrementado. Además, a medida que se aprenden más idiomas, más se desarrolla la habilidad para manejar las nuevas formas de decir las cosas...
Nota personal:
Inicié el 18/02/2020
Terminé el 03/03/2020, en 15 días calendarios. pero no leí los días (24, 27, 29 febrero y 01 marzo). Entonces leí todo el libro en un tiempo total de 10 horas 46 minutos. en 11 días efectivos.
Promedio de lectura por día 58' 43.63".
Le doy la calificación de cinco estrellas por que me identifico con este libro. Decidí aprender el idioma ingles a los 35 años ahora tengo 40 años, y estoy en un nivel intermedio, batallando cada día con el idioma, mas que batallando disfrutando, y el fin es comunicarme, leer, redactar, escribir.
El libro.
Cuenta primero como aprendió el idioma francés, su experiencia en Francia de más de dos años. Su predisposición para aprender el siguiente idioma el mandarín y cantones, todo un récord para aprender su segundo idioma (mandarín) en 9 meses. Luego aprendió el Japones y así sucesivamente, el italiano, alemán a lo 41 años, el sueco.
Lo más importante para aprender un idioma es la predisposición, el compromiso, el ver al idioma no como una materia del colegio, sino verlo como una habilidad, una necesidad para comunicarse, con otras personas de otras culturas, es el fin, aprender a tu ritmo.
Al final de libro cuenta que no hay una regla única para aprender un idioma, es en la variedad de recursos, de métodos, en el que uno aprende un idioma y al final el resultado no es pasar una prueba de examen, sino el placer de poder comunicarse con personas de otras culturas.
Frases que me marcaron del libro:
1. Para aprender un segundo idioma es ser consciente de que el éxito no depende del maestro sino del estudiante. El maestro sólo puede estimular e inspirar.
2. Hablo nueve idiomas.
3. Me di cuenta de que sólo podría aprender cuando tenía el deseo genuino de comunicar o aprender significativo en otro idioma. Me resistía cuando el tema de estudio estaba basado en los detalles de la lengua misma. Permanecía pasivo cada vez que los maestros trataban de imponerme principios abstractos de gramática y luego evaluarme.
4. La razón por la cual los lingüistas pueden dominar varios idiomas es que su confianza se ha incrementado. Además, a medida que se aprenden más idiomas, más se desarrolla la habilidad para manejar las nuevas formas de decir las cosas...
Nota personal:
Inicié el 18/02/2020
Terminé el 03/03/2020, en 15 días calendarios. pero no leí los días (24, 27, 29 febrero y 01 marzo). Entonces leí todo el libro en un tiempo total de 10 horas 46 minutos. en 11 días efectivos.
Promedio de lectura por día 58' 43.63".
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews