Spanish-English Dictionary: Diccionario Español-Inglés by Staff of Barron's, Jeremy Berg (Contribution by), Lucia Borrero (Contribution by)

Children's Literature

The "Foreign Language Guides" are much more than just dictionaries. The front cover reports "100,000 words, phrases and examples presented in two sections: American-style English to Spanish as spoken in Latin America and Spain--Spanish to English." This particular edition includes a "Free Electronic Dictionary--available for download," which is quite appealing in this computer age, but the excellent arrangement of the hard copy version makes it quite easy to use, as well as portable. The definitions are straightforward and easy to understand in either language. Comparing several different words makes it obvious that the Spanish definitions are more detailed than the English ones, thus reflecting the emphasis of this dictionary in its uses for Spanish speakers working with English. The pages are also studded with insets displaying a variety of information useful to those learning English or those learning Spanish. There are facts about the countries that speak Spanish/English, cultural references, currency, idiomatic expressions, religious ceremonies, holidays, history, and basic current events sorts of information (even the abbreviation "FBI" is explained). The back matter contains a "Concise Spanish Grammar," which is extremely useful and well laid out; a guide to prefixes, suffixes, and "combining forms," along with irregular verbs and other grammatical forms of the parts of speech, conjugations, etc. Other useful information appears in the back matter: fractional, cardinal and ordinal numbers, weights, measures, temperatures, countries, continents, islands, oceans, lakes, and other geophysical features. This volume will serve teachers and students as an excellent resource.