Athenaze: An Introduction to Ancient Greek: Book I (ISBN 0195056213)

As good an option as any:
I've read through many of the reviews of this book and find that most of my critiques and commendations of it have already been expressed, but I think a concise (non-partisan) evaluation of it could be useful for a prospective student. I worked through both volumes of this text during a two-semester-long, 5-days-a-week "Intensive Attic Greek" class at a large Eastern University. I had two diiferent professors who taught the class, both of them well-respected classicists in their respective areas. I also own (and have extensively consulted) the texts by Anne Groton (_From Alpha to Omega_) and Donald Mastronarde (_Introduction to Attic Greek_), and so I am qualified to evaluate the _Athenaze_ series. The main advantages of this book (as I find them) are the following: -- The student begins to read 'Greek' from the start. --The book is designed to be 'friendly,' and is a refreshing change from the stoic scholasticism that permeates Greek pedagogy. --The introduction of principal parts, etc. is staged, which can ease the burden of being overwhelmed by unfamiliar verb forms. Some might think this is a disadvantage, but I found it helpful. --The text is interspersed with small (heavily glossed) snippets of 'real' Greek: selections from Archilochus, Sappho, Theognis, etc...as well as consistent segments from the New Testament. These selections become longer and more difficult as the book progresses. --Contrary to some reviewers' comments, _Athenaze_ DOES include reference charts for grammar paradigms. The confusion is that the first volume includes only material covered to the end of that volume, while the second includes both. This is logical. Personally, I find the format of the paradigms to be easier to follow than those in Mastronarde book, though the _Athenaze_ charts are less thorough (not covering 3rd-person imperatives, for example, or the Dual). However, some paradigms are not included, and must be hunted up in the body of the text...notably the -MI- verbs, and the forms of 'oida.' This is annoying, but purchasing a supplementary grammar (the Oxford grammar is a fine one) will solve this easily. Now, for my critiques: --Like all books, the text should be supplemented by a competent teacher. I tried (and failed) to teach myself Greek using this and several other texts. After attending classes for the past year, I've realised that NOTHING substitutes for the assistance of a well-trained Professor. This cannot be stressed enough. Someone can do a decent job of learning the language with this series, but unless they have exceptional fortitude and wit, will be unable to move to a 'real Greek' text, aided only by a lexica and commentary. --The second book (compared to the first book) is disproportionately weighted with difficult grammar, introducing the Perfect System, the Subjunctive, the Optative, Aorist Passive, Future Passive, Indirect Discourse, -MI- verbs... This stuff can be tough sledding, and require far more work than concepts introduced in the first book. --I thought the treatment of Indirect Discourse to be too brief. Even with supplementary instruction from the professor I struggled with these concepts, because the _Athenaze_ examples were too brief. --The chapter vignettes, though meant to charming, are fairly prosaic (as must be expected when working with so limited a vocaublary). In a classroom, the tedium can be broken by poking fun at the story, but reading this on your own might be a strain. Also, the drawings that precede each chapter are terrible, but (mercifully) end by the second voume. These may seem like superficial criticims, but I challenge anyone to find a student who's used this book and not been distracted or puzzled by these oddities. Those are the main points. Overall, _Athenaze_ is a good text, but it should really be supplemented by a teacher. I found the 'filler' material to be interesting and diverting, and the book provides many opportunites for practice reading. It seems as competent as any other available text, and provides a valuable choice for people who learn best by 'immersion.'

Not very thorough or systematic:
The baby Greek reading selections do not adequately prepare a student; the vocabulary seems scattered and inconsistent with the layout of the grammar lessons; various themes are diced into uneven sized chunks; the material is not systematic, and you will find yourself flipping back and forth through several chapters just to clarify one point that should have been thoroughly presented in one chapter. The cultural notes, while they might have some interest for a budding classicist, do not actually help the student learn Greek and just waste paper. This book is nowhere near as thorough, useful, and valuable as the classic Hansen & Quinn textbook, Greek: An Intensive Course. It's not even cheaper, as you have to buy Book 2 to find the complete first year course. The Athenaze series is an easy intro to Greek. But that only means you will learn the material less thoroughly, have a looser grasp of all the concepts, and not be sufficiently prepared to read the classics.

Athenaze: An Introduction to Ancient Greek, Vol. 2:
As Greek text books go this one isn't the best to use when learning on your own out side of lecture but it's not the worst. Definitly recomend the work book that accompanies this text.

A great resource for Greek study!:
Athenaze Workbook I is a must-have and very helpful resource that corresponds to Athenaze Volume I. A couple of important points right off the bat, though, are: 1. Be sure that you are getting the 2nd edition of both the text (2003) and workbook (2004). 2. If you are looking for the teacher's manual, you may be disappointed. While you can purchase the teacher's manual for the first edition, you may only acquire the 2nd edition guide directly through Oxford University Press. They, however, do not sell it, since it is only available to teachers and you must apply for a gratis copy. The exercises are different between the 1st and 2nd editions. The workbook is layed out in a very readable format, with clear type and a standard Greek font. Students commonly trained in Koine Greek will find it odd that the Greek cases (nominative, genetive, dative, accusative, etc.) are not introduced immediately. Instead, standard English grammar terms are used (subject, complement, direct object, etc.). Also, the student is introduced immediately into reading Greek by the paragraph, but the workbook chops up that approach into manageable bite sized phrases which are to be translated in the exercises. Thus if you were trying to only use the textbook it would be harder to learn. I liked that there are four vocabulary reviews throughout the workbook, which may be used prior to quarterly exams. Also of importance is the inclusion of the answer keys to all of the workbook exercises. I liked the fact that (even near the end of the book/school year) there are plenty of small translation exercises. However, they are balanced out by paragraphs to be translated as well. Given the easy inductive learning format, I highly recommend this workbook as an essential companion to Athenaze, vol. I.

Thoughtful and Effective Workbook for a Solid Text Program:
A thoughtfully made, truly effective workbook. The textbook's approach is not my favorite (I'd rather see the Greek equivalent of Keller & Russell's Learn to Read Latin), but it's got enough positives to convince me it's the best out there for secondary school use-- at least for now (he parenthesized, nudging Drew & Stephanie).