Учебники....

I remember when my comrade and I bonded…

I was looking at his profile on Live Mocha, which for the uninitiated is a language learning website with lesson modules and for the most part people who are more intentional about language learning, I noticed this very interesting little factoid; we were both using the same textbook. What were the chances! The text was called Тройка and was written by Marita Nummokoski. I have often called this a very sturdy text as I have often thrown it across the room in frustration. The search for a good textbook is almost as important as a finding a good teacher. It has to be a good fit and both the teacher and you will know when it is time to move on.

I have some affection for this textbook for two reasons. It was my first book and it brought me to my Midwestern comrade. There is something to be said for the first reason. I was so happy when this book arrived and I could actually start really learning to speak and write in Russian. As some of my tutors can attest those early days were dark ones indeed. On the one hand it was helpful to have actual exercises, lessons and reading. On the other…there were actual exercises, lessons and readings. Let's just say it was a pretty steep learning curve and there are some people in the Russian speaking world who are in my mind, saints for putting up with me.

The book remains true to its subtitle: A communicative approach to Russian language, life and culture. Each chapter is broken up into three sections: Themes- Culture- Structures. The grammar is explained in understandable terms and there is very helpful cultural information also. For example this text provided useful information on how and why one should buy a samovar and what activities to engage in at your Russian friend's dacha, Moscow airports, Wedding ceremonies and traditions and how to name your Russian child if your course in Russian study led you to such a situation. In one of my first "reading" exercises on Moscow it mentioned a certain hotel and café that no longer exists post 1989.

Grammatically it led the non native speaker through noun cases in what seems to be agreed upon as the best way to teach English speaking capitalists; Nominative, prepositional, accusative, genitive dative and finally instrumental. Verb conjugations, adjectives, personal pronouns were dealt with in a way that was eventually understandable. That being said both my comrade and I only made it through 11 chapters in this text before we felt the need to move on or (in my case) we moved on at the suggestion of our teachers.

My current textbook is titled unceremoniously as Russian Grammar and was written by Galina and Leon Stillman with William Harkins. This text was also written for English speakers but unlike the Nummoski text, this one deals specifically with what I have determined to be one of my biggest problems in learning Russian: SYNTAX. (My Russian friends are more than welcome to weigh in with comments as to what they think my biggest problem is.) And while I like and respect Тройка I am in love with this text. (I remarked to Mila, my Russian teacher that I even like the smell of this book. Don't judge me, if you are a bibliophile you smell your books also.) The book was written in 1972 and seems to give me some indication about what it might have been like to study grammar in the Soviet Union. It is strict and tight and does not mess around.

Here is what I find interesting in comparing these books. In Тройка the exercises are constructed in such a way that it teaches the Russian student how to talk to Russians about their lives. So after learning how to use direct objects you can ask your Russian friends about what music they listen to, movies they like to watch, and sports that they like to play. Interestingly, this particular chapter teaches you to do this using the verb любить (to love) so in conversation you had better really like soccer. I think even now my Russian friends just think I LOVE everything because I have not really bothered to learn the verb нравиться (to like). Therefore, the examples in the grammar practice go something like this: What does Ivan like (love) to do in his free time? Ivan loves to listen to Russian music. What did you do at the dacha on Saturday? We gathered mushrooms and berries in the forest. We love to gather mushroom and berries!

Compare that to the examples in Russian Grammar: What will Ivan do on Saturday? He will play volleyball, he plays every Saturday. Ivan should work more. What kind of music does Anna listen to? Anna listens to classical music while she reads Russian literature. Nina, what are you saying? You should not speak so much you talk too often.

You get the idea. In the Stillman's world no one is gathering mushrooms. People do not love music, the listen to it. It is a very functional world. I LOVE IT! The best feature of this textbook is that after each grammar lesson in the chapter it has "pattern sentences" with the grammar you just learned highlighted. Everything is explained without complication. The only lesson I had some trouble with was a highly detailed explanation of reflexive pronouns. With the Stillman text I was able to learn with alacrity the rest of my noun cases, I feel more in control and confident when I speak and write in Russian because I have taken the time with the drills in this text. I have increased the amount of time I can "sustain" a conversation in Russian. The Stillman text also introduced some valuable concepts like how to say "I must" and "I should" and even though while practicing with this construction led one Russian friend to accuse me of "becoming suddenly demanding", I enjoyed being able to be demanding.

I have found a happy match with my new textbook. However, it would be unfair to say the first one was a waste of time or not helpful. It got me started and served its purpose. I confirmed this a few weeks ago when I had misplaced my new book and decided to use the same grammar lesson in the old textbook. I wrote out my exercises and sent it to a friend. The return email had a confused tone to it. My friend could not understand why I was writing like this, the syntax was not quite correct and also responded with a terse "I thought you understood this declension? What happened?" I located my new "friend" the next day and got back to learning how to chastise Ivan for playing too much volleyball. Stillman is right, he should work more!

 

Brighton Beach NYC/ Какой хороший день

Last weekend I was in New York and spent Sunday in Brooklyn, specifically Brighton Beach. This small Brooklyn neighborhood has become quite the Russian enclave over the past 20 years. The story is that Russians settled here because the ocean reminded them of the Black Sea. I had dragged my family on the last day of our New York getaway down to see one of my favorite Russian tutors/friends, Tatiana and to finally meet my comrade from the middle of the country. It was a glorious day. The weather was perfect. We met at the High St. subway station in Brooklyn and then took in the views of New York from the Brooklyn Bridge walkway. After that we took the subway all the way down to Brighton Beach. We had lunch right on the boardwalk and heard Russian everywhere. Towards the end of our meal we were joined by Misha, Tatiana's husband. After lunch we walked off the food and the vodka and visited St. Petersburg Trade House, a large Russian bookstore. (Link added below) I resisted the urge to by a copy of Dostoyevsky in Russian, my daughter was busy looking for cd's of her favorite Russian groups, (yes, my daughter listens to Russian pop music especially the groups Ин-ян, БиС and the Russian-Uzbek singer Sogdiana) my husband wandered around unsure what to do with himself but admiring the chess sets. My comrade was looking for his own books. I ended up buying one book and one Russian film (Иван Васильевич меняет профессию) at the advice of Misha which was seconded by another Russian man who overheard us. I happen to love these old Russian comedies so was glad to add another to my collection.

While my boys were completely bored in the bookstore my youngest had $10.00 burning a hole in his pocket. It was money he had earned doing jobs over the summer and he had one thing he was looking for. Russian chocolate candy. Tatiana was brilliant helping him out and even though it was different than the kinds we get at the little Russian grocery in Brookline, I am happy to report he has a few new favorites. My oldest son and my comrade bonded over some poppy seed filled pastry which mistakenly they thought were filled with chocolate. When we passed another smaller grocery my youngest saw they were selling "Russian melons" and I had to remind him it was about an hour subway ride back to Manhattan and then the bus to New Jersey and it was a pretty good size melon. I was not going to carry it. My youngest can be a little dramatic and answered "FINE! I am going to buy so many melons when I go to Uzbekistan and you can't stop me!" Back on the subway platform and headed home, after last photos, big hugs and bigger thanks I had a small victory. A woman came up to us asking (in Russian) about the train. Without even thinking I answered her in Russian. My comrade complimented me on my accent and yes I have worked very hard on that, but to be fair he has more vocabulary and has been to Russia. So, he wins in my book.

Brighton Beach is not a big area and I think Tatiana and Misha were a little confused as to why we wanted to go. And maybe it's not that big a deal, maybe it would be like Tatiana and Misha coming to my town and taking them on a tour of the Mall. To my comrade and me it was interesting. It was a very safe immersion experience. We could read and speak and listen to Russian but then return to the English speaking world. On the subway on the way back to Manhattan we talked about how interesting it was to hear so much Russian being spoken and seeing Russian people from all over the Russian speaking world. There were children in the playground shouting «Поехали!», women from somewhere in Central Asia wearing beautiful headscarves shopping with round faced children in tow, teens and young people walking up the street to see and be seen, and shopkeepers who spoke only Russian. My comrade and I think that renting an apartment (near the beach of course) and living down there for a summer would really help improve out Russian. Hmmm now there's an idea; a brownstone dacha.