What book/s would be a good starter

Question

Where would be a good place to start? I am a newcomer and only have a vocabulary of approx. 1000 words. I'm tired of reading boxes, bagged items, directions etc. Although these have been helpful, I would like to take a step up. Any realistic suggestion would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

Answer 1

Great ideas above! To that I would like to add books like Charlotte's Web (easily available in Spanish) that I read side by side. Also The Invention of Hugo Cabret, an award winning hybrid between a book and a graphic novel that I found in both English and Spanish in my library.

Also have the Harry Potter series of books in both English and Spanish. I get paperbacks that I can read side by side and just highlight words I'm not familiar with in both editions and can do quick vocab just by flipping through pages.

You can also read A LOT of Spanish just by going through the daily postings here at SD. Sure beats the heck out of cereal boxes!!!

Answer 2

I'd start with newspapers, rather than books. The vocabulary in a newspaper tends to be more constrained. I read El País, from Spain, a lot. I also like El Mundo, from Spain, as well. I read several Mexican and South American newspapers, too, but they can be both depressing and less global.

Once you feel like tackling a book, I find reading a Spanish translation of a book I've already read in English a good exercise, since you already know the plot. If you like them, the Harry Potter series is fun.

I'm still reading El Mundo from May 31st. I go back to it now and then. - fontanero, Oct 3, 2010

Answer 3

I greatly enjoyed reading "El misterio de la llave" which comes with a CD narrating the book as well. It is an illustrated story with comprehension questions, all in Spanish, but with a very restricted vocabulary. You may have to look up a few words but the vocabulary is repetitive. It is one of a series of graded books published by Universidad de Salamanca. This is one of the "nivel 1" or beginner books.

ISBN 978-84-9713-057-8

It is entirely in Spanish - no English-Spanish vocabulary in the back - but according to the level designation has fewer than 400 vocabulary words. The book is small and not very expensive considering that it comes with a CD as well. Amazon U.S. sells it for $11.19 currently.