Learn German with Stories – Book Review

Hallo, Deutschlerner! Did you know that when you join Amazon’s affiliate program   , you can see what people purchase after they click your affiliate link?

It doesn’t show me “Sam Mustermann” from San Diego, California bought two boxes of Kleenexes and a DVD of the Notebook, but it will show me which products were bought from my links. Sometimes I go through the items purchased. If something catches my eye,

If you are really wanting to put your German learning on track, consider joining Herr Antrim’s Deutschlerner Club! For just $14.99 per month you will get access to his full A1 and A2   courses plus new materials as he creates them. You will go from knowing zero German to being able to have a short conversation in a short few weeks. Before you know it, you will be conversational in German on a variety of important topics, all while mastering German grammar.

What is this book?

This happened a few months ago with a book called “Learn German with Stories for Beginners”.

With a title like that and a price under $10 I decided to see what it was about. There are some things that I thought were fantastic and others that were simply appalling.

Let’s start with the good stuff.

The story itself is pretty well written. It is decently fun to read and the characters are well developed and likable. 

My favorite part about the book is that it is also an audio book.

All you do is scan a QR code and someone will read the book to you. This is great for pronunciation and training your ear for the German language. 

I like that each chapter starts with an image and a fun fact.

This kind of gives you an idea of what the chapter is about. It helps your brain get in the right spot to understand the text better.

I also like that each chapter starts with a fun fact about Germany or German culture. It is just a great addition to the book. 

There is one giant problem with this book, however.

The evening I received this book, I sat down on my back patio in front of a fire and started reading.

45 minutes later, I had completed the book.

I know I speak German at a level way above the target audience of this book, but 45 minutes for a book that is 92 pages long, tells you a lot about the content.

Let’s just say it is a bit sparse.

The table of contents are on pages 4 and 5. There is an about the author portion on pages 6 and 7. There are instructions on how to use the book on pages 8 and 9. Information about the vocabulary lists are provided on pages 10 and 11.

The first chapter officially starts on page 12, but that is just an image and a fun fact about Berlin Station. The actual text is on page 13. Just page 13. Pages 14, 15, 16, 17, 18 and 19 are a list of vocabulary words that you should learn from that single page of the story. 

So in the first 20 pages of a book called “Learn German with Stories”, there is exactly ONE page of story.

Surely it gets better, right?

Page 20, another image with a fun fact about German life. Page 21, the story. Pages 22-25 vocabulary lists.

Chapter 3 has a page and a quarter of story before continuing on to 3 pages of vocabulary lists. 

In all, of the 92 pages in the book called “Learn German with Stories”, there are 16 ¼ pages of actual stories.

That is just over 17% of the entire book. This book is more of a pamphlet with a dictionary attached. 

Let’s compare my A1 Beginner   German book.

My book   comes with MP3 versions of each chapter, just like the “Learn German with Stories   ” book does.

I also included flashcards, which you could compare to the vocabulary lists at the end of each chapter of this book.

In addition to that, you can also download worksheets and other information via the link inside the book. 

My book is 201 pages long.

There is a “How to use this book” section, just like the other book. There are 20 chapters. Seven of those chapters are listening/reading comprehension lessons.

In total, the reading and listening comprehension lessons in my book only account for 19 of the 201 pages or a little over 9% of the book.

Aha! So my book is just as sparse with German language content?

No. My book never claimed to be a “Learn German with Stories” book. My book is full of pronunciation tips, grammar lessons and other information about the German language. 

My book isn’t simply a list of words on a page.

There are 34 pages of exercises for you to practice what you learn in each chapter and answer keys to every exercise are provided at the end of the book. 

Is “Learn German with Stories” a waste of your money?

No. I would actually recommend it for anyone just starting to learn German.

It is a great way to introduce yourself to 99% (their claim on the book) of the vocabulary at the A1 level. You can check it out for yourself here   .

*Keep in mind that those are affiliate links, so I will make a small commission if you choose to purchase something via those links. 

This book is pretty good.

It just won’t make you fluent.

It won’t even make you able to pass the A1 exam.

You know what will make you able to pass the A1 exam?

My Deutschlerner Club.

It follows the curriculum of my A1 Beginner German book   , but then it goes way above and beyond that.

It includes bonus video lessons, worksheet explanation videos, more practice exercises and a whole lot more.

Then when you are done with the A1 content, it continues right into the A2 content   . 

The Deutschlerner Club comes with extra materials for every video I upload to my YouTube channel.

When you see a new German lesson on my YouTube channel, the Deutschlerner Club has:

• a worksheet
• an answer key
• a copy of the lesson script
• an mp3 version of the lesson

Best of all, you try out many of the lessons before committing. After that it is just $14.99 per month. Stay as long as you like and cancel anytime.

Check out the Deutschlerner Club here.

I look forward to seeing you there.