Learn Portuguese through the power of story. A simple Portuguese story for beginners!

Enjoy the process of learning, don’t beat yourself up. You don’t need to read boring text books anymore. Portuguese A Short Story for Beginners is a story written just for you. The captivating nature of story makes learning fun and easy because your attention is focused and the context will help you determine what is being said. This book is loaded with simple sentences, practical scenarios, and common phrases any student of a second language would not only want to know, but NEED to know. This book is intended for those who wish to learn the style of Portuguese as spoken in Brazil. As such it will differ slightly from a book intended for a European style of Portuguese.

Alternating vs Solid Text

Alternating Text

Alternating Text, Parallel text or interlinear text is when your target language, in this case Portuguese, is presented with the translation directly to the side or bellow respectively. A text may be presented with the literal translation of every word, or a sentence/paragraph translated into a more colloquial or natural way of expressing an idea. We find this second way to be of more value as it emphasizes patterns which are critical to learning any language and as you will see, most languages have unique idioms. An idiom is a phrase or pattern that expresses something other than its literal meaning like “what’s up?” You’re asking how someone is doing, not what’s above them in the sky.

Alternating text has many advantages over a traditional text body. Mainly you are able to very quickly glance down to see the translation of the idea your reading in Portuguese. No time is wasted flipping through glossaries and you don’t risk losing your place in the book because the translated idea is presented right there on the same page within a glances reach.

Solid Text

A traditional text body or text written entirely in one language has advantages of its own. Mainly, you are forced to interpret new or unfamiliar words based upon the context and your own memory. Context is extremely important, not only in grasping the true meaning of what is being said, but developing your capability to infer what new words mean. This skill is of the upmost value.

When you meet a Portuguese speaker for the first time, odds are they will say a thing or two that you don’t know or can’t understand. Your ability to infer the meaning of a given word can greatly improve the quality of such an experience. This will expedite the learning curve and boost confidence. It is inevitable that you will make mistakes, don’t let that stop you from conquering a new language.

Solid text also forces you to recall definitions, sentence patterns, and the meaning of various expressions. Without a quick translation available, you will be challenged and grow.

Alternating + Traditional

So, which style of text did we choose to include in this book? Well, each is so valuable that we couldn’t pick one over the other. Thus, we included BOTH! We’ve presented the story first in its entirety with a Portuguese and English alternating text. Each paragraph is presented with its translation bellow. Second, we presented the entire story in Portuguese. So now you can use this awesome tool in a way that best suites you and your growing level of understanding.

So, if you’re interested in finally picking up Portuguese, you’re just a click away. Order now.