Fluent in 3 Months: How Anyone at Any Age Can Learn to Speak Any Language from Anywhere in the World Paperback – March 11, 2014

There’s a lot to process here. Lots of tips and ideas. I just recently decide to resume the study of French after 44 years. I hope Benny is right. The “breakthrough”for me to resume was simply the realization that it’s the journey not the destination that matters. And who knows where it takes you.

In Fluent in 3 Months, Benny Lewis offers a refreshing approach to language learning, encouraging readers to embrace communication over perfection. Lewis emphasizes that learning a language is about living it—immersing oneself in conversation with native speakers, listening to media in the target language, and using the language from day one. He debunks common myths, such as the belief that adults are worse language learners, and stresses that fluency is achievable by committing daily minutes, not months or years.One of the book’s core messages is the importance of consistent practice. Lewis recommends setting short-term goals and embracing mistakes as a learning tool. He highlights methods like spaced repetition and using apps such as Anki to boost vocabulary retention. Moreover, Lewis challenges readers to define their own standards of fluency, using the CEFRL scale as a benchmark.Overall, Fluent in 3 Months inspires readers to dive into language learning with confidence, making practical use of every opportunity to speak and engage with their target language.

I finished reading this a couple days ago. No, I was not in the haze of wanting to stay with the story or characters. This is a non-fiction about learning other languages. I didn't want to leave this one because it helped me so much and I want to re-read it a lot more times.As many of you know, I have been working with Duolingo learning Spanish and German. I have taken two levels of both in school but would like to be fluent in both of them. Right now I can read a bit but I feel so very elementary in both of them.There are so many good ideas on how to learn a language and get to the point of fluency! And I read this using the Audible with the author's voice. What a delight to hear his accent and enthusiasm! And he is a polyglot. For those of you like I was, who don't know, that means he is fluent in many languages, all learned since he was an adult.The best part is that there are web-links to study certain aspects of each chapter. I didn't follow those with the first reading, but I will with the next. And I will take notes and make flashcards.This is the best book about languages I have ever read. If you are thinking about studying another language, this should be your first book to read to give you the best start.

After reading through Fluent in 3 Months, I can easily say that I am far more encouraged to tackle learning a second language than I have been in a very long time. After trying and giving up on 5 different languages in the past (and only getting marginally tourist ready), there were many new tips included in this book that I am excited about giving a try.I believe it is worth noting with this book that it covers the entire spectrum of language learning from the tricks to pick up new vocabulary all the way to information from famous polyglots on what it takes to become masters of several languages. Upon my first go around with the book I found myself trailing off around 2/3 of the way through because I am nowhere near the level of mastery in any language to think about those stages just yet. But you can bet if I ever get that far I'll be referencing this book over and over again.If you are having troubles learning a new language, or do not know where to begin, this one is for you. If you are actively picking up a second language and not running into any road blocks, I do not think you may get as much out of it as I did.

Benny Lewis wrote this down-to-earth book for people who are interested in learning languages. It's his condensed wisdom from having learnt over 12 languages and blogging about it for many years. It's a great read because it empowers the readers with confidence to go and do it themselves.The title is the only thing I have a slight problem with - Although you can probably get fluent in some languages in 3 months, you need to put in an unrealistic amount of effort to do so. Besides, Benny has done it many times and built up a system and experience that allows him to get his fast. For unpractised people it is healthier and better to not focus so much on "X weeks and Y months" but simply start forming good language learning habits, learning something every day and appreciating the new world that opens up when you learn a language.PROS:- Lays out all you need to learn a language fast and efficiently- Full of tips and tricks Benny acquired by travelling the world- Well organised and motivating to get read- Access to exclusive extra content such as interviews and additional resourcesCONS:- The title. For most people unless you put in full-time-job-like hours, it is unrealistic to reach fluency in 3 months.- Benny writes on a very personal level, so sometimes the sentences drag out a little.So what are you waiting for, if you have been thinking about learning a foreign language then this book is DEFINITELY your #1 stop on the journey. Think of it as the training wheels you had on your bike, when you first were taught how to ride it. This is what Fluent in 3 Months is.