Provides practical language instruction that focuses on everyday usage.

If you were dropped into the middle of Managua, Mexico City, or Miami, would you know how to speak not only the language, but also the lingo? In The Street-Wise Spanish Survival Guide, the reader who is already familiar with Spanish will discover the banter and metaphor (both polite and rude) that enrich the spoken language as it is really used, hints on avoiding embarrassing mistakes in grammar, and a list of dreaded false cognates. Full of advice on pronunciation and tips on customs and manners, and keyed with time-saving symbols, this is the best guide available to understanding and appreciating Spanish as it is spoken in Latin America and the United States.

"Before he was forty, the author had risked his own life to save a friend from hit men. His was a divided loyalty and silence to his family and friends who skirted the treacherous borders of gangsterism. Serious at times, hilarious at others, he paints the underworld with glowing strokes of his early life."-- Cover.

Don't sound like una momia--add a little sizzle to your Spanish! If someone called you tragaldabas would you be insulted or flattered? If you shouted ¡Mota! in the street, would you expected to get a cab or get arrested? Thanks to The Red-Hot Book of Spanish Slang and Idioms, you'll always know your tejemaneje (scheme) from your merequetengue (mess) no matter where you find yourself in the Spanish-speaking world. Five thousand words and phrases--plus helpful hints as to what's cordial and what's vulgar--keep you in sync with Spanish slang. Spanish to English niños popis (upper-class kids) Spoiled brats Contigo ni a China me voy. (I'm not even going to China with you) You're impossible La cruda (rawness) Hangover English to Spanish Ugly as sin ser un espantapájaro (to be a scarecrow) To be lucky tener leche (to have milk) Why are you staring at me? ¿Tengo monos en la cara? (Do I have monkeys on my face?)

A collection of hard-core curses, colorful colloquialisms, and streetwise slang never taught in Spanish class includes sample conversations, painless quizzes, tips on body gestures, and discussions of Spanish history, culture, and cuisine—complete with delightful cartoons.

Easy lessons that help you speak Spanish like a native This revised edition of Streetwise Spanish features an overview of the “signature” words that differentiate speakers across the Spanish-speaking world. It also includes an audio CD featuring 30 dialogs from the book, spoken by native speakers from more than 15 countries and exercises that test your grasp of key slang expressions.

Winner of the 2006 Orange Prize for fiction, another bestselling masterwork from the celebrated author of Swing Time and White Teeth "In this sharp, engaging satire, beauty's only skin-deep, but funny cuts to the bone." —Kirkus Reviews Having hit bestseller lists from the New York Times to the San Francisco Chronicle, this wise, hilarious novel reminds us why Zadie Smith has rocketed to literary stardom. On Beauty is the story of an interracial family living in the university town of Wellington, Massachusetts, whose misadventures in the culture wars—on both sides of the Atlantic—serve to skewer everything from family life to political correctness to the combustive collision between the personal and the political. Full of dead-on wit and relentlessly funny, this tour de force confirms Zadie Smith's reputation as a major literary talent.