Renata Ilitsky Last updated: 7 Kindle E-books for Beginner and Intermediate Students to Start Learning Russian
E-books are quickly becoming a favorite for many students of the Russian language to hone their skills in reading, learning vocabulary, improving grammar skills and finding out more about the Russian culture.
Read on to find out why you should incorporate Kindle titles into your Russian studying routine (and really make your mother proud).
Whether you’re a beginner or an intermediate student, here’s our handpicked list of seven of the very best Kindle books to learn Russian.
Contents
- Why Use Kindle to Learn Russian?
- 7 Kindle Titles to Kindle Your Love of Learning Russian
- “RUSSIAN – Learn Russian – In Days, Not Years!”
- “Learn RUSSIAN Language with Pronunciation: For Beginners and Travelers”
- “Russian for Dummies”
- “Learn Russian – Word Power 101”
- “100 Most Frequently Used Russian Words + 1000 Example Sentences”
- “Learn Russian Vocabulary — English / Russian Flashcards – 4 Books in 1″ (Flashcard e-books)”
- “Чистая грамматика” (“Pure Grammar”)
- And One More Thing...
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
Why Use Kindle to Learn Russian?
There are so many resources out there that can help you learn Russian, why would you choose Kindle books? Here are some pretty good reasons:
- It’s affordable. A Kindle device can be purchased for a comparatively low price and book titles are often in the single digits or completely free with a Kindle Unlimited Plan. The best part is that you don’t even have to purchase a Kindle in order to get access to these books. All you really need is a Kindle app for your Apple or Android device.
- You can’t beat the convenience! A Kindle is small and light enough to be taken anywhere, and reading can be done in bed, during a lunch break, on the beach or during the commute to work (as long as you’re not driving).
- It appeals to all readers. You can choose a book from any genre, which attracts all readers. You can find e-books that teach Russian directly or books from other genres (romance, thriller, comedy) and learn Russian while being thoroughly entertained.
- There are lots of extra features. Kindle e-books often contain extra features. For example, you can click on a word to learn its meaning, and highlight words or passages to come back to them later to review. Some models, such as the Kindle Paperwhite, saves marked words as virtual flashcards.
7 Kindle Titles to Kindle Your Love of Learning Russian
If you like learning with these Kindle goodies, you can continue your studies with an app like FluentU.
FluentU takes authentic videos—like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks—and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.
You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Check out the website or download the iOS app or Android app.
P.S. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)
“RUSSIAN – Learn Russian – In Days, Not Years!”
Written by Tania Johnson, this is a low-cost resource to help you learn Russian quickly. It’s meant for travelers to Russian-speaking countries.
However, if you aren’t planning a trip to Russia anytime soon, you can still benefit from the advice in this e-book. The author creates an easy-to-follow format that helps Russian learners better understand Russian pronunciation (and trust us, you’ll want all the help you can get in this area!)
The book uses an approach that helps readers pronounce and read Russian words using vowels as their guides, since cluster consonants typically trip up Russian students. The authors also focus on vocabulary and common phrases and greetings.
Unfortunately, this book is no longer available for purchase. In its place, I recommend “Learn Russian Language: Illustrated Step by Step Guide for Complete Beginners to Learn Russian from Scratch.” This Kindle is also extremely affordable, and its short, 11-chapter approach is perfect for getting a base in Russian for the purpose of travel.
“Learn RUSSIAN Language with Pronunciation: For Beginners and Travelers”
Marcos Az and Faiz MK created this e-book for Amazon customers. It addresses a common problem that students of the Russian language face—learning words and phrases but not being able to pronounce them.
Russian is a notoriously difficult language, which is why the authors focus on helping readers learn to say and understand the most common words.
The book starts with vocabulary, but it also teaches readers the Russian alphabet, numbers, how to tell time, months of the year, colors, directions and includes travel tips.
“Russian for Dummies”
It seems there’s one of these titles for just about everything, and the Russian language is no exception. Written by Andrew Kaufman and Serafima Gettys, it’s a great way to build a foundation in Russian.
The e-book is targeted towards students, tourists and businessmen and women who want to improve their Russian.
The Kindle book offers exercises to help you test your knowledge and keep you on track. There’s a bonus audio CD that allows you to listen to conversations by native Russian speakers to hear how Russian words are pronounced.
A mini-dictionary allows you to quickly look up words to learn their meanings, while other sections focus on grammar and verb usage.
Test your knowledge with practice questions and perfect your knowledge of the Russian language (answer keys included).
“Learn Russian – Word Power 101”
This gem is presented by the site RussianPod101.com and published by Innovative Language.
This edition focuses on helping readers learn Russian vocabulary quickly. Designed by Russian language teachers, you can find the most common 101 Russian words. Each word features an associated image, allows you to hear the word pronounced by a native Russian from a supplementary MP3 audio file and shows the word used in a sentence or a phrase.
The MP3 files are an accompaniment to the book, allowing you to hear everything pronounced as you read it. The book is easy to use since the words are organized by topic, letting you look up and find something quickly when you need it.
The authors believe that when words are grouped together by topic, they’re easier to remember—making the learning process more efficient.
“100 Most Frequently Used Russian Words + 1000 Example Sentences”
Author Neri Rook offers this handy Kindle resource. The author claims that around half of all Russian words come from a group of 100 short words. The book lists those words and then offers 1,000 sentences as examples of their usage.
An advantage of this book is that while other resources can offer common Russian vocabulary words and their meanings, it may be difficult to understand how to use them in context. By using the terms in sentences, you can have a deeper understanding of the Russian language.
This is a great resource for both beginner and intermediate students who want to quickly look up a word and understand the correct ways to use it. It will help students understand longer Russian words by looking for the shorter words contained within them.
“Learn Russian Vocabulary — English / Russian Flashcards – 4 Books in 1″ (Flashcard e-books)”
Flashcards are handy resources to help you quickly learn words and then test your competence. This is a flashcard e-book that actually contains four separate books. You’ll find over 250 illustrated flashcards on four different topics:
- Animals
- Clothes
- Household items
- Numbers, shapes and colors
Each flashcard has an image, a Russian/English translation and a pronunciation guide.
To help you master the words on the flashcards, first practice reading and memorizing the words, then attempt to say them with the pronunciation guide.
As you advance, try to look at the image and then say the word out loud, followed by attempting to write the word on your own in Russian!
“Чистая грамматика” (“Pure Grammar”)
Once you become more fluent in Russian, attempt to master this grammar book written completely in Russian. Author E. Laskareva offers 594 pages of this Kindle textbook, specifically for intermediate foreign learners. The e-book offers exercises that increase in difficulty as you keep reading.
The author’s aim is to increase Russian competency from 500 words to over 5,000! After doing the exercises, you can test your knowledge with tests that include the answer keys.
These textbooks will give you a solid foundation in the language, but make sure to include other kinds of learning resources. Try and incorporate some audio lessons and maybe even some Russian cartoons! If you’re upper-beginner or higher, consider using a virtual immersion platform. FluentU, for example, teaches Russian with short videos about culturally relevant themes and adds interactive dual-language subtitles, which may be the middle ground you need if you’re a textbook fan.
Utilize the seven Kindle book titles suggested above to help you learn Russian, but feel free to browse the vast list of Kindle e-books in Russian.
With Kindle, you can download e-books at the speed of light and start learning Russian anytime, anywhere!
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
And One More Thing...
If you love learning Russian and want to immerse yourself with authentic materials from Russia, then I should also tell you more about FluentU.
FluentU naturally and gradually eases you into learning the Russian language and culture. You'll learn real Russian as it's spoken by real Russian people!
FluentU has a very broad range of contemporary videos. Just a quick look will give you an idea of the variety of Russian-language content available on FluentU:
FluentU makes these native Russian videos approachable through interactive transcripts. Tap on any word to look it up instantly.
Access a complete interactive transcript of every video under the Dialogue tab. Easily review words and phrases with audio under Vocab.
All definitions have multiple examples, and they're written for Russian learners like you. Tap to add words you'd like to review to a vocab list.
And FluentU has a learn mode which turns every video into a language learning lesson. You can always swipe left or right to see more examples.
The best part? FluentU keeps track of your vocabulary, and gives you extra practice with difficult words. It'll even remind you when it’s time to review what you’ve learned. You'll have a 100% personalized experience.
Start using the FluentU website on your computer or tablet or, better yet, download the FluentU app from the iTunes or Google Play store. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)
