Berlitz is well known for their language books, audio tapes, and their pocket phrase books. Some of their books are good, some are only so-so... and unless you already have some working knowledge in the language you're interested in, you may not realize a book is mediocre until it's too late. Berlitz has a newer version of this phrase book that is not up to par with this slightly older model. The newer version does not have the vowels or as extensive of a reference section. I do not know why a newer edition would have less useful information, but it does... so make sure you get this one - with ISBN #283150872X in lieu of its newer companion .
Unlike so many other phrase books for Hebrew, this one has the vowels and detailed explainations on how to pronounce the letters. There are easy-to-read samples of block and script letters and the crisp black ink on the stark white pages makes the characters easy to read.
The book is color coded by section with labels such as "Hotel," "Making Friends," and "Eating Out" and the sections are labeled in English AND Hebrew. There is also a Hebrew index in addition to the English one, so a confused traveller can hand the book to a native speaker to help them find the right word.
My less than perfect rating is due to the lack of information on feminine numbers. There are masculine & feminine numbers in Hebrew and the feminine numbers are used to tell time and for math. The reference section has some great information, including all the masculine numbers, but there is no section on how to tell the time or how to count money and the existence of feminine numbers is not even suggested since the masculine numbers aren't even listed as being masculine - just "numbers." Many other languages do not have gender-based numbers, so a neophyte to the language could be in a pickle. A native speaker would understand them, since the numbers sound similar, but someone depending on this book to learn the language won't understand when someone tells them the time.
Even with the few failings, considering the size of this book, there is a tremendous bounty of information crammed in there and if you're only going to take one book with you on the plane to Israel, this might as well be it. It's a great reference to have with you as you travel through the Holy Land.
