I Have Twenty Fingers: ...and 159 other common Polish-English Errors, by Matt Purland - image

I Have Twenty Fingers …and 159 other common Polish-English Errors

I Have Twenty Fingers: ...and 159 other common Polish-English Errors, by Matt Purland - promo picture

The latest book for learners of English by Matt Purland

Download a Free PDF Copy of this Book [CLICK HERE]

About the book:

I Have Twenty Fingers …and 159 other common Polish-English Errors is a new resource book by materials writer and English language teacher Matt Purland.

It is now available from Amazon stores worldwide, including:

Amazon.co.uk: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Have-Twenty-Fingers-common-Polish-English/dp/1546469168/

Amazon.com: https://www.amazon.com/Have-Twenty-Fingers-common-Polish-English/dp/1546469168/

This book is aimed at Polish native speakers who are studying English as a second or foreign language. It contains four error-correction tests with answers and full discussion of each answer, including Polish translation of the error sentences. The aim is to help Polish students to understand WHY they make the same errors again and again, thus helping them to eliminate those errors. There are two special sections: nouns that are countable in Polish but uncountable in English, and 50 common false friends in Polish and English.

‘I Have Twenty Fingers…’ may be useful for the following people:

  • English language students and teachers in the Polish school system and in language schools
  • Polish students who want to improve their English at home in a self-study environment
  • Native speakers of English who teach Polish students and wish to understand why they repeatedly make the same errors
  • Polish teachers who teach Polish students and also wish to know more about common errors in Polish and English – from an English native speaker’s point of view!
  • Students of English who are native speakers of other Slavic languages, such as Russian, Ukrainian, Czech, and Slovak
  • Anybody of any language who wants to improve their knowledge of English, since many of the errors also occur in other languages.

About the author:

Matt Purland is a professional English teacher and writer from Cambridge in the UK. He has worked with Polish students at all levels since 2004. He has been living and working in Poland since 2007. His special interests include pronunciation, writing teaching materials, and error correction. This is his twenty-fifth resource book. For more great books by Matt Purland, click here and here!

I Have Twenty Fingers: ...and 159 other common Polish-English Errors, by Matt Purland - author and book

The author Matt Purland with his latest book: I Have Twenty Fingers: …and 159 other common Polish-English Errors

Click the images below to read two sample pages:

I Have Twenty Fingers: ...and 159 other common Polish-English Errors, by Matt Purland - sample page 1

Sample page 1 from I Have Twenty Fingers: …and 159 other common Polish-English Errors, by Matt Purland

I Have Twenty Fingers: ...and 159 other common Polish-English Errors, by Matt Purland - sample page 2

Sample page 2 from I Have Twenty Fingers: …and 159 other common Polish-English Errors, by Matt Purland

What the critics are saying:

I Have Twenty Fingers: ...and 159 other common Polish-English Errors, by Matt Purland - quote 1

‘Great book! I love these kinds of books, I wonder if you could make this a series? I’d love to see something like this about Russian and I’m sure other teachers would be happy to have such a detailed guide to their languages.

‘Matt Purland’s book, I Have Twenty Fingers, is an invaluable guide to the Polish language for teachers of English or even students learning English on their own. It is essentially a detailed analysis of the most common errors made in English by Polish speakers. Three things make this book truly superior. First of all, each error is explained clearly and simply with reference to the differences between Polish and English. The explanations are also supported with an example sentence in Polish, the correct version in English, the literal translation into English and the specific error.

‘Second, the book is incredibly thorough with no less than 160 errors discussed. In the first section, Matt breaks the errors down into categories such as “false friends”, “errors with tenses”, “direct translation errors”, and “one word in Polish but two words in English”. The first section also contains a brief list of each error to refer to quickly.

‘Finally what makes this book really useful is the tests. Beyond the explanations, Matt provides 4 tests that teachers or students can use to diagnose their errors. Students find the error in the English sentence and then the answer key leads them to the explanation in the book if they answer incorrectly.

‘This is truly a useful book that every teacher or student of English should have if they are working in Poland or even countries in the same region. Any language school in the area should have this in their resource room. With this guide, you can target, understand, and correct the most persistent errors in English.’

Walton Burns, Freelance Writer and Editor, alphabetpublishingbooks.com

See Walton’s blog about the book here: http://www.englishadvantageblog.com/2017/07/07/cant-just-get-right

I Have Twenty Fingers: ...and 159 other common Polish-English Errors, by Matt Purland - quote 2

‘Matt Purland is a prolific writer and he has done it again! His latest book is entitled I Have Twenty Fingers: …and 159 other common Polish-English Errors. This book is an extremely comprehensive, well-researched and brilliant must-have resource for Polish learners of English and teachers. Matt meticulously documents 160 common errors made by Polish speakers.

‘This resource helps students understand and overcome persistent errors in speech and writing to improve their English language skills. Teachers will find this resource invaluable. I Have Twenty Fingers should be the model for future resources that help learners and teachers tackle common errors in other languages!’

Patrice Palmer, OCELT, CTDP, M.Ed., M.A., Teacherpreneur.ca

I Have Twenty Fingers: ...and 159 other common Polish-English Errors, by Matt Purland - quote 4

‘I like the approach and the concept very much. I work in Poland, and this book has helped me a lot! I have used it with three of my Polish students so far, and they have shown improvement already. When we are doing the tests, we discuss a lot if it’s what they would say in their own speaking, and they say: “This is exactly the mistake I would make!”. They feel more connected and involved, and it makes my teaching life so much easier! Thank you Matt for this amount of work you have put into this book! A must for teachers and Polish learners of English!

‘It works perfectly with A2-B1 students – they keep finding the things which are typical for them and it increases their motivation to learn).

‘I can use your Polish versions of sentences and get closer to students’ experience in transformation of the Polish phrase into English. It increases engagement and students see a lot of purpose in these activities!’

Daria Storozhilova, Stordar.com

I Have Twenty Fingers: ...and 159 other common Polish-English Errors, by Matt Purland - quote 3

‘I can see an extreme amount of work that you’ve put in that. The topic is complex, yet you managed to break it down the way a scientist would do, i.e. by patiently making a thorough case for each of the language mistakes you point out. Plus, the plain language (I mean the correct English) you used. I am impressed. That book was a real challenge.

‘It helped me see my own language in perspective, as if I was not a Polish native – a rare experience. If I’d laid my hands on your book well before my entrance exams to my dream university, I would probably have made it right. 🙂 The book is great!’

Michał, learner of English

I Have Twenty Fingers: ...and 159 other common Polish-English Errors, by Matt Purland - front cover

Front cover of I Have Twenty Fingers: …and 159 other common Polish-English Errors, by Matt Purland

Download a Free PDF Copy of this Book [CLICK HERE]

Buy your paperback copy today!

You can buy this book today from Amazon stores worldwide, including:

Amazon.co.uk: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Have-Twenty-Fingers-common-Polish-English/dp/1546469168/

Amazon.comhttps://www.amazon.com/Have-Twenty-Fingers-common-Polish-English/dp/1546469168/

It is also available from a wide range of online stores, including:

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/i-have-twenty-fingers-matt-purland/1126548086

Book Depository: https://www.bookdepository.com/I-Have-Twenty-Fingers-Matt-Purland/9781546469162

Blackwell’s: http://bookshop.blackwell.co.uk/bookshop/product/9781546469162

alibris: https://www.alibris.com/booksearch?keyword=1546469168

Wordery: https://wordery.com/i-have-twenty-fingers-matt-purland-9781546469162

You can also order this book from your local bricks and mortar bookstore or library. 🙂 Simply quote the following ISBN codes:

ISBN-10: 1546469168

ISBN-13: 978-1546469162

Download a Free PDF Copy of this Book [CLICK HERE]

I Have Twenty Fingers: ...and 159 other common Polish-English Errors, by Matt Purland - quote 5

Book specifications:

Paperback: 96 pages

Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform; 1st edition (3 May 2017)

Language: English and Polish

ISBN-10: 1546469168

ISBN-13: 978-1546469162

Product Dimensions: 21.6 x 0.6 x 27.9 cm

Binding Type: US trade paper

Trim Size: 8.5″ x 11″

Colour: Black and white (front cover is colour)

Related Categories: Foreign Language Study / English as a Second Language / English Language / Polish Language

I Have Twenty Fingers: ...and 159 other common Polish-English Errors, by Matt Purland - size comparison

This picture shows the size comparison between the book and a normal paperback. (Tip: ‘Anna Karenina’ is also a great read!)

I Have Twenty Fingers: ...and 159 other common Polish-English Errors, by Matt Purland - inside the book

Between the covers of I Have Twenty Fingers: …and 159 other common Polish-English Errors, by Matt Purland

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Download a Free PDF Copy of this Book [CLICK HERE]