English-Hungarian Beginners Book

Hi,
I don't know if you are still in Budapest... but I can give you some limited tips.
Firstly, I would suggest that if you are serious about learning the language - and intending to live here - you really need the input of a college class or private tutor. Even if this is for a short period, to minimise costs, a tutor will give the basic rules and context for actually using the language.
I can't think of a good beginner's book... most in the shops are not very self-explanatory - and expensive. However, one invaluable reference work I found for myself (in London), which would be useful once you know more than ten Hungarian words is...
'Hungarian Verbs & Essentials of Grammar' by Miklós Törkenczy, published by McGraw Hill. It lists the conjugations of all verb forms and tenses, plus all the prepositional forms of nouns (suffixes that are so important in Hungarian), adjective and adverb use, how to form sentences etc.
If you're an English teacher you might recognise the grammatical terms (Dative, Inessive, Illative, nominative possessive, etc.) that the author unfortunately employs - I'm an English editor and I don't - but most is self explanatory.
Obviously, if you just need a tourist's language guide to start with you'll find them at newsagents and bookshops in BP. The book I mention doesn't seem available in BP, but no doubt you could find it online.

A book alone will not suffice. You need a tutor to teach you how to also pronounce the words.

For example, even after years of practice, I still can not say gyönyörű correctly.

I don't think you can learn pronouncing "gy" unless you did so as a child?

Thanks for your replies

We have been promised access to a Hungarian tutor through our school which has yet to materialise, hence us taking things into our own hands somewhat!

It's more the basics that we want to get familiar with so that we can, at least, have an 'ambling start'!

There are plenty of resources online for basic stuff but sometimes it's just handy to have a book to pick up and flick through on the metro etc.

Angol - many thanks for the tip. I will try to hunt it down and take a look

szocske wrote:

I don't think you can learn pronouncing "gy" unless you did so as a child?

No.

The "gy" part I have down fine. As are other parts in isolation I can pronounce fine.

It is the word taken together. Too many variations compounded together in series for my American tongue to comprehend.

Yorkshireman wrote:

We have been promised access to a Hungarian tutor through our school which has yet to materialise

Well, to that I can only say: Welcome to Hungary....

To which I will only say 'thank you' and comment no further

Can anyone tell me what a tutor might charge to teach beginning Hungarian per hour?