Learners of Portuguese often ask what the best books to learn Portuguese are. There are good books available. The best one for you will depend on your goals and learning style, and these may change along your language journey. Here are a few good books to consider.
The links below are affiliate links. If you make a purchase using one of the links, I make a tiny commission. It does not affect the price of the book for you.
Ponto de Encontro
Ponto de Encontro is the most complete book in the market. It is used by most universities and language schools.
It is one of the only books with extensive explanations of verb conjugation, how the verb tenses work, and when they are used.
Ponto de Encontro teaches Portuguese from Brazil and from Portugal. In each grammar topic and exercise, the book explains the difference between the two versions of Portuguese. As I have the used the book to teach Brazilian Portuguese, my feeling is that is focuses primarily on Portuguese from Brazil.
It is a dense book. It was created with college students in mind, which means that most of the practice exercises, dialogues, and texts target that young population.
If you decide to get it, I strongly recommend that you also get their workbook Ponto de Encontro Brazilian Activities Manual for additional exercises. There are two versions of the workbook: a Brazilian and a continental Portuguese version. Make sure you are getting what you really want.
The new edition has access to their language lab, but only for college students enrolled in a Portuguese course that uses Ponto de Encontro as their textbook.
The Activities Manual of Ponto de Encontro has lots of audio exercises to help you practice listening and speaking. I cannot emphasize enough how important the audio exercises are for your learning.
The book has a good website with additional exercises and all the audio tracks. You do not have to buy the book to access the online program. If you have access to the language lab, the audio tracks will be available to you there.
Ponto de Encontro also has an excellent DVD! I highly recommend it. The DVD brings Brazilian and Portuguese content. From the main menu you can select which version of the DVD you would like to see. Each chapter brings a group of native speakers talking about different things: school, work, travel, health, food, and more. The DVD is an excellent tool to develop your listening comprehension skills. The workbook has exercises to help you get the most out of the DVD. I love working with this DVD in my classes. If you have access to the language lab, the videos will be available to you there.
Falar Ler Escrever Português
This is a good book for exercises that use repetition. It does not give you grammatical explanations; it shows you how to do something and then it makes you practice with exercises.
This is for Brazilian Portuguese.
Each chapter starts with a dialogue or short text. The book has its accompanying set of CDs (sold separately) which contains all the dialogues and texts from the textbook (orange cover).
This is a great book for students who want to do lots of straight-forward, repetitive exercises. You need repetition to learn a language. The exercises will gradually build on vocabulary. For even more practice, there is the Caderno de Exercícios.
Colloquial Portuguese of Brazil 2
For students who are already conversational, I recommend Colloquial Portuguese of Brazil 2. This book has several dialogues that use everyday informal language. It also brings concise grammar points and you can buy the accompanying CDs to listen to the dialogues and practice your listening skills. This book was published in 2008, so it has up to date language.
Bem-Vindo
I like Bem-Vindo. It has interesting texts and good exercises. It is a fast-paced book. I recommend it for Spanish speakers and intermediate learners.
The book has three versions of its excellent workbook: 1) for native speakers of English (green cover); 2) for Latin-American students (blue cover); 3) for Asian students (sorry about the generic term here, but that is how they have it in the book). I recommend the first two workbooks no matter where you come from. I have not worked with the one for Asian students.
Bem-Vindo also has its own CD set, which I highly recommend. It has dialogues and texts from the textbook. The CDs will be a wonderful tool to develop your listening comprehension skills.
Please note: When purchasing Bem-Vindo on Amazon, be very careful to make sure you are getting what you want. When they say “Livro do Aluno”, it is the textbook.
Ultimate Portuguese
DISCLAIMER: The review below is for an older edition. I have not worked with the new edition, so I do not know if my review will apply to the new edition. You can find the new one here.
Each chapter begins with a dialogue followed by its translation, short and to the point grammar explanations, and a few exercises.
I like the dialogues for beginner learners. The grammar explanations are objective, which is good, but in my opinion they are not enough. The exercises are few and not very interesting.
The dialogues and accompanying CDs are the main strength of this book. Most of the chapters use Brazilian Portuguese; a few chapters bring Portuguese from Portugal.
Please note: You can find the paperback edition without the CDs and the complete set with the accompanying CDs. I suggest you get the one with the CDs.
Books for Intermediate and Advanced Learners
Below are great books to learn Portuguese if you are an intermediate or advanced learner. Especially if you enjoy a good read, it is worth using these books.
Via Brasil
Via Brasil brings short texts by Brazilian writers accompanied by vocabulary exercises, as well as short grammar reviews and practice exercises.
The book has accompanying CDs that you need to purchase separately.
I always recommend getting the CDs when they are available. They can help you improve your listening skills and learn pronunciation. Unfortunately these CDs are outrageously expensive on Amazon.com.
Via Brasil teaches both formal and colloquial Portuguese. The texts presented in the book range from formal to informal language. Several of the texts bring a cultural element to the learning process which certainly adds value to the book.
This is not a book for you to start learning Portuguese. To benefit from Via Brasil you need to have at least intermediate-mid reading skills.
You can use the book to learn by yourself if you just want to focus on reading, building vocabulary, and practicing a little grammar. If that is your goal, I suggest you also get the Manual do Professor with the answers to all the exercises.
To fully benefit from this book, in my opinion, you would use Via Brasil with a professional language instructor who can add value to each lesson and help you develop your speaking skills.
If possible, get the book that says on the cover: “Com a nova ortografia”, which means it has been reviewed according to the new Portuguese spelling rules from 2009.
Crônicas Brasileiras
Crônicas Brasileiras brings 35 chronicles by Brazilian writers. After each text, you will find exercises: a few questions about the text and a few grammar and vocabulary exercises.
I like the texts very much. Some great Brazilian writers are represented here, such as Fernando Sabino (one of my favorites), Rubem Braga, Paulo Mendes Campo, Rachel de Queiroz e Paulo Rónai.
Just keep in mind that you need to enjoy reading to like this book. The language in the texts is not exactly direct and objective. It is literature, not a magazine article. And the texts are dated.
Viajando através do alfabeto
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Viajando Através do Alfabeto is also a very nice book for intermediate and advanced learners who enjoy a good read. It brings 26 chronicles by Brazilian writer Moacyr Scliar. Each chapter offers questions to discuss before and after the reading, a quick grammar review + exercises, and a short lesson + exercises about figures of speech. There is no audio component.
You can use the Look Inside feature on Amazon.com to see the table of contents and even ready the first chapter.
Additional Resources to Learn Portuguese
- Check out this fun book to Learn Portuguese: Cinema for Portuguese Conversation
- I talk about general literature to read in Portuguese in this post and this other post.
- For a list of good materials including movies, music, and more, visit my Resources page.
Street Smart Brazil learners benefit from all these books and more. In our classes we use our own workbook with original content. In addition, we have all the books above in our library and we know them very well. We are able to pair learners with the right books and we allow our clients to experiment with them. This way, you can decide what is best for your learning.
Happy Portuguese!
Speak Portuguese with ease
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Ola, amei esse blog. Sou mae de duas crianças que nasceram aqui no Uk. Mae brasileira e pai englese. Meu filho mais velho (14) entende português mas quase não fala. Minha menina (11) entende apenas algumas palavras e so fala algumas palavras. Me arrependo muito de não ter ensinado a lingua portuguesa. Sou primary teacher aqui in Uk gostaria muito de aprender como ensinar português para eles porem não sei por onde começar. Alguma indicação ou sugestão.
Muito grata
Luciane
Oi, Luciane, quase minha xará 🙂 Infelizmente nós não temos formação para ensinar crianças e adolescentes. A sua cidade não tem um grupo de brasileiros que faça encontros com atividades para crianças? Isso seria legal para os seus filhos conhecerem outras crianças que falam português e participarem de brincadeiras vivenciando a língua. Alguns grupos fazem leituras e contam histórias em PT. Atividades lúdicas seriam uma forma bacana de criar uma aproximação com a língua e cultura. Boa sorte!
For people interested in purchasing instructional books for the Portuguese language, the publishers of “Grupo Lidel” provide Portuguese instruction books for children, youth and adults in these categories:
Portugues do Brasil Lingua Estrangeira
Portugues do Europea
Portugues do Lingua Nao Materno
Here is the website: https://www.lidel.pt/pt/
I cant find good textbooks for Level B1 B2 in Brasilian Portuguese.
Do you have any recommendations?
Would it hurt to use pourtgal portugese material like Cidades do Mar. Nível B1 ?
Why does it see m like there is more material for B1 – C2 level in portugal portguese and almost none in brasilian ?
🙁
There are grammar and vocabulary differences between Portuguese spoken in Portugal and Portuguese spoken in Brazil, although these are note enough to stop you from learning the language. I feel that pronunciation is very different in Brazil and in Portugal, especially for foreign ears.
Thanks for the reply, i can hear the difference when it comes to pronounciation. but when it comes to an article for example, is it very obvious which portugese it is?
Im not interested in pourtgal pourtegese but I cant find Advanced material in brazilian pr so is using EU textbook without audio , do you think its a good idea or better avoid it?
Thanks Luciana 🙂 your list above helped alot
I bought two books in it Falar Ler Escrever Português and Bem Vindo
I like Via Brasil for intermediate and advanced learners. I also like Viajando Através do Alfabeto, but it has no audio. I mention them here: https://streetsmartbrazil.com/learn-portuguese-3-great-books-intermediate-and-advanced-learners/
But you are right, we do not have many options for intermediate and advanced learners. Ponto de Encontro is a full course, but it is very dense and targets undergraduate students.
This is why I create the Street Smart Brazil materials. I use articles from news websites and magazines, videos from YouTube, audio from online radios, and create conversation, grammar, and vocabulary practice with that content. In fact, I just finished creating a new handout 🙂
Oi, Sophia, I have just published a post about new books to learn Portuguese. You might find something you like here: https://streetsmartbrazil.com/5-new-books-to-learn-portuguese/
If you go to the video on YouTube, you can see comments of learners who are using these books.
There is a newer textbook for intermediate students of Portuguese:
CONTEXTOS: CURSO INTERMEDIÁRIO DE PORTUGUÊS.
Denise Santos; Gláucia V. Silva; E. Viviane Gontiju.
Routledge, 2019.
ISBN 978-1-138-21073-8 hardback
ISBN 978-1-138-21072-1 paperback
ISBN 978-1-315-45457-3 ebook
This book is available on Amazon and the Routledge website.
You can download the audio files and also access the companion website for the textbook:
https://routledgetextbooks.com/textbooks/9781138210721/
Cara Luciana,
Congratulations on your website! Parabens, muito pratico e informativo.
Meu nome eh Tarcisio Buriti, autor do livro “Aquarela Portuguese for Foreigners”. This textbook in published and distributed in the United States through my website and Amazon. It is an ideal textbook for for complete beginners and English speakers. I would love to share more information about Aquarela with you.
I am looking forward to hearing back from you!
tburiti@aquarelabooks.com
Oi, Tarcisio, obrigada por entrar em contato. Seria ótimo ver um pouco do seu livro. Se você tiver uma amostra em PDF, por favor, envie por email. Estou à disposição para conversarmos.
Oi Luciana,
Desculpe-me a demora em responder. Por acaso vi essa postagem aqui no seu site. Voce teria um email de contato?
Muito obrigado pela atenção!
Tarcisio Buriti
tburiti@aquarelabooks.com
Olá! Pode escrever para info(at)streetsmartbrazil.com
Olá!
Meu namorado é americano e eu sou brasileira, estou a procura de um livro para iniciar o aprendizado do Português. Não sou professora então precisaria de um livro com boa didática… Ele é totalmente inciante. Alguma sugestão?
Obrigada!
O único livro que tem explicações é o Ponto de Encontro. O link para o livro está no artigo. Mas é um livro grande, caro e denso. Foi feito para estudantes universitários, então os textos e situações em grande parte do livro são coisas do dia a dia deles.
O Ultimate Portuguese é bem básico. Pode ser um bom começo. O link também está no artigo.
Boa sorte!
Ola Alice,
There is another great Portuguese textbook for beginers with a very practical approach and grammar explained in English. Aquarela Portuguese for Foreigners. Check it out ! Obrigado.
Which of these books are the best for people which beginers with brazilian portugese
Oi Luciana!
Procuro um livro que tenha explicações principalmente gramaticais em inglês. Vc pode indicar algum?
Ponto de Encontro é o único que tem explicações. Nas primeiras lições, as explicações são em inglês. Mais adiante no livro, passam para português. Aqui está o link para o livro na Amazon.com: https://amzn.to/2WEx9aE
Olá Luciana!
Espero que esteja bem.
Gostaria de saber qual o melhor livro para seguir e dar aula para estrangeiros (total beginners to intermediates).
Grato!
Oi, Thiago. Isso depende do estilo de aprender de cada um. Os prós e contras dos livros que mencionei no artigo devem ajudar a tomar uma decisão. O ideal é conhecer vários livros e ver qual o que melhor serve para cada aluno.
Hi, my neice is bilingual (English/Brazilian Portugese) and is learning to read (she’s 4). Can you recommend a good book or series of book (like the oxford reading tree “Biff & Chip”) that I could get her for a gift so she can learn both. thanks in advance.
Oi, Kerry! That is so wonderful that your niece is growing up bilingual. Unfortunately I don’t have recommendations for kids books. I would try Amazon.com. Here are the results for a quick search I did there: https://amzn.to/2PsliZ3 I have not examined the results, however.
Hi, could u recommend Portuguese of Portugal text books for my 13 years old. She speaks, can write and read Portuguese as we were leaving in Mozambique.i need to prepare her for Portuguese gcse second language.
Thank u
Unfortunately I don’t have experience with Continental Portuguese books. Ponto de Encontro (https://amzn.to/2KF0R9G) is primarily a Brazilian Portuguese textbook, with some coaching and audio exercises that use Continental Portuguese. But it’s a very dense book and probably not appropriate for a 13-year-old.
FARZANA–There is a series of two textbooks–plus a workbook–that is used to teach middle and high school students Portuguese in public
school districts in New England:
BOM DIA! Level. 1.
BOM DIA! Level 2. Bem-vindos ao Mundo Lusófono.
Márcia Matos; Sara Neto-Kalife.
Both hardback books and the workbook that accompanies Level 2
are available from Amazon and the publisher:
http://www.spinnerpub.com
Spinner Publications, Inc.
164 William Street
New Bedford, MA 02740
508-994-6925
The hardback books have beautiful color photography, useful charts
and teach students about the Lusophone countries. Book 1 concentrates on Portugal, and Book 2 focuses upon the Azores and Madeira, Angola, Cabo Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Moçambique, São Tomé & Príncipe. The workbook accompanies Book 2.
You can also go on http://www.wook.pt
This website sells school books for children and adolescents,
in addition to books for adult readers. Many colleges and universities
order their Portuguese books from Wook.pt.
Hi,
Which one works on verb conjugation? What do you suggest to learn verbs in Portuguese?
Bests,
Masoud
Falar Ler Escrever Português has lots of practice exercises. They are simple exercises with sentences that are not in context. It is good for those who want repetition. But you need to get the workbook in addition to the textbook to have enough exercises. Ponto de Encontro has lots os exercises if you get the workbook, but it is a dense, expensive book.
BOA TARDE, LUCIANA–
I now own the new edition of FALAR, LER, ESCREVER. It is colorful, the design, layout and color photography are excellent; it abounds with color charts that highlight verb conjugations and other grammatical themes. There is a big grammar appendix at the back of the book, and plenty of exercises.
There are three new textbooks available to learn Brazilian
Portuguese: You may wish to review these:
1. AQUARELA: Portuguese for Foreigners. 4th edition.
Tarcisio Buriti.. Buriti, Inc., 2007 ISBN -10 0979613302
The older editions of the book come with a CD; the fourth edition has internet audio files you can access from a website.
AQUARELA has useful charts and complete answer keys in the back of the book. This book teaches the basics of Brazilian Portuguese and contains multiple exercises for each chapter.
2. POIS NÃO: Brazilian Portuguese Course for Spanish Speakers. Antônio Roberto Monteiro Simões. Univ. of Texas Press, 2008. ISBN -10 0292717814 ISBN -13 978–029271817
This book is a practical introduction to Brazilian Portuguese, which teaches the language with comparisons to Spanish vocabulary and grammatical structures. It is a very practical approach which assumes the learner is Spanish speaker; it scaffolds off the Spanish language and compares and contrasts the similarities and essential differences of Spanish and Portuguese. This book comes with a CD in the back; there are
multiple Spanish-Portuguese lists for the learner and a huge Appendix with extensive grammar information and an index.
POIS NÃO teaches the “tu” conjugation throughout the text.
This book was developed specifically to teach Brazilian Portuguese to Spanish-speaking students at the University of Texas.
3. WORKING PORTUGUESE FOR BEGINNERS.
Monica Rector; Regina Santos; Marcelo Amorim; M. Lynne Gerber.
Georgetown University Press, 2010. ISBN- 10 1589016386
ISBN -13 978-1589016385
This textbook aims to teach the basics of Brazilian Portuguese to people who need Portuguese to survive in the Brazilian workplace. The focus of instruction revolves around the practical, day-to-day Portuguese required for the business and commercial environment of Brazil. There are many practical features provided in the book, such as typical dialogues, office protocol and vocabulary specialized for the workplace. This book also has a
CD to accompany the book, and extensive practice dialogues.
Is there any order in studying these books?
In my opinion it is useful to use various sources of information, as they have different strengths and may offer complementary perspectives. I don’t really see an order in using these books. But notice, for example, that I mention that Bem-Vindo is all in Portuguese, does not offer grammar explanations, and progresses fast through grammar. So it might not be appropriate for everyone. You need to consider what book may be a better fit for you.
Hi. Is there any order to study these books?
Hi. Is there any order in studying these books?
Bom dia, Luciana–
Be aware that the internet platform for PONTO DE ENCONTRO is
really only available to learners if they are enrolled in a college/university
course, and have been assigned an ACCESS CODE by the professor!
I purchased “internet access”, only to discover that this only permits
you to see the online text of the textbook. The learner CANNOT access
the online exercises for either the Brazilian or European versions, unless
they have that precious ACCESS CODE given them by a professor.
I called the publisher to ask if they could change this, even if they
charged a certain amount for the ACCESS CODE to the Language
Lab for students not registered in a university course. The answer was NO.
Charity, thank you for sharing this information here. I’m sorry you had this experience.
BOA TARDE, LUCIANA–
Speaking of books, there is a NEW, Third Edition of the textbook:
FALAR, LER, ESCREVER. With CD’s.
Emma Eberlein O.F. Lima; Samira Abirad Iunes.
Grupo Editorial Nacional, 2017.
ISBN 10–852163238X
ISBN 13–978-8521632382
Date of publication: February 15, 2017.
There is no publisher listed on the Amazon website, so I assume it
is the former publisher. The Amazon website has a paragraph in
Portuguese, which details many of the revised features of the book,
including new exercises and new reading material. This third edition also comes with CD’s. However, I do not see the supplemental
materials such as student workbooks or professor’s manuals listed
with this new edition.
You can access more information on this website:
http://www.grupogen.com.br
You can click on the section “Português Língua Estrangeiros,” and
you will see other instructional textbooks listed with descriptions
of their contents.
Oi!
I would like to learn portuguese spoken in angola! Do you have any recommendation on books?
Thank you!
Unfortunately, I don’t have it.
Oi, Luciana, por favor me aconselhe com um livro para ajudar minha filha de 11anos. Ela fala e compreende bem o Português. Mas procuro ajudá-la com a escritura. Obrigada
Oi, Aline. Infelizmente eu não tenho experiência com ensino de crianças. Eu tenho uma professora que é muito boa com crianças, mas ela não usa um livro pronto. Ela prepara o material dela para as aulas. Sinto muito não poder ajudar.
Hi Luciana! 🙂 Can I ask you which kind of book (not grammar.. a romance for example) I could start with to improve my knowledge of portuguese vocabulary?
Thank you so much in advance and good luck with your amazing job!
Oi, Anna! I’d say anything that you like. What matters is that you have fun along the way. I have a post that links to a few different books on Amazon.com https://streetsmartbrazil.com/improve-your-portuguese-books-read-portuguese/
If you are a beginner or low intermediate, you might consider reading in Portuguese a book that you have read in English. Or a book that you have seen the movie. This will make it a bit easier.
Boas leituras!
Hi,
I have done three levels in portuguese but still I think I need to improve my grammatical part and need learn pronunciation and also vocabulary.
could you please guide me which book and what way will be better to improve my portuguese.
Desde ja, agradeco
Grato,
Dinesh
Oi, Dinesh
I wrote a review on the main books available to learn Portuguese. You can see it here: https://streetsmartbrazil.com/books-study-portuguese/
I strongly encourage your to choose a book that has accompanying audio files. It is important to do listening comprehension exercises.
In my experience, books, audio, videos, and software can only do so much for you. To speak with ease and confidence, you need to speak with other people. Audio lessons or software cannot account for all the variations in speech that happen in a real-life, spontaneous conversation.
Lessons with a trained instructor make all the difference because the teacher can give you timely feedback to improve your Portuguese.
I cannot emphasize this enough: we only learn to speak a language by speaking it. We need lots of practice. That is the trick.
Sucesso!
Hi I’m interested in learning how to speak Portuguese,but I speak only English what book is best for be to start with??
Thank you
PJ
Hi, PJ. You can try Ultimate Portuguese. Get the version that comes with the CDs. The book will not give you a lot of grammar, but it is a good way to start learning. Another option is Ponto de Encontro. It has all the grammar you will ever need, but it is a very dense book. Whatever you get, it is important to have the audio CDs. A third option is to try Pimsleur instead of getting a book. You can check it out here: http://amzn.to/1OsI5ib
Hi I’m interested in learning how to speak Portuguese,but I speak only English what book is best for be to start with??
Thank you
PJ
Hello, I’m learning Portuguese at the moment. I was just curious which book should I start with if I’m a beginner?
Oi! If you are a Spanish speaker, you can use Bem-Vindo. But keep in mind that it does not have any translations. The book is all in Portuguese. It also does not explain grammar. It just shows you how things are.
Ponto de Encontro is the only book that has explanations and they are in English up to about the middle of the book. It starts from the beginning. Good book for any level, but very dense.
Have fun!
Oi, estou aprendendo ao falar portuguese brasileiro e eu gostaria ao encontrar um livro ao ajudar me, aguela tem um interessante mas facil estoria ao ler……eu encontrar os portuguese livros sobre verbs um pouco chato, desculpe!
Oi, Jan, eu entendo. Os livros só sobre verbos são chatos, sim. Os livros que ensinam português para estrangeiros são esses que estão neste artigo.
Outra forma de aprender é com uma professora que pode ensinar a língua a partir de conversação, de uma forma mais orgânica e interessante. Você pode fazer uma aula experimental com a Street Smart Brazil para ver como podemos ajudar você a aprender português. Veja aqui: https://streetsmartbrazil.com/shop/trial-session/
Tenho também um artigo com links para livros em português na Amazon. Não são livros para ensinar português, mas você pode aprender muito lendo em português. https://streetsmartbrazil.com/improve-your-portuguese-books-read-portuguese/
E aqui nesse outro artigo você vai encontrar links para 28 revistas brasileiras que você pode ler online: https://streetsmartbrazil.com/sharpen-your-portuguese-28-brazilian-magazines-you-can-read-online/
Obrigada por ler o blog e comentar!
Oi! Muito obrigada for your comment. I really appreciate it.
Your question is an important one. Bem-Vindo is a good book for Spanish speakers because it is fast-paced, but it is not targeted specifically for Spanish speakers.
Com Licença, on the other hand, is meant of those who speak Spanish and want to learn Portuguese. It contrasts the two languages side by side. It is a good book, yes.
There is another book by the same author for Spanish speakers: Pois Não. I like its dialogues.
In my opinion, no book is perfect and the best learning happens when you learn from different sources. Since you have Ponto de Encontro, I would say that a book with lots of dialogues would be the best complement, as Ponto de Encontro does not have it.
I hope this helps 🙂
Thanks for sharing this 🙂
I actually have the Ponto de Encontro book, but haven’t put enough time into studying it. Just a question, I notice you reccomend the Bem-Vindo book for spanish speakers, but I was wondering if you have nay thoughts on the "Com Licenca" book, as it is actually geared toward spanish speakers. I don’t have it, but I was wondering if you can offer any comments on it.
By the way, I love this blog and the website, thanks for making it accessable!