Self-taught language books?

[Borden]

I vaguely remember someone mentioning a French for Reading book that was magical and full of wonderment for learning enough to pass the exams without taking a class (Sandberg, maybe?) - is there something similar for Italian and/or German and/or Dutch? Amazon has been less than forthcoming with this information and inquiring (and broke) minds want to know.

[Bearcat1]

German Quickly has been highly recommended on here. I bought it and skimmed through, so I can't definitively say it's great, but it looks pretty good. I can tell you for certain that Jannach's is not good. And I can't help with Italian or Dutch, but I'd be interested in Italian suggestions as well. 

[Flaneuse]

French for Reading by Sandberg:

http://www.amazon.com/French-Reading-Karl-C-Sandberg/dp/0133316033/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1362764371&sr=8-1&keywords=french+for+reading

 

I haven't heard anything about the other languages. I'd reccommend getting a few language books from a used bookstore or library to learn the grammar then using the site Conversation Exchange to work with native speakers (for free) to improve either speaking, listening, or writing skills (or all the above). I use Conversation Exchange for French and it's been really helpful once you get over the awkwardness at the beginning.

[Borden]

Bueno, gracias, etc!