* Let's Start Talking is a workbook-style textbook that focuses on oral communication. The text provides a variety of topics, useful for teenagers or adults at a high-beginning/low-intermediate level. Its goal is active conversation in class, in both small and large groups. The text incorporates all four skills to achieve the goal of effective conversation. Each of the 20 chapters presents a specific theme to develop conversational skills. The themes, such as budgeting, traveling, and choosing a university, contain skills that are directly applicable for students in an ESL setting in the United States. Conversation focuses on specific tasks related to the theme. Each topic presents informal conversation and insights into U.S. culture. Although the format varies, each chapter consists of six parts: Vocabulary, Read and Consider, Pre-Discussion, Decide and Write, Discussion, and Extend. At the beginning of each chapter, the text presents target vocabulary encapsulating the theme along with a wealth of common expressions useful for student discussion. Read and Consider gives a concise statement of the situation under discussion, easily grasped by the students. The Pre-Discussion phase introduces model phrases and dialogues that lay the groundwork for conversation. This section centers on individual preparation of the task, giving students an opportunity to formulate their thoughts clearly. Ideally, this process leads to focused conversation in small groups. Using the target vocabulary and phrases practiced in the Pre-Discussion phase, the small group forms a response to the situation and shares the result in whole-class discussion. In the Discussion segment, students compare and contrast the decisions of each group, as well as individual choices. Finally, in the Extend section, students relate class material to real-life contexts outside of the classroom. The major strength of the text lies in this section, because it carries classwork to unrehearsed communication beyond the classroom. Interactive activities, such as practicing model dialogues, making decisions, writing letters, formulating conversations, and role playing, understand how g nder and e hnicity inf uence cl ssrooms and