- ESL students, TOEFL and TOEIC test takers, and all others for whom English is a second language and who want to improve their pronunciation will find this book and compact disc combination especially instructive. The new second edition presents a significantly increased number of exercises, all of them providing practice in every sound that is specific to American-style English. Emphasis is on stress and intonation patterns in conversational English. Recognition of these patterns is essential to fluent speech and listening comprehension. Four compact discs replace the first edition’s audiocassettes, and have been increased by 50 minutes in playing time to a total of 5 hours and 20 minutes.