Having used Hoffer's first edition of this volume (with great success and abundant payoff), I was pleasantly surprised to encounter this second edition.
The new edition has been improved in almost every way possible (from layout, to design, to even the fonts). The largest improvements, though, come in the exceptional supplement (which exceeds many advanced, non-beginner grammars) and the CDs which accompany the book. The music is simply wonderful and ranges from little grammatical jingles to full blown covers of songs originally written by the man himself, King David (i.e. the Psalms).
As a whole, this edition is guaranteed to introduce you, in a logical and rigorous fashion, to almost everything you need to know about Biblical Hebrew. The biggest advantage to this book (over, let's say a Lambdin or a Kelley or Pratico [all of which I own]) is that it is heads and tails more pragmatic and useful. Lambdin, for instance, uses transliteration, which really is a huge crutch and in the long run hurts you (not to mention that Lambdin doesn't present his material in a particularly *practical* way...Kelley is the weakest of the bunch, in my opinion [mired in an extremely poor presention-scheme], and Pratico is not horrible, but simply is not as comprehensive as Hoffer's book).
Hoffer's book, on the other hand, presents everything in a *practical, logical* fashion: concepts and vocabulary are introduced as necessary. Within several weeks, you will be reading the story of the binding of Isaac...something the other texts wouldn't dare to do even after dozens of lessons. This book is focused on getting you to read the Biblical text, as quickly, and as thoroughly and critically as possible...the other books too often seem to lose sight of this fact, preferring instead to meander through lessons which seem to lack relevance to the everyone's reason for picking up a Biblical Hebrew grammar: reading the Bible. Every practice sentence/exercise comes from the Bible...everything you learn in this book is *useful*. Not only that, but Hoffer's knowledge of the Hebrew Bible and of Biblical Hebrew grammar is extraordinary...as is her love of the language, which is not only extraordinary, but felt on every page of the book.
Get this book if you're fascinated by the Hebrew Bible and want to read it as quickly and as efficiently as possible. Get this book if you have some familiarity with Biblical Hebrew, but want to master the language. Get this book just for the CDs!