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The Language Wars: A History Of Proper English (2011)

by Henry Hitchings(Favorite Author)

3.69 of 5 Votes: 4

ISBN

0374183295 (ISBN13: 9780374183295)

languge

English

genre

History & Biography

publisher

Farrar, Straus and Giroux

review 1: This might not be as slick as 'The story of English'. It does however build well constructed arguments with evidence to make even the most ardent Anglophile question their assumptions as to what makes 'good' Englsh. Never again shall i question the use of the hanging preposition, nor adhere to the southern 'im' prefix as being 'better' than the goodd old northern 'un'. (Let us resurrect 'unpossible' in the lexicon of pur langusge once more) A joy to read, and definately makes the reader think about what constitutes 'proper' English. If you thought grammer was 'boring' then you have not read this work. And for those of us who love language and hooks - it does not get better than that.
review 2: This is what I might call a popular-scholarly book (if that is ... morenot improper English!) In other words, it is written for the general reader, but relates a great deal of information from specialists in the subject (as shown by the 27 pages of notes and 26 page Bibliography). It is not a "light" read, but is not "heavy" either - it just requires some concentration and effort to follow all that is being said. It is packed full of history, theory, observation, reflection and insight, and made me reconsider a number of my attitudes "my" language. Recommended to anyone with a genuine interest in the subject. less

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