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Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue: The Untold History Of English (2008)

by John H. McWhorter(Favorite Author)

3.76 of 5 Votes: 2

ISBN

1592403956 (ISBN13: 9781592403950)

languge

English

genre

History & Biography

publisher

Gotham

review 1: This was an enjoyable dissertation on some interesting ideas about the history of English that are not entirely mainstream, but which are interesting. McWhorter does a good job narrating his own book (which I wish more authors were willing to do), but having recently also listened to his series of lectures from the Great Courses (both were on special from audible at the same time), unfortunately, he reuses some examples an asides, so it felt a bit recycled. Between the two, though, I think this was the better, though there is plenty of material that is not shared between the two. It was definitely interesting that instead of vocabulary, this book focuses more on grammar, which was a nice change of pace.
review 2: Too clever by half. I was excited to read this b... moreook, as linguistics interests me greatly. There is some very good stuff in the book, and no doubt Mr. McWhorter is smart. Trouble is, he's so smug that it's hard to tell how much of what he's saying is legitimate and how much is bloviating. In his first main section he writes a long argument regarding the unnecessary "do" and the "progressive -ing" in English, which is somewhat interesting, but he drags the unfortunate reader into an esoteric argument he makes with scholars with which most or all of his readers are unfamiliar. He seems to struggle knowing what kind of book he is writing--is it a high scholarly treatise on Welsh and Cornish influence on English? If so, back off of the cuteness. Is it a book written for the lay reader, to help them understand the fascinating development and influences on English? If so, leave out 90% of your jabs at other scholars we don't know or care about. In either case, figure out who you are writing for, and stick with an appropriate style.The pace picks up as the book progresses, but I had a hard time wading through his self-satisfaction and, as mentioned, smugness. Still, if you're interested in linguistics, this is probably worth a read. less

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