Jump quickly to results on these stores:
The Road to Little Dribbling | At Home | Bryson's Dictionary of Troublesome Words | A Short History of Nearly Everything | In a Sunburned Country | I'm a Stranger Here Myself | The Lost Continent | Neither Here Nor There
Bryson covers the entire history of language, from the first crude utterings of Neanderthal man to the explosion of English as a global language in this century. We learn why "island," "freight," and "colonel" are spelled in such unphonetic ways, and why "four" has a "u" in it while "forty" does not. We also discover that Noah Webster occasionally plagiarized and that Samuel Johnson ("Dictionary Johnson"), though no plagiarist, was often careless and inaccurate.
"MOTHER TONGUE is a book that will, like the English language itself, amuse, delight and occasionally astonish you." (Publisher's Source)
About: Offers a journey through the intricacies, puzzles, and quirks of the English language, tracing the history of English from its earliest origins to the present day
About: Provides a humorous history of the English language covering such topics as spelling, pronunciation, swearing, and wordplay.
About: A witty, irreverent but very useful account of the peculiarities of the English language.
About: Provides a humorous history of the English language covering such topics as spelling, pronunciation, swearing, and wordplay.
Pricing is shown for items sent to or within the U.S., excluding shipping and tax. Please consult the store to determine exact fees. No warranties are made express or implied about the accuracy, timeliness, merit, or value of the information provided. Information subject to change without notice. isbn.nu is not a bookseller, just an information source.