Letter Perfect: The A-to-Z History of Our Alphabet [Paperback]

Subtitled "Unraveling the Mystery of the Alphabet from A to Z," Language Visible is an intriguing and accessible study of the "particles" that come together to form language. The pictographic sources of the alphabet are a fascinating story, and Sacks delves into the history and archeology of that tale with a level of erudition that does not exclude the average intelligent reader. Sacks claims, quite justifiably, that the invention of the alphabet "judged on longevity and extent of modern daily use…compares with the wheel." In a long introductory chapter, the author discusses recent discoveries of the earliest alphabetic letters (1800 B.C.) in Egypt at the Wadi El Hol site. Scholars believe that the alphabet was invented there by humble soldiers "who were being excluded from the mysteries of Egyptian hieroglyphic writing." The remainder of the book is taken up with a chapter for each letter, discussing details of how the letter is used today and depicting the historical evolution of the letter shapes (A started out as an ox-head, S as an archer's bow). Numerous sidebars are included, exploring such subjects as the alphabet in the Middle Ages and the history of letters in type. While the historical material is well researched and always of interest, many of the details on the letters themselves are too obvious to justify their inclusion (A represents success in school, F shows failure). Altogether, however, the story of how all the words in all the books are made up of a combination of 26 letters is intellectually stimulating as well as entertaining. --Mark Frutkin --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

“At a time when it has become more important than ever to read clearly and intelligently in order to dismantle the daily traps of propaganda, this delightful book lays bare for us, with wit and wisdom, the very building-blocks of our culture: the mysterious letters of the alphabet that rule our language and thought.”
—Alberto Manguel, author of A History of Reading

“Reading David Sacks’s wonderful [book] is like sitting rapt before the coolest teacher in school. Sacks’s excursion through the alphabet is witty and smart.  I was reluctant to finally leave the classroom.”
—Mark Dunn, author of Ella Minnow Pea

“[This book] is distinguished by its remarkably long and broad view of the topic and its omnivorous sense of fun. … [A] clear and appealing discussion. … [A] dazzlingly diverse array of facts. … From discussions of the letter A’s role in meat grading, bond rating, student ranking, and punishment for adultery to Z’s exotic associations with Zorro, Sacks makes the history of the alphabet a joy to read. Recommended for most libraries.”
—Library Journal (US)

“An always clever -- but rarely too clever -- educational and entertaining history of the alphabet. A refreshing combination of erudition and breeziness.”
—Kirkus Reviews

“Sacks unfolds the romance and magic of the English alphabet. Although Sacks writes for non-specialists, he distills an impressive range of scholarship into his examination of the alphabet’s complex cultural history. This is a delightfully entertaining and engrossing tale of how the score of roman letters that arrived in England in the seventh century eventually gave us everything from the poetry of William Shakespeare to the official grades used by meat inspectors to evaluate chicken.”
—Booklist

“As fun to read as it is enlightening...Sacks's obsession with language is contagious, and I can imagine few readers whose lives would not be enriched by what he calls his ‘voyage of discovery.’”
—Julie Walton Shaver, The New York Times Book Review

“Sacks is at his best when he opens a world, and the worlds within worlds that shape-shift as written language moves...[The book] is a valuable addition (edition?) for anyone who wants to know how Anglophones got from there to here.”
—The Globe and Mail

‘Beautifully illustrated…[A] gem of popular linguistic history…[The book] avoids taking itself too seriously.”
—Publishers Weekly

“[A] cultural history of A to Z. [The book] unravels the mystery of the alphabet’s ancient origins, and explores its effects on the modern world.”
—Citizen’s Weekly

“Sacks writes in a jokey, conversational style…anthropomorphiz[ing] the letters to make their ‘biographies’ even more exciting.”
—Winnipeg Free Press

“A delightful exploration of the roots, stalks and branches of the letter forms that proved to be so remarkably adaptable to so many diverse, unrelated languages.”
—The Edmonton Journal

“Sacks does an excellent job tracing each letter’s history…Well-researched and very readable.”
—Quill and Quire

“[A] delightful journey into the history of our alphabet…With a breezy tone and a passion for letters, Sacks tells the life story of all 26 of them — from A, the ‘first and best,’ to Z, the least-used letter in printed English. Each of these 26 ‘biographies’ is filled with entertaining and fascinating facts…In this rich history, Sacks offers answers to all of the mysteries of the alphabet, and a long-overdue examination of the origins of our ABCs.”
—The Baltimore Sun

“…Journalist Sacks unfolds the romance and magic of the English alphabet. Although Sacks writes for nonspecialists, he distills an impressive range of scholarship into his examination of the alphabet's complex cultural history…Delightfully entertaining and engrossing.”
—Booklist

“An always clever — but rarely too clever — educational and entertaining history of the alphabet….A refreshing combination of erudition and breeziness.”
—Kirkus Reviews

“Sacks’ often witty, always scientific and eminently historical approach draws us into mysteries of time and humanity.”
—Contra Costa Times (California)

“[A] gem of popular linguistic history.”
—Publishers Weekly

“[This book] is a fun bit of popular scholarship, a diverting reference book filled with illustrations and sidebars that both entertain and inform. It is also a success story – the story of a ‘spectacularly successful’ invention (the alphabet), culminating in the global triumph of a spectacularly successful language (English).”
—Kitchener-Waterloo Record (Dec. 13, 2003)


From the Hardcover edition.