The Story of English: Third Revised Edition: Amazon.ca: Books

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4.7 out of 5 stars (10 customer reviews)

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1 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars This is a companion to the PBS television series., Dec 27 2001

By

bernie "webviator" (Arlington, Texas) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)

This review is from: Story Of English (Hardcover)

After watching the series it is fun to see the information in print.

Just about everything you ever wanted to know about the English Language is in this book. There are newer and older references but none so complete and at the same time readable. This book covers history, usage, almost usage and possible futures of the language.

One of my favorite antidotes was the one about how the Advisory Committee on Spoken English (ACSE) discussed the word "canine":

"Shaw brought up the word 'canine', and he wanted the recommendation to be 'cay-nine'... And somebody said 'Mr. Shaw, Mr. Chairman, I don't know why you bring this up, of course it's 'ca-nine'. Shaw said, 'I always pronounce things the way they are pronounced by people who use the word professionally every day.' And he said, 'My dentist always says (cay-nine)'. And somebody said, 'Well, in that case, Mr. Chairman, you must have an American dentist.' And he said, 'Of course, why do you think at 76 I have all my teeth!'"

After reading about how English came about, the next book to read would be "Divided by a Common Language" by Christopher Davies, Jason Murphy

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1 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Refreshing lack of triumphalism, Dec 20 2001

By

Kimberly Xia M. (Tokyo Japan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Story of English (Paperback)

I read this book back in my 'English Conversation Teacher' days in Japan. Having been embrassed one to many times by students having to lecture me, their teacher, on the history of English, I figured I should do some 'catch-up reading.' I asked around for suggestions and was recommended 'The Story of English'.

It is free of the linguistic jargon most general readers would find pedantic, and although it is aimed at the general reader it is never condescending. The first half of the book explains the historical development of English while the second half focues on modern English.

Most refreshing though, is that it is free of the triumphalism found in many books of this kind. Reflecting the demographic reality of English today, it gives even-handed attention to the many contemporary varieties of English spoken around the world in places such as North America, Singapore, India, the Anglophone West Indies, and so on.

'The Story of English' is best suited to those who are curious about the origins as well as the future of English, and who want an easy-to-understand introduction to the subject.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Great read - - nice pictures, Dec 26 2000

By

Erika Mitchell (E. Calais, VT USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Story of English (Paperback)

This book is a very readable and well researched introduction to the history of the English language. It contains a great deal of material about the many varieties of English, including separate chapters on Irish English, Scots English, American English, Caribbean English, and Australian and South African English. The photographs and maps that are featured throughout the book are excellent. The maps provide invaluable insights to the historical processes of change, and the pictures make the history come alive. In some places, it is clear that the book was written as a companion to the TV series, when the narrative takes us to an interview with a dialect speaker and then falls flat. If you have access to the video, the motivation for these interviews is much more clear when you can hear the person talk. This book would be excellent for the general reader; it would also make a good textbook for an introductory course on the development of English.

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Most recent customer reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars The Complete History is very Full
I've always been interested in this subject, but could never find enough information on the evolution of the English language. Read more

Published on Aug 21 2003

2.0 out of 5 stars Lightweights lacking linguistic literacy, levity,
The book takes one of the most interesting, far-reaching, important and fascinating stories in linguistics and makes of it a cardboard, flavorless bit of school days... Read more

Published on Jun 9 2003 by Marc Cenedella