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A Little Book of Language (Little Histories) |  | Author: David Crystal
Publisher: Yale University Press
Category: Book
List Price: $25.00
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Seller: eshopper-1
Rating:  6 reviews
Sales Rank: 16917
Media: Hardcover
Pages: 272
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.2
Dimensions (in): 8.6 x 5.4 x 1.3
ISBN: 0300155336
Dewey Decimal Number: 400
EAN: 9780300155334
ASIN: 0300155336
Publication Date: June 1, 2010
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
With a language disappearing every two weeks and neologisms springing up almost daily, an understanding of the origins and currency of language has never seemed more relevant. In this charming volume, a narrative history written explicitly for a young audience, expert linguist David Crystal proves why the story of language deserves retelling.
From the first words of an infant to the peculiar modern dialect of text messaging, A Little Book of Language ranges widely, revealing languageâs myriad intricacies and quirks. In animated fashion, Crystal sheds light on the development of unique linguistic styles, the origins of obscure accents, and the search for the first written word. He discusses the plight of endangered languages, as well as successful cases of linguistic revitalization. Much more than a history, Crystalâs work looks forward to the future of language, exploring the effect of technology on our day-to-day reading, writing, and speech. Through enlightening tables, diagrams, and quizzes, as well as Crystalâs avuncular and entertaining style, A Little Book of Language will reveal the story of language to be a captivating tale for all ages.
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Showing reviews 1-5 of 6
 Delightful! This should be on every student's "must read" list August 27, 2010
Gregory J. Casteel (Athens, AL United States)
I absolutely loved this book, and read it over the course of just two evenings. I wasn't planning on doing that -- my original plan was to read the book over the course of a week or two -- but, once I started reading it, I simply couldn't put it down. I dropped everything else I was planning to do, and devoured this wonderful little book as quickly as I could. It really was that good. Clear; concise; easy to read; engaging; educational; fun -- it's everything you could ask for in a book. Written for young readers, but suitable for readers of just about any age and educational level, this introduction to language and linguistics is essential reading for anyone who wants to learn the basics of how humans communicate through speech, writing, and signing.
We all grow up speaking our native language (or signing it, in the case of deaf children); and most of us learn to read and write as schoolchildren. We also learn the rules of grammar in school. And some of us even go on to study the basics of one or more foreign languages. But learning a language is not the same thing as learning ABOUT language. Few of us ever really learn about language itself: what language is; how it works; why we have language at all; how children learn to use language; why there are so many different languages in the world; how many languages there are; how they are distributed; how they are related to each other; how languages change over time; why it can be so difficult to translate something from one language into another; why different speakers of the same language don't all sound exactly alike; why people are often judged by the way they speak; what dialects are; how languages and dialects serve to give people a sense of group identity; the politics of language; how language affects culture; why people speak with different accents; how the sounds of spoken language are made; what grammar is; what function it plays in language; why different styles of language are used in different situations; why the style of written language is different from the style of spoken language; why we have written language; how different languages are written; why many words aren't spelled the way they sound; why some people never learn to read and write; etc. These fascinating topics, among many others, are the focus of the field of "linguistics" -- the study of language. Even though just about everyone learns the mechanics of how to use their own language, and many learn the mechanics of how to use one or more foreign languages, few people ever bother to learn about the nature of language itself: In other words, few people ever study linguistics. That's a shame; because language affects everything we do. In fact, some might even argue that our use of language is the main thing that separates humans from all other animals. The more we know about language, the more we know about the world we live in and about what it means to be human. Everyone needs to know certain basic things about language; and every student needs to study at least the rudiments of linguistics. The earlier they begin their study of language, the better: high school is better than college, and middle school is better than high school.
This is one of the few books on language that I've come across that is suitable for readers of just about any age. It's clear enough to be understood by middle schoolers, and yet informative enough to be useful to college graduates. Even I learned a few new things from reading this book; and I've actually taken linguistics courses and read lots of books on the subject. The author, David Crystal, is a noted linguist who has written several excellent books on language -- including some very useful reference books that I'm really glad I have in my home library. In this book, Crystal manages to present the essentials of linguistics in a clear, concise, easy-to-read manner, suitable for young readers, without in any way "dumbing down" the material. No, this is not an in-depth text aimed at linguistics graduate students. (If you're looking for that, look elsewhere.) But it is an excellent introduction to linguistics for beginners, suitable for adult readers as well as children. In fact, if I had to recommend just one book to introduce the basics of language to people who have never studied linguistics, this would be that book.
One of the reasons I like this book so much is that it fits in very well with my own philosophy of teaching: Always start by providing students with a basic, simplified overview of the fundamentals of the subject, trying your best not to get bogged down in unnecessary details, but covering everything that a non-specialist might realistically need to know about the subject, while laying a solid foundation that the students can build upon if they wish to learn more. This book does that; and it does it brilliantly. Perhaps even more importantly, I'm convinced that any student who reads this book will feel motivated to try to learn even more about language and linguistics. If you want to inspire students to learn, this is the sort of book that can do it. It would make a wonderful gift to a young reader, or to a high school graduate about to go off to college. Or, just do what I did and get a copy for yourself, and enjoy it for its clarity, simplicity, and beauty of style. If you don't know much about language, this is the perfect place to start your education. But, even if you have studied linguistics, you'll probably find some new insights here, just as I did. (Besides, even an expert in a given subject can often benefit by a refresher in the fundamentals of that subject every now and then.) I really can't recommend this book highly enough: It is wonderful. I wish I had a book like this when I was a kid.
An excellent book...for its target readership August 19, 2010
Librum (CA, USA)
As others have noted, ALBoL has little to offer readers of a serious linguistic bent. As such a reader, I found ALBoL entertaining enough, but not particularly informative. Acknowledging, however, that I am not part of the target readership for this book, I think the book does a very admirable job of conveying, to its intended readership, a sense of the scope of language and linguistics, and of how fascinating and exciting the study of language is. As such, ALBoL is a very fine little book. To the non-initiate: read it and whet your appetite for further study. To the initiate: read it to appreciate how very complex ideas can be made accessible to novices, and for the pleasure of basking a bit in the author's exuberance for his subject.
Not little really, but very big book on Language! August 10, 2010
Roman Weissmann (Barcelone, Barcelone Spain)
I'm an economist but use to read books from other sciences so when I found this Litte Book of Language, I knew that it was going to fit my needs. I'm a generalist so didn't want to read a high profile book on Semantics. Crystal does it very good, even if your mother tongue is Spanish, like in my case!!
Crystal provides you with a broad range of concepts re.Language, with examples coming from French, Spanish, etc.
He goes back to the history of the language but also explains recent developments with it, like [...] (the web page which makes a cloud of words with any text you submit).
The way he writes is very simple (at a times I felt I was an elementary school boy) but, again, being English not my mother tongue, it wasn't a handicap.
If you know nothing about Language and want to have a complete and sound overview, this is definitely your book.
Please Read Further! June 16, 2010
L. Potts (Franklin, TN United States)
5 out of 6 found this review helpful
This is addressed to the previous reviewer, who doesn't (or maybe didn't, by now) realize that A Little Book of Language was written for young teens. Read a bit further in the blurbs and cover notes; the information is there. As a children's librarian, I'd like to add that children's literature is probably the most difficult kind to write, without slipping into the patronizing or the precious tone of voice. It's hardly fair to expect a book written for young people to read like a book written for adults, however. Not because adult fiction/non-fiction is somehow superior to juvenile fiction/non-fiction. It isn't. Many highly-literate adults love children's literature--which encompasses a great deal more than Mother Goose and fairy tales, by the way--as writing of great immediacy, power, and feeling. Mr. Crystal did an outstanding job of addressing today's young teen audience, a difficult task, especially when we consider the written word must now compete with technology for the attention of young people. I can testify that it is, at times, an uphill struggle for teens accustomed to the truncated minimalist "English" of text messaging to relate to language at its richest and best. It was high time for A Little Book of Language to appear. I applaud Mr. Crystal for bringing it about.
L. S. Potts
 Too simplistic and didactic -- at least for literate adults May 24, 2010
R. M. Peterson (Santa Fe, NM)
15 out of 25 found this review helpful
A few years ago I read David Crystal's "The Stories of English" (a history, more or less, of the English language), which I found quite rewarding though a bit too long and detailed for the generalist that I am. Still, it was sufficiently worthwhile for me to buy his recent A LITTLE BOOK OF LANGUAGE when I saw it at the bookstore. It then took me over two weeks to read the book - not because it is too long and detailed, but for the opposite reason: it is too simplistic. (I guess I can't say it is too short because one-third of the way through I was wishing I had reached the end.)
A LITTLE BOOK OF LANGUAGE is an overview of language: how it is learned; grammar and spelling; how languages evolve and how some die; dictionaries; linguistics; and more. It contains much that is worth knowing by those who wish to be literate, but, alas, for those who already are literate not enough that is new to make reading it a good use of their time. And speaking of the "literate", here is an excerpt from Crystal's book:
"Once we've learned to read and write, we're said to be `literate'. People who haven't learned to read and write are called `illiterate'. There are millions of people around the world who are illiterate."
See my problem? If not yet, consider:
"When does a language die? A language dies when the last person who speaks it dies. And this is happening in many parts of the world."
Or: "If you want to be a lawyer, or a doctor, or a religious minister, or a radio presenter, or a sports commentator, you have to learn a new kind of language. Every job has its special words (or `jargon') and grammar."
Or: "We have a `first name', such as (English) Michael or Mary, or (French) Antoine or Amélie. * * * We have a `surname' or `family name', such as (English) Smith, (German) Klein, or (Chinese) Wang. The surname that a woman is born with is called her `maiden name'."
Those excerpts, like so much else in the book, read like they are being addressed to an eighth-grader (although there is nothing on the book jacket stating that it is aimed at "younger audiences"). Not only is the book rather simplistic, there is a didactic tone to it that rubs me wrong. Perhaps there are some very studious and eager eighth-graders who would rate it higher than three stars, but I'm not an eighth-grader and it is only because today is a beautiful, sunny spring day that I give the book two-and-a-half stars and round up to three.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 6
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