How English Became English: A Short History of A Global Language

How English Became English: A Short History of A Global Language

A venture outside of my normal reading topics, this book on the history of the English language was well worth my time.

The most fascinating chapters of the book discussed local variations of the English language and the future of our tongue in the Internet age with new words being invented at an increasing rate.

Discussions of how the meanings of words have changed over time, such as the modern use of "literally" to mean the opposite of the dictionary definition.

The book does not take a purist view of the language, and does a great job of exploring the various attempts to regulate the English language.

Just last week, my friend (who holds a B.Ed) was correcting her teenage daughter's use of the language. I can't remember the word she used, but her mother told her "That isn't a word!".

I recommended she borrow this book from the Hamilton Public Library and arm herself to battle her mother over the language. We'll see if she reads it.

Meanwhile, for the rest of you, you can borrow this book from the Hamilton Public Library.