How Language Works, by David Crystal

I found this book to be a bit long and repetitive in parts. And this is from someone who likes to read about language.

The problem for me was perhaps that it read a bit like a text book. David Crystal takes you through all the minor details involved in language, right down to the biological facts of how we make sound.

The more interesting parts dealt with the world's different languages and dialects.

I presume the student of language may find this book more interesting.

French For Le Snob, by Yvette Reche

People who study the history of the English language know that it enjoyed a huge injection of French words after the Norman invasion of 1066. Little do we realise it, but when we speak our modern English, we also pepper it with all sorts of French loanwords.

French words to do with government and food were especially influential. Hence our politicians meet in parliament, a French word from the verb parler, to speak.

Author Yvette Reche has an interest in food, fashion, art and architecture, and so each of these subjects gets its own chapter. Yet I think she could have added another chapter on government loanwords from the French.

No matter. This is a fun and lively book which will have you constantly saying to yourself, ‘I never knew that word came from the French.’ Reche also offers lots of interesting little histories of various words. If you enjoy this sort of trivia, and like to know the provenance of the words you use, then you will very much enjoy this book.

I was surprised to learn that parmesan is a French word for the original Italian parmiggiano. Why do we use the French and not the Italian original? If I was Italian I’d be annoyed.
My favourite word in the book was claqueur, for some one who belonged to a claque, a group paid to applaud someone.

There are so many words listed in the book you of course will only remember a handful of them, yet it will certainly leave you with an overall ‘feel’ for the French language.

Mother Tongue, by Bill Bryson

I didn’t find this book as engaging as Melvyn Bragg’s history of English The Adventure of English. Perhaps I should correct that. Mother Tongue is not so much a history as a biography of the language. It covers such interesting subjects (if that’s your bag) as pronunciation, spelling, the origin of names etc. etc. As you’d expect, there are lots of interesting facts and bits of trivia along the way. Bryson is a good natured enough guide, but sometimes I find his bonhomie and sense of humour a bit too cute. He’s smart, and has a good reserve of knowledge up his sleeve, but frequently I found myself thinking, so what?

Perhaps I have read too much on this subject (not really, only two or three other books).

Mother Tongue left me feeling a bit dissatisfied. The book has a thin, frivolous feel about it. I think I still prefer the Bragg book.

The Adventure of English, by Melvyn Bragg

This is my first Melvyn Bragg book, and I was very satisfied with the experience.

Bragg has a good, clear writing style and intuitively knows which word to use and where. His intellectual and aesthetic judgements I found to be very agreeable.

For example, when talking about Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn, Bragg likens Twain’s accomplishment to that of Chaucer’s. I couldn’t have agreed more.

In fact, in the sentences leading up to this pronouncement, I was hoping as I read that he would draw such a conclusion and agree with me that the language of Huckleberry Finn is one of the most amazing literary achievements in English.

Bragg sets his book out in a nice easy time line, and treats the English language as a major character, almost like an adventurer, travelling far and wide and picking up all sorts of exotic words and phrases and expressions, then weaving them back into the language itself, like a tapestry.

First we have the invading Germanic tribes, then the Norman conquest of 1066, bringing in a wealth of French words. French would actually become the official language, that of the English monarchs and business and administration, for some 300 years.

Once the English language had again been liberated, we got the wonders of Chaucer’s poetry, which used to great effect the common English spoken by the people.

After the English language had won back the state, it went on to conquer religion.

The Bible had not been translated into English, and hence the commoners could not read it. They had to rely on the clergy that could read Latin. This allowed great power to reside with the church.

William Tyndale thus went about translating the Bible, most of it later used for the official King James version. For his trouble, Tyndale was executed. It’s extraordinary we don’t know more of Tyndale, as there are so many expressions he gave the English language that we all use: ‘scapegoat’, ‘let there be light’, ‘the powers that be’, ‘fight the good fight’, ‘stumbling block’, ‘sea-shore’. And on and on.

After Tyndale, another great: William Shakespeare, who gave us some 2000 words and expressions.

English then moved onto America, where it expanded again.

Happily, Bragg also gives us a chapter on Australian English, highlighting our propensity to put an ‘o’ and an ‘ie’ in front of our words. Sickie for sick day, arvo for afternoon, to name but two.

One of the things I really enjoyed about this book were the long lists of words and where they came from. The provenance of most English words would surprise most English speakers, words we take for granted as being quintessentially English. As it turns out, this isn’t necessarily so.

I really learnt a lot from this book on English. Maybe only dullards like me find this a fascinating subject. If you’re a fellow dullard, you will find this book very enjoyable.