Very good, but perhaps a little brief
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David Crystal's book does exactly what it says in the introduction - it provides an overview of the English language in much the same way one would expect from a someone giving a guided tour of the language - as such, it contains much useful information about the development of English as we know it today but is a little simplistic when it comes to other areas: spelling, vocabulary, etc. Nevertheless a good book well worth a read.
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Very entertaining guide to the language
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If the notion of reading a history of the English language sends you to sleep, fear not. This is bedtime reading. It discusses the history of the language, the different varieties of English (including pidjins and creoles) and current debates about usage. Crystal takes a dim view of prescriptive Victorian-style grammarians who believe English grammar should be approached as if it were Latin. He is not scared of coming down on one side of a debate and justifies his arguments well, providing entertaining examples. The only downside is that his picture of modern English teaching bears little resemblence to this 23-year-old's experience and I suspect this section of the book could have been better researched.
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