A series of insightful essays ponders the origins, successes, and pitfalls of the English language
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
Don Hauptman author of Cruel and Unusual Puns A veritable Cook's Tour of the wonderful English language.
Bill Bryson author of The Mother Tongue: English and How It Got That Way The Miracle Of Language is "delightful, witty and hugely absorbing."
James J. Kilpatrick Let me commend The Miracle Of Language chiefly for the sheer fun of it, but there's solid stuff to chew on too.
A hymn of praise to language and literature
This is the most luminous and inspiring book about language I can ever write. It begins with language acquisition and the rise of English as a world language, offers a gallery of portraits of the writers from Shakespeare to Orwell who changed the world by changing the word, and includes a section on the loom of literature. I've poured my life as a verbivore and bibliophile into this little miracle of a book.
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
Seller: BooksRun, Philadelphia, PA, U.S.A.
Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. With dust jacket. It's a well-cared-for item that has seen limited use. The item may show minor signs of wear. All the text is legible, with all pages included. It may have slight markings and/or highlighting. Seller Inventory # 0671709399-11-1-29
Seller: World of Books (was SecondSale), Montgomery, IL, U.S.A.
Condition: Good. Item in good condition. Textbooks may not include supplemental items i.e. CDs, access codes etc. Seller Inventory # 00090603816
Seller: World of Books (was SecondSale), Montgomery, IL, U.S.A.
Condition: Acceptable. Item in acceptable condition! Textbooks may not include supplemental items i.e. CDs, access codes etc. Seller Inventory # 00091438913
Seller: Your Online Bookstore, Houston, TX, U.S.A.
Hardcover. Condition: Fair. Seller Inventory # 0671709399-4-18500762
Seller: Zoom Books East, Glendale Heights, IL, U.S.A.
Condition: acceptable. Book is in acceptable condition and shows signs of wear. Book may also include underlining highlighting. The book can also include "From the library of" labels. May not contain miscellaneous items toys, dvds, etc. . We offer 100% money back guarantee and 24 7 customer service. Seller Inventory # ZEV.0671709399.A
Seller: World of Books Inc, Montgomery, IL, U.S.A.
Hardback. Condition: Fair. Master verbalist Richard Lederer, America's Wizard of Idiom (Denver Post), presents a love letter to the most glorious of human achievements. Welcome to Richard Lederer's beguiling celebration of language -- of our ability to utter, write, and receive words. No purists need stop here. Mr. Lederer is no linguistic sheriff organizing posses to hunt down and string up language offenders. Instead, join him In Praise of English, and discover why the tongue described in Shakespeare's day as of small reatch has become the most widely spoken language in history: English never rejects a word because of race, creed, or national origin. Did you know that jukebox comes from Gullah and canoe from Haitian Creole? Many of our greatest writers have invented words and bequeathed new expressions to our eveyday conversations. Can you imagine making up almost ten percent of our written vocabulary? Scholars now know that William Shakespeare did just that He also points out the pitfalls and pratfalls of English. If a man mans a station, what does a woman do? In the The Department of Redundancy Department, Is English Prejudiced? and other essays, Richard Lederer urges us not to abandon that which makes us human: the capacity to distinguish, discriminate, compare, and evaluate. Seller Inventory # CIN0671709399A
Seller: World of Books Inc, Montgomery, IL, U.S.A.
Hardback. Condition: Good. Master verbalist Richard Lederer, America's Wizard of Idiom (Denver Post), presents a love letter to the most glorious of human achievements. Welcome to Richard Lederer's beguiling celebration of language -- of our ability to utter, write, and receive words. No purists need stop here. Mr. Lederer is no linguistic sheriff organizing posses to hunt down and string up language offenders. Instead, join him In Praise of English, and discover why the tongue described in Shakespeare's day as of small reatch has become the most widely spoken language in history: English never rejects a word because of race, creed, or national origin. Did you know that jukebox comes from Gullah and canoe from Haitian Creole? Many of our greatest writers have invented words and bequeathed new expressions to our eveyday conversations. Can you imagine making up almost ten percent of our written vocabulary? Scholars now know that William Shakespeare did just that He also points out the pitfalls and pratfalls of English. If a man mans a station, what does a woman do? In the The Department of Redundancy Department, Is English Prejudiced? and other essays, Richard Lederer urges us not to abandon that which makes us human: the capacity to distinguish, discriminate, compare, and evaluate. Seller Inventory # CIN0671709399G
Seller: HPB-Diamond, Dallas, TX, U.S.A.
hardcover. Condition: Very Good. Connecting readers with great books since 1972! Used books may not include companion materials, and may have some shelf wear or limited writing. We ship orders daily and Customer Service is our top priority! Seller Inventory # S_469604725
Seller: HPB-Movies, Dallas, TX, U.S.A.
hardcover. Condition: Very Good. Connecting readers with great books since 1972! Used books may not include companion materials, and may have some shelf wear or limited writing. We ship orders daily and Customer Service is our top priority! Seller Inventory # S_469751989
Seller: HPB-Ruby, Dallas, TX, U.S.A.
hardcover. Condition: Very Good. Connecting readers with great books since 1972! Used books may not include companion materials, and may have some shelf wear or limited writing. We ship orders daily and Customer Service is our top priority! Seller Inventory # S_457970867