Utne, McWhorter

1. Grateful to God and all that helps me get through a day
2. Grateful for nice visit to NY
3. Grateful to reprint in Utne of Secondhand Syndicate from www.politemag.com
4. Grateful for interesting books on language

Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue
Author John McWhorter
22.50 list price
ISBN: 1592403956
ISBN-13: 9781592403950
Format: Hardcover, 197pp
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)
Pub. Date: October 2008

Called a survey of the quirks and quandaries of the English language, this book provides a focus on English grammar and its history. This is in contrast to Alphabet Juice, the recent Roy Blount book that has a focus more on usage (and was recently reviewed in Lines and Letters). Both books are an interesting read.

Author John McWhorter is an American linguist and political commentator. He is the author of numerous books on language including The Power of Babel. A senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute and a contributing editor to The New Republic, he has also taught linguistics at the University of California at Berkeley.

This book covers a subject that reminds me of Baugh and Cable's standard History of the English Language. Surprising to me was that the voice of Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue is so different. The Baugh and Cable book is textbook-like and almost stuffy - but likeable and not necessarily stuffy in a bad way. McWhorter's voice comes more from a study of creole languages and linguistics that show underlying changes in language - not just a study of new words that enter the language. The resulting book is more conversational and not textbook-like. However, McWhorter's voice is as enjoyable and authoritative as that of Baugh and Cable.

McWhorter's book covers the Celtic and Welsh influence on English, as well as the impact of the Viking raids, Normal Conquest, and Germanic invasions. He also describes reasons for the simplicity of English - with it lack, for example, of declensions - as it became a type of universal vehicle of expression during the early formation of Britain.

When I checked on amazon.com, 10 reviewers gave the book an average of 4. Five reviewers gave it a 5. Four reviewers gave it a 4. One reviewer gave a 1. I give it a 4 as the topic is fascinating and the treatment original. However, I can understand that reviewer who gave the 1. The author does tend to dwell on the particular idea that English grammar was influenced by Welsh and Gaelic. His argument is convincing but at times tedious, bordering on what I would call overkill.
javascript:void(0)
A relatively short book at 197 pages, it is in a small and very readable format.