I am a great fan of Bill Bryson's work, so when The Mother Tongue popped up in Book Bub earlier this summer, I had to read it. As I did so, I could not escape the nagging question, "Have I read this before?" Unfortunately, I was high over the Pacific, with no wi-fi, on my way to a completely disconnected vacation. I would have to wait until I got home for the answer.
No, no, I did not read this before. What I did read was Melvyn Bragg's The Adventure of English, which covers much of the same ground, and which I much preferred. Both mine the history of the language seeking to answer such questions as where our words come from, how English has evolved, and where it is headed. Even a linguistics major needn't read both.
Bryson fans, stick with walking in the woods.
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