The Secret Life of Words: How English Became English
£9.34
Very Interesting (and not stupid) - Has a comprehensive bibliography for future research, and two sets of indicies so can be used as a text book. However you can also read it as a story book. I was surprised just how fascinating the history and development of the concepts behind each of the words described turned out to be.
Enjoyable and serious - This is a fluently written and interesting account of English s adoption of words from other languages - ranging from the obvious ones, like French, to the less obvious (Persian, Dutch, Portuguese). It is, as such, a history of English vocabulary, but also, more compellingly, a history of British relationships with other cultures. The subject matter might sound quite academic, but this is an engaging read, lit up by lots of memorable examples. It s a fascinating and thought-provoking take on history.