Books on the history of language are great treats for me. I eat them up and can’t get enough. Not even an amateur linguist, I’m just someone who is endlessly fascinated by the way languages evolve and the journeys particular words have taken over the millennia (e.g., silly started off as blessed, then innocent, then ignorant, then foolish).
I’ve previously read John McWhorter’s The Power of Babel and I’ve seen him speak in D.C. So no hesitation in picking up a book titled, Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue. Isn’t that a great title? It purports to bring to light lesser known reasons for why English is such an extraordinary language.
Have you read it? What do you think?
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