In searching for Christmas gifts for book lovers , I turned to some of my favorite Paris authors for help. What, I asked, is your favorite book about language?
Many thanks to authors Lisa Vanden Bos, Clotilde Dusoulier, Marie Houzelle, Alan Riding, Cara Black, Anne Korkeakivi, Anne Marsella, Alice K Boatwright and C. Jon Delogu for their excellent suggestions!
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“The English is Coming!: How One Language is Sweeping the World
by Leslie Dunton-Downer
reason: "it demonstrates how the English language was enriched by the rest of the world.”
recommended by Alan Riding, author of And The Show Went On: Cultural Life in Nazi-Occupied Paris
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The Meaning of Liff, published in 1983 by Douglas Adam and John Lloyd.
“My favorite book about language is The Meaning of Liff, published in 1983 by Douglas Adam and John Lloyd. It’s a "dictionary of things that there aren’t any words for yet” and the concepts defined are so spot-on they have me in tears of laughter. It’s a fantastic book to read out loud with friends and family, too.”
recommended by Clotilde Dusoulier, whose latest book (also about language!) is Edible French: Tasty Expressions and Cultural Bites, a book of French expressions related to food.
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Xiaolu Guo A Concise Chinese-English Dictionary for Lovers
"A young Chinese woman tells us in rough, haphazard, ingenious (and increasingly subtle) English about her first encounter with London, an Englishman, and the English language”
recommended by Marie Houzelle, author of Tita, a novel about a seven-year-old schoolgirl in 1950s southern France
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A NATURAL HISTORY OF THE SENSES by DIANE ACKERMAN
"While the title says most of it, the sensuous writing style illustrates, to me, how language can be used to express what seems impossible to represent on the page.”
recommended by Cara Black Murder in Pigalle, an Aimée Leduc investigation
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Richard Lederer's CRAZY ENGLISH
“I love Richard Lederer's CRAZY ENGLISH. He cites extraordinary examples of linguistic oddities in English found throughout the world. The book is great fun and reminds us just how uncanny our language really is.”
recommended by Anne Marsella – author of THE LOST AND FOUND AND OTHER STORIES, PATSY BOONE, REMEDY and THE BABY OF BELLEVILLE
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Fugitive Pieces by Anne Michaels
“Almost every book I really love is, in some way, about language, a hallmark of literary fiction. The first to spring to mind, however, is Fugitive Pieces by Anne Michaels about a child who escapes the Holocaust gaining the protection of a Greek geologist with whom he eventually emigrates to Canada.
The language Michaels uses to tell the story is extraordinary in its beauty; even more extraordinary, she uses it to press home the impossibility of telling such histories, with the magnitude of its horrors.
An absolute tour-de-force."
recommended by Anne Korkeakivi, author of An Unexpected Guest
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Flirting with French: How a Language Charmed Me, Seduced Me and Nearly Broke My Heart by William Alexander
“I happened to have a book right on the tip of my tongue... Flirting with French: How a Language Charmed Me, Seduced Me and Nearly Broke My Heart by William Alexander
Alexander tells the story of how he tried to learn French at 57 years old in a light and entertaining way. He covers all aspects of learning from memory, to methods, to how the brain works as well as history and evolution of the French (and Engish) language. Alexander's story is an interesting read for anyone who has tried to learn any language at any age, although having a penchant for French certainly will help understand the specific examples he gives. See my full review on http://www.fusac.fr/?p=4516 »
recommended by Lisa Vanden Bos, author of 90+ Ways You Know You're Becoming French, The Speak Easy Book of Puzzles
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The Craft of Research by Wayne Booth
“I advise all my students to consult The Craft of Research by Wayne Booth et al. The second edition is available at no cost here:
http://is.cuni.cz/studium/predmety/index.php?do=download&did=53831&kod=JMM003
My students in L1, L2, and L3 (ie, Licence) are generally not asked to write enough, and when they get to the "Master" level suddenly they are faced with the task of writing a 50- or 100-page (depending on their track) "memoire" -- yikes! They invariably think (until I disabuse them of the notion) that they can simply emote about something they like until they have enough pages. This book reminds the university student that research is a public service devoted to solving problems, not a private expression of enthusiasm. It shows them how to go about crafting a research project that solves a problem, or at least engages with one, that matters. I love this book.”
recommended by C. Jon Delogu Professeur des Universites & Translator / Author of "Tocqueville and Democracy in The Internet Age" (2014) from Open Humanities Press -- available in 3 formats, two of them free!
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The Careful Writer: A Modern Guide to English Usage by Theodore M. Bernstein
"Thanks for this opportunity to give credit to a favorite book: The Careful Writer: A Modern Guide to English Usage by Theodore M. Bernstein. This is a wonderful book, because like all the best books about writing, every entry is well written. Clear and engaging. This is where you can find the answers to all those troubling nits, such as whether to use that or which, and is it lie or lay or lain? It the destination further or farther? And so on. Of course, if you are only going to buy one book to last your entire life, it should be Strunk and White, The Elements of Style. This also has the advantage of fitting in your purse, so even when writing in cafes or on trains or planes, you can always have it with you."
Recommended by Alice K. Boatwright, author of Under an English Heaven (2014) and Collateral Damage (2012)
