Reviews
Lynch writes in funny and engaging prose about the human side of language history and the people who have helped make English so darn complex... Lynch's highly readable book will appeal to all users of the English language, from word buffs to scholars alike., In his sprightly new history of the notion of "proper" English...Lynch [asks] us all to calm down, please, and recognize that "proper" English is a recent and changeable institution., "Lynch's highly readable book will appeal to all users of the English language, from word buffs to scholars alike." -- Library Journal "Lynch recognizes that grace, clarity, and precision of expression are paramount. His many well-chosen and entertaining examples support his conclusion that prescriptions and pedantry will always give way to change, and that we should stop fretting, relax, and embrace it." -- Boston Globe "In his sprightly new history of the notion of 'proper' English ... Lynch [asks] us all to calm down, please, and recognize that 'proper' English is a recent and changeable institution." -- Salon, Lynch's highly readable book will appeal to all users of the English language, from word buffs to scholars alike., Lynch recognizes that grace, clarity, and precision of expression are paramount. His many well-chosen and entertaining examples support his conclusion that prescriptions and pedantry will always give way to change, and that we should stop fretting, relax, and embrace it., "Lynch's highly readable book will appeal to all users of the English language, from word buffs to scholars alike."-Library Journal"Lynch recognizes that grace, clarity, and precision of expression are paramount. His many well-chosen and entertaining examples support his conclusion that prescriptions and pedantry will always give way to change, and that we should stop fretting, relax, and embrace it."-BostonGlobe"In his sprightly new history of the notion of 'proper' English … Lynch [asks] us all to calm down, please, and recognize that 'proper' English is a recent and changeable institution."-Salon, "Lynch's highly readable book will appeal to all users of the English language, from word buffs to scholars alike."- Library Journal "Lynch recognizes that grace, clarity, and precision of expression are paramount. His many well-chosen and entertaining examples support his conclusion that prescriptions and pedantry will always give way to change, and that we should stop fretting, relax, and embrace it."- Boston Globe "In his sprightly new history of the notion of 'proper' English … Lynch [asks] us all to calm down, please, and recognize that 'proper' English is a recent and changeable institution."- Salon, [A] delightful look at efforts through the centuries to define and control the English language... [Lynch] gives us not a history of the English language but a history of those who have tried to make sense of it., Lynch's book pleasingly delineates the conflict between those who have attempted to embalm English and those who have documented, and in some cases revelled in, its plasticity and mutability., The English language changes... Lynch recognizes that grace, clarity, and precision of expression are paramount. His many well-chosen and entertaining examples support his conclusion that prescriptions and pedantry will always give way to change, and that we should stop fretting, relax, and embrace it., In his sprightly new history of the notion of 'proper' English … Lynch [asks] us all to calm down, please, and recognize that 'proper' English is a recent and changeable institution., In his sprightly new history of the notion of 'proper' English ... Lynch [asks] us all to calm down, please, and recognize that 'proper' English is a recent and changeable institution.
