If, as the old saw has it, England and America are two countries divided by a common language, here's some disarming help...
Ex-patriate journalist Bryson (Neither Here Nor There, 1992, etc.) skims the history and present condition of American English.
The text is an entertaining compendium of possible and less possible word origins. Does "okay'' come from Martin Van Buren's nickname, Old Kinderhook? Or from the fact that Andrew Jackson was reported to write "oll korrect''? Or is it from the Greek ollakalla (all good)? Bryson offers a cogent discussion of sexism in the language, and there's a lot of orthography, etymology, and toponymy. But this isn't just a book about language. It's also a bestiary of American pop culture, many of whose stereotypes Bryson debunks (a back-formation from Buncombe County, N.C., of course): Ellis Island, in its original splendor, wasn't half bad; the Puritans enjoyed a good time just like the rest of us; and Ray Kroc hadn't the inventiveness of the Brothers MacDonald, after all. Bryson tells us a lot we surely never thought about. There's the cost of sending a letter by Postal Express and the reason for the bump on the fuselage of the Boeing 747. "Debugging'' of computers began, we are told, on the day 50 years ago when a moth entered a Navy computer. There are, however, some facts that aren't facts. Bryson places the Polish-born British writer Joseph Conrad among the group of Americans whose names were changed from awkward foreignness. And, surprisingly for a lexicographer, he indulges in the popular confusion of the 18th-century "long s'' and the modern "f.'' This offering won't replace the popular works by Flexner, much less the majestic Mencken, but the style is engaging and the narrative diverting. An index is appended, but there is no useful list of words and phrases.
If, as the old saw has it, England and America are two countries divided by a common language, here's some disarming help sent by a Yank from the other side of the pond.Pub Date: March 1, 1995
ISBN: 0380713810
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Morrow/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 1995
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis...
Privately published by Strunk of Cornell in 1918 and revised by his student E. B. White in 1959, that "little book" is back again with more White updatings.
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis (whoops — "A bankrupt expression") a unique guide (which means "without like or equal").Pub Date: May 15, 1972
ISBN: 0205632645
Page Count: 105
Publisher: Macmillan
Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1972
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
