The Mother Tongue: English and How it Got that Way

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I'm a longtime fan of Bill Bryson, but I had never read this early nonfiction work of his and was delighted to see that my library had a copy of the audiobook. The Mother Tongue not only focuses on the historical and linguistic aspects of English but also examines its cultural significance. Bryson explores how English has become the dominant global language, discussing its influence on literature, media, and international communication. He reflects on the power dynamics associated with language and the effects of language imperialism on other languages and cultures. Bill Bryson Library renaming event, Tuesday 27 November 2012". Durham University. 22 November 2012.

Career [ edit ] Bryson in the regalia of Chancellor of Durham University in 2005 Bryson in 2013 Bryson in 2013 Westminster setting for Bill Bryson award". RSC.org. Royal Society of Chemistry. 31 October 2005 . Retrieved 21 November 2010. In addition to its rich historical context, The Mother Tongue explores the complexities of English grammar, highlighting the idiosyncrasies and irregularities that confound even native speakers. Bryson presents grammar rules and peculiarities with the right mix of humor and expertise, making even the most perplexing aspects of English accessible and engaging. The above list of imperfections does not mean that I did not like the book. Just like always, it's easier for me to specify what I was not delighted with than what I like. And I must admit that this is a very good book. However, I think that it is directed primarily to English native speakers, because they will be able to capture and better understand all the issues that the author raises. Also, Irish and Welsh orthography is far more internally consistent than is that of English—but Bryson only allows the features of English to be virtues.)The first chapter of this book has so many mistakes that I couldn't finish it. Almost every sentence has a mistake.

November 2021: Went ahead and removed my 4 star rating for this book, which I read and reviewed in 2006. It has since been pointed out, repeatedly, that Bryson is wrong in a staggering number of places in this book, and as I went on to read more of his work, I also realized exactly how racist he is. I don't read or recommend his books anymore. On 22 November 2012, Durham University officially renamed the Main Library the Bill Bryson Library for his contributions as the university's 11th chancellor (2005–2011). [40] [41] The library also has a cafe named after Bryson's book Notes from a Small Island. [42] The poet Robert Browning caused considerable consternation by including the word twat in one of his poems, thinking it an innocent term. The work was Pippa Passes, written in 1841 and now remembered for the line "God's in His heaven, all's right with the world." But it also contains this disconcerting passage: Knowing that "The Mother Tongue" was published in 1990, I had fun imagining what additions Bryson would have added to the text today, knowing how many new words have been adopted since the Internet took over our world. Overall, this was a pleasant read and is a nice complement to other books that have been written about the English language. Recommended. Those were the days of the Indo-Europeans, but Bryson suggests that there may never have been such a language. At any rate, it branched into Celtic, Germanic, Greek, Indo-Iranian, Slavonic and Thraco-Illyrian, which further branched to Latin, Faroese, Parthian, Armenian, Hindi, Lithuanian, Sanskrit and Portuguese.The middle portion of the book gets very involved in examining the evolution of English spellings and pronunciations as it moved from Old English to Modern English, and the further hiving off of American English from British English. Some of this was really illuminating, but the parts discussing the minute details of spelling and grammatical shifts were slow-going unless you are truly a student of the language and I found somewhat less interesting. In 2005, Bryson was appointed chancellor of Durham University, [23] succeeding the late Sir Peter Ustinov. [31] He had praised Durham as "a perfect little city" in Notes from a Small Island. And that's what I will start with. I am not an English native speaker. I have never lived in any English-speaking country. I have been learning English at school. I manage pretty well, I can read books in English without too much difficulty. Which does not change the fact that there are a lot of words that I do not know (and I'm fully aware of that). I am also not particularly sensitive to differences in pronunciation between British and American English. I mean, I'm aware of these differences (I am usually able to recognize an American and a British when I hear them), but I do not think I can pronounce the word first according to one and then according to the other pronunciation. I read this book in English and I must admit that although it is very interesting, as a non-English speaker, I was not able to fully appreciate it and understand it. The chapter on swearing was quite funny, there's plenty to learn there. And throughout the book Bryson's humor makes the subject matter interesting. However, though he does make regular references to other languages, the book is by its nature extremely English-centric so many of the statements about how unique English is are almost certainly inaccurate as he is not so authoritative a linguist so much as a very well-informed enthusiast.