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A review by daumari
The Mother Tongue: English and How It Got That Way by Bill Bryson
adventurous
funny
3.25
Finished a few days ago but haven't gotten the chance to sit down and write a review yet. 3, maybe 3.5 for me- our Biere Library Storytime Book Club pick for Aug/Sept 2024's Lighthearted theme.
I will say this is a lighter tone than our previous reads on genocide/fascism, but it also felt like a book trapped in amber for 1990. While he does talk about historical influences on linguistics, it's interesting considering this was before widespread adoption of the internet and the speed at which information (and memes!) travel. While Bryson does cite, some of his anecdotes and examples feel a little, well, apocryphal (like I'd be verrrry skeptical if Japanese NEVER had swear words in its millennia long history). I do think this is the most I've said words outloud while reading in a while, though (not counting ones read to my child) because of things in the pronunciation and dialect chapters.
I will say this is a lighter tone than our previous reads on genocide/fascism, but it also felt like a book trapped in amber for 1990. While he does talk about historical influences on linguistics, it's interesting considering this was before widespread adoption of the internet and the speed at which information (and memes!) travel. While Bryson does cite, some of his anecdotes and examples feel a little, well, apocryphal (like I'd be verrrry skeptical if Japanese NEVER had swear words in its millennia long history). I do think this is the most I've said words outloud while reading in a while, though (not counting ones read to my child) because of things in the pronunciation and dialect chapters.