| |
|
Lawyers' Language: The Distinctiveness of Legal Language
Alfred Phillips
RoutledgeCurzon, 2002
An interesting examination of law as language use or discourse, this study looks at the transformation of ordinary language into a special discourse for the purposes of the legal system. It is widely accepted that legal discourse is obscure, and often the public resent the fact that access to the law of the land is obstructed by the opaqueness of legal language. This book argues that the ...
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
William Strunk Jr. and E. B. White's "The Elements of Style": A Study Guide from Gale's "Nonfiction Classics ... 2 reviews
The Gale Group, 2003
Did Not Leave My Prepositions Dangling
A condensed review for a condensed version of the Bible of style. Rule 1: Do Not Let Your Prepositions . . . . . . dangle. This advice will help you avoid difficult moments when you get to college. For example, on your first day at Harvard do not approach a senior and inquire: "Where is Harvard ...
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
Ian Fleming's James Bond: Annotations and Chronologies for Ian Fleming's Bond Stories (New Edition) 16 reviews
John Griswold
AuthorHouse, 2006
Essential Companion to Ian Fleming's Literary Work
+ James Bond Annotations
+ A Reference Must
+ Required reading for any Ian Fleming/007 follower.
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
The Oxford Companion to the English Language (Oxford Companion to English Literature) 5 reviews
Oxford University Press, USA, 1992
An enyclopedia of English
+ Very entertaining and interesting; hard to take seriously as a solid reference work
+ Everything you need to know about literary terminology
+ The perfect bathroom book for English-language junkies.
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
Knowledge Representation and the Semantics of Natural Language (Cognitive Technologies)1 review
Hermann Helbig
Springer, 2005
Wealth of information, buried in jargon
This book has a wealth of solid information about knowledge representation (KR). It is focused on Multinets, an advanced type of semantic network. The author brings years of experience to this subject. The book deals thoroughly with many aspects of KR such as relationships, categories, ...
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation541 reviews
Lynne Truss
Gotham, 2006
An ode to an endangered species: Punctuation
+ It gets folks fired up, doesn't it?
+ Fun book
This book is not a grammar or style guide. This is rather a book by someone who is passionate about language, in general, and punctuation, in particular. If you see a signboard of a shop advertising "CD's, Video's, DVD's, and Book's", and if you see another one declaring "No Dogs Please" and both ...
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
The Elements of Style (Coyote Canyon Press Classics)385 reviews
William Strunk
Coyote Canyon Press, 2007
a concise review of grammar rules, extremely useful!
+ Decent Desktop Reference for the Student / Professional
+ The Elements of Style
+ Good Book
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
The Stuff of Thought: Language as a Window into Human Nature36 reviews
Steven Pinker
Viking Adult, 2007
Great book that covers the most important part of linguistics
+ Good but dense
+ The chicken-and-egg of language
The Stuff of Thought is a book that covers the interaction between language and reality. I've read some other books on linguistics, but I found this to be the most interesting. Part of it is the fact that Pinker is a good author that bridges the gap between popular science and real research. The ...
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
Fowler's Modern English Usage 21 reviews
R. W. Burchfield
Oxford University Press, USA, 2004
the Best 4 the Best
+ A Terrific New Updated Fowler
+ What is it in itself?
+ Fowler is indispensible - but...
+ Essential Writer's Reference
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
Language and Linguistics in Context: Readings and Applications for Teachers
Lawrence Erlbaum, 2005
This textbook, designed for courses in first-and-second language education, provides a "big picture" view of basic linguistics through readings organized in 3 thematic units-"What is Language and How is it Acquired?"; "How Does Language Change?"; and "Wh
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
Language, Thought, and Other Biological Categories: New Foundations for Realism 2 reviews
Ruth Garrett Millikan
The MIT Press, 1987
defines "function" in a non-circular way
+ An essential source for philosophy of mind
The book explains why the reproduction of tools, actions, adaptations and habits can matter separately from single instances of use, without referring to any specialized internal mechanisms, as Fodor or Chomsky might require. It thus throws an enormous weight of exemplary philosophical junk ...
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
The Mother Tongue122 reviews
Bill Bryson
Harper Perennial, 1991
Amazing!
+ A book worth rereading
+ Flawed but Effective Introduction to What Makes English, and Language, Fascinating.
+ A tribute to the English language
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
The Diaries of Kenneth Tynan7 reviews
Kenneth Tynan
Bloomsbury USA, 2002
Rip roaring!
+ A Cautionary Tale
+ I can't forgive Ken for wasting himself
+ Compelling
+ Brilliant but frustrating.
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
The Language Instinct: How the Mind Creates Language (Perennial Classics)107 reviews
Steven Pinker
Harper Perennial Modern Classics, 2000
Great book
+ A fascinating, but somewhat thickly written story
+ enjoyable
+ Just plain fun.
+ Doesn't teach you how to learn languages.
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
Shakespeare: The World as Stage (Eminent Lives)71 reviews
Bill Bryson
Eminent Lives, 2007
As much as most people will ever want to know
+ Something for everyone
+ If there be nothing new *
+ A summary of his life and a defense of his authorship via Bryson
+ Wit, Logic, and Love for the Bard
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
A Dictionary of Modern English Usage (Oxford Language Classics Series)18 reviews
Henry Fowler
Oxford University Press, USA, 2003
The standard to which all the others are compared
+ Timeless, despite changes in the language
+ A necessity
+ The standard upon which the others are built
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
Bryson's Dictionary of Troublesome Words: A Writer's Guide to Getting It Right21 reviews
Bill Bryson
Broadway, 2004
No problem for Bryson
+ Nice read - maybe not the book for those who know some Latin or French
+ Enjoyable and entertaining
I like language and its ability to allow the communication of complex and profound ideas as well as making it possible the get a coffee from Starbucks. This book, born out of Bryson's need for clarity as a newspaper reporter, is a wonderful read. Although laid out alphabetically like a ...
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
Adios, Strunk and White: A Handbook for the New Academic Essay, Third Edition10 reviews
Gary Hoffman, Glynis Hoffman
Verve Press, 2003
This book has re-energized my classroom!!!!!!
+ A great book for getting writers excited about writing!
+ Hola, The Fine-tuned Version of Adios, Strunk and White
+ costa mesa
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
Painless Grammar (Painless Series)24 reviews
Rebecca Elliott Ph.D.
Barron's Educational Series, 2006
To help prevent the dumbing down of America
+ Great Book!
+ Great for students or adults!
+ This Is So Brilliant!
+ Painlessly perfect
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
Scream Queens of the Dead Sea: Sex! Heavy Metal! Linguistics!15 reviews
Gilad Elbom
Thunder's Mouth Press, 2005
the best israeli novel about metal and mental i've read
+ It's not before you finish it that you'll be able to put this book down
+ A Welcome Addition to the Literary Canon
+ Metafiction Without the Chalky Aftertaste
+ Wild Ride
|
|
|
|
|
|
