bookshelves: biography, fraudio, play-dramatisation Read in February, 2009 At the age of 42, the chief editor of Faber and Faber, Robert McCrum, suffered a devastating stroke. This is a searingly honest account of his experience that includes extracts from his diary and that of his wife, Sarah.F...
Writing merely of the English language, celebrated American critic Ralph Waldo Emerson noted that it was 'the sea which receives tributaries from every region under heaven'. In the new millenium English and the numberless manifestations of its culture surround us like a sea; and like the waters of t...
I like books about the development of language, and was hoping for good things from this book. But it didn't fully live up to those expectations.The book is split into several sections, and the first is about the co evolution of the English language and the people of this country. He writes about th...
This was the text for one of my very favorite college courses of all time - The History of the English Language. It combined everything I love - words, history, literature. I can't recommend this and the 9 part BBC companion series enough. It is one of the only documentary series I can think of t...
At the age of 42, the chief editor of Faber and Faber, Robert McCrum, suffered a devastating stroke. This is a searingly honest account of his experience that includes extracts from his diary and that of his wife, Sarah.From The Radio Times:In 1995, Robert McCrum was a novelist and war reporter, and...
Doesn't come to life, so suffers in comparison to the works of Wodehouse himself. It's a diligent and comprehensive but rather flat essay, rattling off facts in an efficient chronology, but lacking in passion, or even original insights about its subject. There are numerous notes, but there is no sup...
This was an interesting read, full of fun facts about my native tongue, and an easy-to-read style. It managed to touch on plenty of things regarding a topic that is, admittedly, a massive one; but sometimes left me wanting more.The structure was open and intuitive, but prone to repetition, or perhap...
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