What Language Is
Book description
A love letter to languages, celebrating their curiosities and smashing assumptions about correct grammar
An eye-opening tour for all language lovers, What Language Is offers a fascinating new perspective on the way humans communicate. from vanishing languages spoken by a few hundred people to major tongues like Chinese, and with…
- Coming soon!
Why read it?
1 author picked What Language Is as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?
Any book on language by John McWhorter is a worthwhile read, but this one, I think, is his all-time best! Who knew that a book that starts with a discussion of verb conjugation in Persian can be a page-turner, right?
I was struck by McWhorter’s appreciation for what lesser-known languages, like Ket in Siberia or Twi in Ghana, show us about how the human mind works. But the most mind-blowing thing about this book, in my opinion, is how well McWhorter succeeds in describing how complex every human idiom is in a way that is clear and engaging without being…
From Asya's list on how human language works.
Want books like What Language Is?
Our community of 10,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like What Language Is.
Browse books like What Language Is
5 book lists we think you will like!
Interested in language, etymology, and presidential biography?
10,000+ authors have recommended their favorite books and what they love about them. Browse their picks for the best books about language, etymology, and presidential biography.