More Thrilling than Webster's

Here it is--a book for anyone who is "a genuine linguophile, an authentic logolept, and a certifiable verbivore"--in other words, anyone who is fascinated by the quixotry and charm of the English language.

The Miracle of Language relates the tale of the spread of the English language epidemic, which the author, Richard Lederer, calls "an unparalleled success story." As the language marched triumphantly across the continents, it acquired new vocabulary along the way. For example, "moose" from Algonquin and "canoe" from Haitian Creole.

Lederer's book is packed with fascinating trivia--did you know that "it would take ten trillion years...to utter all the possible English sentences that use exactly twenty words"? There are entertaining jokes, puns and quotations, too. Like "Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body."--courtesy Richard Steele.

Lederer relates a cornucopia of anecdotes about literary figures. Stories about Helen Keller who was freed from her "dark, silent prison" and taught to speak, read and write, or George Orwell, who laid down six of the most important ground rules of the writer's art, instill the work with human interest.

But The Miracle of Language also explores unusual facets of its vast subject. There are chapters on poetry. On libraries. On writing letters. On spelling. There is even a chapter of particular significance for those of us inclined to prolixity, grandiloquence or verbosity: "The Case for Short Words," focusing on the impact of the monosyllable. There are chapters on people like T.S. Eliot, Lewis Carroll and Mark Twain, who wove innumerable new strands into the "Loom of Literature." In fact, Lederer broaches almost every subject concerning the English language.

Lederer, the author of bestsellers such as Crazy English and Get Thee to a Punnery, has made another masterpiece. The work is not nearly as esoteric as the title would suggest. The style is casual, humorous and chatty. This book is not just for English majors.

Overall, The Miracle of Language is hard to fault. One shortcoming is Lederer's "linguacentricity" (to coin a phrase) as regards the study of language. It is annoying to encounter fatuous comments like "No doubt English was invented in heaven" or to have him assert that the angels speak English.

The Miracle of Language is equally accessible and relevant to all anglophones. Even those who have an irreverent attitude towards the English language are considered. As Lederer assures us, "The English language has far more lives than a cat. People have been murdering it for years."