{"product_id":"birding-english-jeremy-withers-9781685970697","title":"Birding English: Exploring the History of a Language Through 50 Birds","description":"What do words like \u003ci\u003eunkindness\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003ehaggard\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003easparagus\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003ejizz\u003c\/i\u003e, and the singular \u003ci\u003ethey\u003c\/i\u003e have to do with birds? Quite a lot, actually. From Old English roots and Shakespearean idioms to Victorian slang and modern online lingo, \u003ci\u003eBirding English\u003c\/i\u003e charts a dynamic course through English's past, present, and future by admiring the plumage of falcons, the songs of sparrows, and the flight of ducks. With each of his fifty mini essays, Jeremy Withers uses birds as a point of entry into a key moment in the development of English: its origins in the Proto-Indo-European and Proto-Germanic languages, the influence of writers like Geoffrey Chaucer and William Shakespeare, the creation of English's first dictionaries and grammar books, and the arrival of rhyming slang and portmanteaus. Ideal for word nerds and bird nerds alike, this book will enchant anyone who's ever been captivated by the song of a bird or the song of a word.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Jeremy Withers\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 1685970699\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781685970697\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e University of Iowa Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 06\/02\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 266\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.00lbs","brand":"Jeremy Withers","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":48447132008703,"sku":"9781685970697","price":39.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_22ca9364-4e40-475a-b3c4-1d56bbb82af4.jpg?v=1777229045","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/birding-english-jeremy-withers-9781685970697","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}