{"product_id":"what-language-is-john-mcwhorter-9781592407200","title":"What Language Is: And What It Isn't and What It Could Be","description":"\u003cb\u003eA love letter to languages, celebrating their curiosities and smashing assumptions about correct grammar \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAn eye-opening tour for all language lovers, \u003ci\u003eWhat Language Is \u003c\/i\u003eoffers 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 copious revelations about the hodgepodge nature of English, John McWhorter shows readers how to see and hear languages as a linguist does.\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003ePacked with big ideas about language alongside wonderful trivia, \u003ci\u003eWhat Language Is \u003c\/i\u003eexplains how languages across the globe (the Queen's English and Suriname creoles alike) originate, evolve, multiply, and divide. Raising provocative questions about what qualifies as a language (so-called slang does have structured grammar), McWhorter takes readers on a marvelous journey through time and place--from Persia to the languages of Sri Lanka--to deliver a feast of facts about the wonders of human linguistic expression.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e John McWhorter\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 159240720X\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781592407200\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Avery Publishing Group\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 08\/07\/2012\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 240\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.40lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 7.90h x 5.20w x 0.70d","brand":"John McWhorter","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":43996352512255,"sku":"9781592407200","price":16.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_8b1b1961-9fa6-402d-ba7e-61403dac2826.jpg?v=1683341197","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/what-language-is-john-mcwhorter-9781592407200","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}