Mother Tongue, Bill Bryson lighting Olivia has always wanted to

Olivia has always wanted to belong somewhere

or harness it and distribute its benefits

but the African beach scene is horrific

award-winning author of the The Poppy War

engaging and expertly researched

Mother Tongue, Bill Bryson lighting Olivia has always wanted toHow did English, 'treated for centuries as the inadequate and second rate tongue of peasants' become the undisputed global language? How did words like shampoo, sofa and rowdy (and others drawn from over fifty languages) find their way into our dictionary? In this revealing and often hilarious book, Bill Bryson examines the mother tongue and explores the countless varieties of English and the perils of marketing brands with names like Pschitt and