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A Really Short History of Words

byBill Bryson

An illustrated edition of the bestselling book about the English language

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Every day, you do something incredible, and I bet you barely ever think about it: you speak.

Ever wondered why the English language turned out how it did?

Why do we have so many different words for just one thing?

And why are so many words spelt the same but sound different?

In this beautifully illustrated journey through word and rhyme - and even a few jokes - Bill Bryson will teach you how the English language came to be (clue: lots of invasions) and what makes it a rich and beautiful thing (lots of Shakespeare).

Get ready . . . because the story of the English language is an EXTRAORDINARY one.

About Bill Bryson

Bill Bryson was born in Des Moines, Iowa, in 1951. He is the author of eighteen books and holds the record of having the most bestsellers of any author on the Sunday Times bestseller list in the last fifty years. A Short History of Nearly Everything, first published in 2003, spent 106 weeks in the chart, won both the Aventis Prize and the Descartes Prize and is the biggest-selling non-fiction book of the twenty-first century.

Bill Bryson is a former Chancellor of Durham University and is an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society. He lives in England.
Details
  • Imprint: Puffin
  • ISBN: 9780241666197
  • Length: 128 pages
  • Price: £13.99
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