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Birmingham Public Library - Virtual Library - Subject Resources - Language
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Subjects last updated on Jul. 21, 2023.
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Last Updated
Feb. 17, 2016
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Books
New & Notable
Lost in translation : an illustrated compendium of untranslatable words from around the world / Ella Frances Sanders.
Description
A New York Times bestseller. "...a fantastic collection of words without English counterparts." -- Entertainment Weekly "...a collection of words you never knew you needed before." -- Huffington Post “… will make you think, laugh and discover situations you never knew there was a word for.” – ELLE Canada “Charming illustrations and sheer linguistic delight” – Maria Popova, Brain Pickings
That's not English : Britishisms, Americanisms, and what our English says about us / Erin Moore.
Description
“Moore manages to create a text that is eminently readable, clever (in the sincerely-intended American sense) and thought-provoking, gently breaking down some of the cultural stereotyping that plagues both Americans and British.” —Publishers Weekly
Words in time and place : exploring language through the historical thesaurus of the Oxford English dictionary / David Crystal.
Description
"Drawing on the monumental "Historical Thesaurus of the Oxford English Dictionary," [Crystal] surveys the development of vocabulary relating to 15 different subjects. Word nerds will enjoy dipping into the sections on drunkenness, death and the lavatory." - The Wall Street Journal
Philology : the forgotten origins of the modern humanities / James Turner.
Description
"This very important and necessary book displays the qualities that have long marked James Turner's scholarship--deftness, wit, and clarity. This is a work whose humanity matches that of its subject."--Michael O'Brien, University of Cambridge
Latin : story of a world language / Jürgen Leonhardt ; translated by Kenneth Kronenberg.
Contents
A must-read for anyone interested either in the status of Latin or in what Latinity has signified throughout any previous epoch of its existence.
English grammar in use : a reference and practice book for intermediate learners of English : without answers / Raymond Murphy.
Contents
English Grammar in Use Fourth edition is an updated version of the world's best-selling grammar title. It has a fresh, appealing new design and clear layout, with revised and updated examples, but retains all the key features of clarity and accessibility that have made the book popular with millions of learners and teachers around the world.
Chineasy : the new way to read Chinese / by ShaoLan ; with illustrations by Noma Bar.
Contents
Learn to read and write Chinese with Chineasy—a groundbreaking approach that transforms key Chinese characters into pictograms for easy recall and comprehension.
Shady characters : the secret life of punctuation, symbols, & other typographical marks / Keith Houston.
Contents
A charming and indispensable tour of two thousand years of the written word, Shady Characters weaves a fascinating trail across the parallel histories of language and typography.
The unexpected evolution of language : discover the surprising etymology of everyday words : includes 200+ terms and their shocking transformations / Justin Cord Hayes.
Description
The Unexpected Evolution of Language reveals the origins of 208 everyday terms and the interesting stories behind their shift in meaning.
Grammatically correct : the essential guide to spelling, style, usage, grammar, and punctuation / Anne Stilman.
Description
"Grammatically Correct" steers clear of academic stuffiness, focusing instead on practical strategies and intuitive explanations.
The painted word : a treasure chest of remarkable words and their origins / by Phil Cousineau ; Artwork by Gregg Chadwick.
Description
"Fun, fiasco, pandemonium, checkmate, swashbuckler, ubuntu, dromomania...do you know the stories behind these words? Phil does and he shares these and hundreds of other words in his latest book." --Radio Alice
Verbal advantage : 10 easy steps to a powerful vocabulary / Charles Harrington Elster.
Description
First time in book form! A successful program for teaching 3,500 vocabulary words that successful people need to know, based on America's #1 bestselling audio vocabulary series.
The etymologicon : a circular stroll through the hidden connections of the English language / Mark Forsyth.
Description
Do you know why... ...a mortgage is literally a death pledge? ...why guns have girls' names? ...why salt is related to soldier? You're about to find out...
Grammar in plain English / by Harriet Diamond and Phyllis Dutwin.
Description
This expanded fifth edition of "Grammar in Plain English " makes an excellent self-teaching manual for adults preparing for the GED, as well as for ESL students and all others who need to improve their command of English.
Compelling American conversations : questions & quotations for intermediate American English language learners / written, compiled, and edited by Eric H. Roth and Toni Aberson ; with Hal Bogotch.
Description
With this guide, American immigrants and international students develop their fluency skills and academic vocabulary through conversation exercises. Focusing on both daily experiences and American culture through proverbs, quotations, and speaking exercises, ...
Sign Language
1,000 words to sign / Geoffrey S. Poor.
Description
An introduction to American Sign Language illustrating each word with two to four photographs showing the beginning, middle, and end positions of the sign and instructional arrows to indicate movement
Baby sign language basics : early communication for hearing babies and toddlers / Monta Z. Briant.
Description
The new bigger edition provides more than 300 American Sign Language (ASL) signs, illustrated with the same clear, easy-to-understand photos and descriptions. This book/DVD set is a must-have for all parents, grandparents, anyone else who spends time with preverbal children.
The complete idiot's guide to baby sign language / by Diane Ryan.
Description
This guide introduces parents to the 150 most common signs babies can understand and use, including 50 new illustrations. Included are steps to teach the signs, an expanded section on verbal development, and much more.
The everything sign language book : American sign language made easy / Irene Duke.
The eclectic encyclopedia of English / Nathan Bierma.
Description
Nathan Bierma is the best kind of language writer--good-humored, open to new ideas, and interested more in the WHY? of language than the DON'TS. His writing imparts pleasure and knowledge in equal doses. --Erin McKean, editor, New Oxford American Dictionary and founder of Wordnik, an online dictionary
ESL (English as a second language)
McGraw-Hill's essential ESL grammar : a handbook for intermediate and advanced ESL students / Mark Lester.
600 essential words for the TOEIC test / Lin Lougheed.
Description
The new edition has been revised to match the format of the latest TOEIC and includes fifty vocabulary-building lessons that focus on American English as it is used within the context of modern business, industry, communications, and cultural activities.
TOEFL listening practice [sound recording].
Cracking the TOEFL iBT / the Princeton Review.
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Birmingham Public Library · 2100 Park Place · Birmingham AL 35203
Birmingham Public Library
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