Making Sense: The Glamorous Story of English Grammar

Do not be deceived by the clarity and apparent simplicity of David Crystal's explanations of the complete range of grammar issues. This is a master class in University level linguistics delivered in straightforward and even entertaining language replete with crucial imaginative examples. The author's significant accomplishment is to cover all the bases in his tour of grammar issues. You do not just get an explanation of English grammar. You get coverage of child language acquisition as a contributory part of your explanation of how grammar works. Then you get a history of the writing of grammar and a history of the teaching of grammar to help you get over some of those unresolved confusions you might have picked up in your own education and thinking. An antidote to all the beefs, bugbears and tub-thumbing of the political market place of half-digested language ideas. A medicine for and against the Rees-Moggs of our times.

This is an insightful and pragmatic approach to grammar. Do you expect any less from this prolific author, who amongst many other achievements has reconstructed the speech of the 16th century and used it to record Tyndale's translation of the Gospel of Matthew. But I'll keep using the gerund MY WAY.

Not enough background on why English grammar has- historically- withered away (grammatical gender, mode, etc), but well-done in that Crystal-clear manner.

David Crystal managed to write in an accesssble way about grammar that leaves you feeling better informed and more able to make the destinction between authoritative and authoritarian approaches to answering your questions about grammar. Linguistic choice is about style and self expression. This is a book written by someine who understands the need to understand the impact if our chiices on the audience rather than ignoring the huge variety of linguistic choices available in favour of narrow prescriptivism. Great Book!

Absolutely love this book, have even bought it on audible. Grammar used to scare me, I'm more of a mathematician, but this book actually makes grammar make sense to me, there is a logical progression to our learning of it that I never knew was there. I love watching children have lightbulb moments and through reading this book I have had a major lightbulb moment of my own. Thank you Mr Crystal for finally making this 46 year old understand grammar.

I’m a huge David Crystal fan and have all his books on language so I admit to being rather biased! This is not a grammar book in the usual sense of the word, but rather a discussion of the way language and grammar change over time. I’m not sure where the glamour comes in! Well worth reading and as informative as David’s books always are.

Borrowed from Library, and enjoyed the story of how a baby comes to speak, and how it is built up. Easy to read style.

Gave up less than half way through. The author is obviously well qualified but I would think, from the way he writes, rather pleased with himself. More a history of the way his child absorbed English than a treatise on English Grammar. Not for me.

きれいな状態で届きました

Come tuti i libri di Crystal, anche questo riesce a spiegare faccende apparentemente difficili in maniera semplice, argutae appassionante. La grammatica inglese viene esplorata per come funziona, per come si apprende, per cosa serve e per come se n'è sviluppato lo studio nei secoli. L'approccio è rigoroso ma divulgativo. Consigliato a tutti gli appassionati della lingua inglese.

Ok.

Habe das Buch auf Empfehlung einer Dozentin aus der Uni gekauft. Das Buch ist so eine Art Zwischending aus wissenschaftlich und erzählerisch fesselnd. Der Autor beschreibt anhand seiner eigenen Tochter, wie wir die Welt wahrnehmen und Sprache erlernen. So beschreibt er beispielsweise, wie seine Tochter das Wort "und" (bzw. "and") entdeckte und recht plötzlich endlose Satzkonstruktionen formen konnte - solche Anekdoten bleiben im Gedächtnis ;-) Kann das Buch wirklich jedem empfehlen, der sich gern mit Sprache beschäftigt. Sowohl Experten als auch Laien können dem Buch viel abgewinnen. Top!

This is one of my favourites, without any doubt.