Spell It Out

With The Story of English in 100 Words, David Crystal took us on a tour through the history of our language. Now, with Spell It Out, he takes on the task of answering all the questions about how we spell: "Why is English spelling so difficult?" or "Why are good spellers so proud of their achievement that when they see a misspelling they condemn the writer as sloppy, lazy, or uneducated?" In thirty-seven short, engaging, and informative chapters, interspersed with some entertaining interludes, Crystal takes readers on a history of English spelling, starting with the Roman missionaries' sixth-century introduction of the Roman alphabet and ending with where the language is going today. He explains the way the spelling system was made more complex through the influence of French, Latin, and other languages, plots the origins of American English spelling, and investigates the continuing impact of technology, from printing to the Internet. If you've ever asked yourself questions like "Why is there a silent b in debt?"; "Where do all those ough spellings come from?"; or "How can I remember the difference between stationary and stationery," David Crystal's Spell It Out will spell it all out for you.