| Pages in topic: < [1 2] | Looking for book recommendations for language lovers Thread poster: Michele Johnson
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Anne Goff 
United States
Local time: 03:50
French to English
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| Elements of Style | Jul 4, 2007 |
By William Strunk Jr.
In the "how to write" vein.
I loved this book. Excellent examples of "good sentences" and "bad sentences" based on each rule. Very well written.
[Thanks cbolton!]
| | | | sofiablu (X)
Netherlands
Local time: 12:50
| My favourites | Jul 4, 2007 |
A classic: George Steiner's After Babel. Aspects of Language and Translation, two Umberto Eco's essays The Search for the Perfect Language and Mouse or Rat?: Translation as negotiation.
But my number one will always be Elias Canetti's memoirs Die Gerettete Zunge (The Tongue Set Free)
| | | | Michele Fauble
United States
Local time: 03:50
Member (2006)
Norwegian to English
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| Two books by David Crystal | Jul 4, 2007 |
The Fight for English: How Language Pundits Ate, Shot, and Left
by David Crystal
How Language Works: How Babies Babble, Words Change Meaning, and Languages Live or Die
by David Crystal
[Edited at 2007-07-04 21:13]
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I second the recommendations of Eats, Shoots and Leaves and On Writing.
Stephen King (in his book) also frequently quotes William Strunk's Elements of Style - I have to get around to that one.
And even if you did not ask for any Norwegian recommendations - Per Egil Hegge's : Heng ham ikke vent til jeg kommer - is the Norwegian equivalent of Eats, shoots and leaves - and a perfect illustration that punctuation may sometimes be a matter of life and death.
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Michele Fauble
United States
Local time: 03:50
Member (2006)
Norwegian to English
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| For a more balanced view ... | Jul 4, 2007 |
Hilde Granlund wrote:
I second the recommendations of Eats, Shoots and Leaves ...
I highly recommend reading David Crystal's book The Fight for English: How Language Pundits Ate, Shot, and Left.
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Here are some of my favorites:
- Das schönste deutsche Wort
A very beautiful book (I haven't seen the softcover version, but the hardcover version is definitely beautiful) published by Deutscher Sprachrat and Goethe Institute. Here is more information (click on "Das Buch zum Wettbewerb"). And ... See more Here are some of my favorites:
- Das schönste deutsche Wort
A very beautiful book (I haven't seen the softcover version, but the hardcover version is definitely beautiful) published by Deutscher Sprachrat and Goethe Institute. Here is more information (click on "Das Buch zum Wettbewerb"). And here are some reviews and a look at some of the pages. Highly recommendable for anyone who loves words and languages (and understands German).
- I second Anne's suggestions regarding Bastian Sick's Dativ/Genitiv books (the first one is indeed the best of the three) and Wolf Schneider's publications. Both authors write in a humorous way that makes the reading fun and memorable.
- If you like the two authors I just mentioned, you might also like Dieter E. Zimmer's books.
Happy reading, everyone!
Stefanie
[Edited at 2007-07-04 22:51] ▲ Collapse
| | | | Andrea Riffo
Chile
Local time: 06:50
English to Spanish
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| Different type of books | Jul 5, 2007 |
This probably isn't what you had in mind, but my favourite "language" books by far are not the ones that theorise on the intricacies of language, but the ones that turn it into a fun game; namely: cryptograms.
Andrea
| | | | Niraja Nanjundan (X)
Local time: 16:20
German to English
"Seeing Voices" is a fascinating and interesting book by well known neurologist Oliver Sacks. It's mainly about how deaf people communicate but makes one think about language acquisition and the psychology of language as well.
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Anne Brackenborough (X)
Germany
Local time: 12:50
German to English
| Accomodating Brocolli in the Cemetary, by Vivian Cook | Jul 6, 2007 |
Another one I just came across on my shelf! It's a good book to browse through ("bathroom reading"!) with lists of miscellaneous information about language, e.g. common misspellings, chatroom language, mistakes on signs. Some of the information is rather silly or pointless, but a lot is interesting.
| | | | | A couple more ... | Jul 6, 2007 |
Michele Johnson wrote:
What books can you recommend for language lovers, not necessarily translators? Mostly I'm looking for books in English or German, but welcome all recommendations. I'll start off with two of my own favorites:
In Other Words. A Language Lover's Guide to the Most Intriguing Words Around the World. Christopher J. Moore. 128 pages, Oxford University Press (March 17, 2005) ISBN 0192806246
Could have been a bit longer and I find it somewhat Euro-centric, but nonetheless a fascinating read.
The Deeper Meaning of Liff. A Dictionary of Things There Aren't Any Words for Yet--But There Ought to Be. Douglas Adams & John LLoyd. ISBN 0307236013
Also available in a combination German-German and English-English version:
Der tiefere Sinn des Labenz. Das Wörterbuch der bisher unbennanten Gegenstände und Gefühle. ISBN 3453879600
This makes a great holiday/birthday gift.
I also remember reading (maybe on proz.com?) about a book of unique phrases from around the world, for example a word in language X for being willing to forgive someone once, and then forgive them a second time, but not a third time. Does anyone remember this? I couldn't find it in the forums.
"The King's English" by the wonderful, peppery Kingsley Amis, published by Harper Collins. Quirky and funny.
And, of course, "Fowler's Modern English Usage" - a mine of information, fascinating and often funny too - if you're a pedant like me.
I agree, Steven Pinker's "The Language Instinct" is essential reading for linguists too. Also by Pinker: "Words and Rules", "How the Mind Works" and "The Blank Slate".
Read on!
Jenny.
| | | | | Judith Macheiner | Jul 26, 2007 |
I can warmly recommend two books of Judith Macheiner:
- Das Grammatische Varieté oder Die Kunst und das Vergnügen, deutsche Sätze zu bilden
and
- Übersetzen - ein Vademecum
The language is wonderful. And the author knows how to present a subject that you can just get passionate about it. Übersetzen compares mainly sentence structure and meaning of German and English.
Ein Lesevergnügen.
| | | | Kootvela (X)
Local time: 13:50
Lithuanian to English
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Mick Short. "Exploring the language of poems, plays and prose." Pearson Education Limited, 1996.
My bible for analyzing literature but also a good read for different topics such as politeness in fiction.
Ele
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Michele Johnson
Germany
Local time: 12:50
German to English
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TOPIC STARTER | Übelsetzungen: Sprachpannen aus aller Welt | Aug 28, 2007 |
There have been some fantastic suggestions here, thanks to everyone.
Just ran across this:
Übelsetzungen: Sprachpannen aus aller Welt
Author: Titus Arnu
to appear Sept. 1, 2007
ISBN 346829851X
Cheap too at just EUR 9.95, but it looks like it is nothing but photos?
Short description from amazon.de:
Willkommen Fußball-Ventilatoren der Welt! Happy-Hauer-Cocktail gefällig? Oder doch lieber eine Morgenlatte? Aber waschen dieses Beklei... See more There have been some fantastic suggestions here, thanks to everyone.
Just ran across this:
Übelsetzungen: Sprachpannen aus aller Welt
Author: Titus Arnu
to appear Sept. 1, 2007
ISBN 346829851X
Cheap too at just EUR 9.95, but it looks like it is nothing but photos?
Short description from amazon.de:
Willkommen Fußball-Ventilatoren der Welt! Happy-Hauer-Cocktail gefällig? Oder doch lieber eine Morgenlatte? Aber waschen dieses Bekleiden verkehrt! Richtungen: Enviro-Schmarotzen sollte seintrockne nie nässen. Alles klar? Nein? Dann brauchen Sie "Übelsetzungen". Langenscheidt präsentiert in diesem Büchlein witzige Sprachpannen aus aller Welt, die auf großen Farbfotos dokumentiert sind. Von Extrajungfrauenöl bis Kartoffelknochen ist alles dabei: Über 100 deutsche und englische Übelsetzungs-Highlights auf Schildern, in Speisekarten, Rezepten, Gebrauchsanweisungen, Prospekten, Waschanleitungen, etc. aus Amerika, Asien, Afrika und Europa. Kommentiert werden die Sprachpannen in scharfsinnigen Texten vom Journalisten der Süddeutschen Zeitung Titus Arnu. Ein amüsantes Buch, das garantiert für Unterhaltung sorgt. ▲ Collapse
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