Customer Reviews

America in So Many Words: Words That Have Shaped America

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This book gives the historical background of over three hundred words that are in some way uniquely American-born. Boring, you say? Never! The entries are arranged chronologically and include some words that you might suspect (underground railroad, motel) and quite a few that may surprise you (hello, bathtub, bug). Each entry provides a fascinating look at the people and times that led to the development of the word. An index lets you look up specific words.

I found this book about as exciting as reading last week's weather report.I waded through it but finally gave up a little from the end.Language and the derivation of words and phrases is an interesting and colorful subject;but little was found in this book.There is much more to producing a good book than collecting up a bunch of stuff and sticking it between a couple of covers.Don't waste your "coin" (not covered by the way) as you'll forget what's in it as soon as you read it.