"An American linguist teaching in England explores the sibling rivalry between British and American English. "If Shakespeare were alive today, he'd sound like an American." "English accents are the sexiest." "Americans have ruined the English language." "Technology means everyone will have to speak the same English." Such claims about the English language are often repeated but rarely examined. Professor Lynne Murphy is on the linguistic front line....

"This book avoids technical linguistic jargon in favor of a dispassionate survey spanning from Ebonics' birth to its hostile reception by the overwhelming majority of people who repudiated the term. Baugh's investigation exposes flaws in competing definitions of Ebonics, as well as racial tensions that flared throughout this controversy. Baugh traces Ebonics from its obscure origin through its eventual public demise, considering a host of legal, educational,...