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Previous Thread Next Thread Print Thread Page 1 of 3 1 2 3 THE FIRST WORD: A Book Review: Before and After #170020 09/16/07 09:02 PM Joined: May 2002 Posts: 1,529 Aladamnbama the most watered s... T themilum OP veteran OP themilum veteran T Joined: May 2002 Posts: 1,529 Aladamnbama the most watered s... The First Word: The Search for the Origins of Language - by Cristine Kenneally ____________________________________________________________ It doesn't take prescience to review a book before you read it, it just takes practice. I amaze myself in my ability to judge a book by its cover with an astonishing amount of postive correlations when I compare my superficial judgements with my opinions after a full read later. No, I don't read the flaps but I do read the chapter headings and look at the author's picture when available. Enough talk. Here is my review of THE FIRST WORD before I read it. Before A fluff piece with no new ideas but Christine Kenneally's latest book does direct the lay reader towards contemporary understandings of language and its role in human culture. Following the lead of many popular science books of today Christine Kenneally has filled most of her 357 pages with a tiring recapitulation of the thoughts of the pioneers of language genesis. But happily in Chapter I she debunks the tiresome babble of Noam Chomsky so that any serious trains of thought about the origins of language can get back on track without further blithering. And (as she will report) progress is being made. In Section III - WHAT EVOLVES? - she outlines the long-overdue new understanding of the integral nature of language and culture. These three chapters - 12 SPECIES EVOLVE, 13 CULTURE EVOLVES, 14 WHY THINGS EVOLVE - will be worth the twenty-six bucks. Because of the general value of the information in these three chapters I rate THE FIRST WORD* _______________________________ ***1/2 stars * Note: This book will be reviewed again afer I read it next week. Last edited by themilum; 09/17/07 05:05 PM. Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Re: THE FIRST WORD: A Book Review: Before and After themilum #170021 09/16/07 09:42 PM Joined: Dec 2000 Posts: 13,803 Faldage Carpal Tunnel Faldage Carpal Tunnel Joined: Dec 2000 Posts: 13,803 Originally Posted By: themilum I doesn't take prescience to review a book before you read it, it just takes practice. You could start writing for The New York Times Book Review. Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Re: THE FIRST WORD: A Book Review: Before and After Faldage #170023 09/17/07 09:36 AM Joined: May 2002 Posts: 1,529 Aladamnbama the most watered s... T themilum OP veteran OP themilum veteran T Joined: May 2002 Posts: 1,529 Aladamnbama the most watered s... Originally Posted By: Faldage You could start writing for The New York Times Book Review. Gee Faldage, you think so? Those fellows at the New York Times Book Review are pretty good. I bet most of 'em read their books before reviewing them. Hmm...on the other hand most of 'em review books prissively by fashion rather than by brains so maybe...just maybe... Last edited by themilum; 09/17/07 09:37 AM. Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Re: THE FIRST WORD: A Book Review: Before and After themilum #170026 09/17/07 11:55 AM Joined: Dec 2000 Posts: 13,803 Faldage Carpal Tunnel Faldage Carpal Tunnel Joined: Dec 2000 Posts: 13,803 Hey, their reviews don't usually seem to be too much about the books, so maybe you shouldn't do it. But it couldn't hurt to try; the worst they can do is call you a red-necked booby. Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Re: THE FIRST WORD: A Book Review: Before and After Faldage #170034 09/17/07 04:45 PM Joined: May 2002 Posts: 1,529 Aladamnbama the most watered s... T themilum OP veteran OP themilum veteran T Joined: May 2002 Posts: 1,529 Aladamnbama the most watered s... Maybe I'll do it, Faldo. After all I've been called a red-necked boobie by better people than the New York Times. Last edited by themilum; 09/17/07 05:05 PM. Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Re: THE FIRST WORD: A Book Review: Before and After themilum #170037 09/17/07 07:24 PM Joined: Jan 2001 Posts: 1,819 Spam Factory A Alex Williams Pooh-Bah Alex Williams Pooh-Bah A Joined: Jan 2001 Posts: 1,819 Spam Factory Originally Posted By: themilum Those fellows at the New York Times Book Review are pretty good. I bet most of 'em read their books before reviewing them. Hmm...on the other hand most of 'em review books prissively by fashion rather than by brains so maybe...just maybe... The Rule of Four got a good review from the NYTBR. I am convinced they didn't really read it. Either that or they have no taste. Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Re: THE FIRST WORD: A Book Review: Before and After Alex Williams #170045 09/17/07 11:06 PM Joined: Dec 2000 Posts: 13,803 Faldage Carpal Tunnel Faldage Carpal Tunnel Joined: Dec 2000 Posts: 13,803 Originally Posted By: Alex Williams The Rule of Four got a good review from the NYTBR. I am convinced they didn't really read it. Either that or they have no taste. Did they actually talk about the book? Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Re: THE FIRST WORD: A Book Review: Before and After Faldage #170047 09/18/07 12:35 AM Joined: Jan 2001 Posts: 1,819 Spam Factory A Alex Williams Pooh-Bah Alex Williams Pooh-Bah A Joined: Jan 2001 Posts: 1,819 Spam Factory “A marvelous book with a dark Renaissance secret in its coded heart … Profoundly erudite … the ultimate puzzle book.” —The New York Times Book Review Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Re: THE FIRST WORD: A Book Review: Before and After Alex Williams #170048 09/18/07 12:42 AM Joined: Apr 2000 Posts: 10,542 this too shall pass tsuwm Carpal Tunnel tsuwm Carpal Tunnel Joined: Apr 2000 Posts: 10,542 this too shall pass "Comparisons to The Da Vinci Code are inevitable, but Caldwell and Thomason's book is the more cerebral-and better written-of the two: think Dan Brown by way of Donna Tartt and Umberto Eco." - Publishers Weekly -joe (damning with faint praise?!) friday Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Re: THE FIRST WORD: A Book Review: Before and After tsuwm #170049 09/18/07 01:00 AM Joined: Aug 2005 Posts: 3,290 R'lyeh zmjezhd Carpal Tunnel zmjezhd Carpal Tunnel Joined: Aug 2005 Posts: 3,290 R'lyeh You could always read the original Hypnerotomachia Poliphili (other scanned copies here and here) instead. Now, that's a thing of beauty. (Also a nice scanned copy (PDF) of the first English translation dedicated to Sir Phillip Syndey.) Ceci n'est pas un seing. Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Page 1 of 3 1 2 3 Moderated by  Jackie  Hop To General Topics ------  Information and announcements  Q&A about words  Wordplay and fun  Words and languages in schools  Miscellany  Weekly Themes  Looking for (writers, speakers,... (Old) Weekly themes. 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