We recently interviewed Orin Hargraves about his new book, Slang Rules!: A Practical Guide for English Learners. Orin consulted a wide range of sources to build his guide to American slang, including works of fiction. We asked Orin to recommend books by writers with a keen ear for the American vernacular. Continue reading...

The "backstory" of the English language is endlessly fascinating. Here are some of our favorite tellings of the tale.

The Adventure of English

Inventing English

The Story of English

The Secret History of the English Language

That's a lover of the Latin language, of course!

Ad Infinitum: A Biography of Latin

Carpe Diem

Amo, Amas, Amat and More

Satisfy your craving for wordplay with these crafty compendia.

Making the Alphabet Dance

The Dictionary of Wordplay

Language Play

The Play of Words

The art of comics isn't just kid's stuff. Graphic novels bring together storytelling and visual artistry in exciting new ways.

Graphic Storytelling and Visual Narrative

Graphic Novels: Everything You Need to Know

Writing and Illustrating the Graphic Novel

We asked David Crystal, author of Txtng: The Gr8 Db8, to suggest a reading list about new forms of electronic communication and how they're shaping our language. Here are his recommendations. Continue reading...