Books in the Linguistics in the World series

An Introduction to Language offers an engaging guide to the nature of language, focusing on how language works its sounds, words, structures, and phrases all investigated through wide-ranging examples from Old English to contemporary pop culture.

"This book is for people who have never thought about syntax, and who don't know anything about grammar, but who want to learn. Assuming a blank slate on the part of the reader, the book treats English grammar as a product of the speaker's mind, and builds up student skills by exploring phrases and sentences with more and more complexity, as the chapters proceed"--

Introducing Second Language Acquisition: Perspectives and Practices represents a clear and concise introduction to the main concepts, issues, and debates in second language acquisition studies aimed specifically at undergraduates encountering the topic for the first time.