Limits of Language

[Bernd Heine]

I know that this is not really a forum for commercials. Nevertheless, 
please allow me to draw your attention to a book that has just been 
published by a fairly little known publisher:

Mikael Parkvall 2006. Limits of language. London: Battlebridge.

This is an unusual book. First, it contains a wide range of information 
about language and linguistic behavior, some of it well known, much of 
it new (at least to me), and a good part of it unexpected and 
surprising. Second, it is the ideal book to attract a freshman who might 
still be hesitant on whether linguistics is really worth the effort. And 
third, it is a highly suitable source for introductory courses to 
linguistics; it answers many of the questions that students constantly 
confront you with but where you are not always quite sure whether you 
have the best answer at hand. (Finally, a warning: If you have little 
time to spend, do not open this book, because chances are high that once 
you have looked at it you will not stop before you have read it from 
cover to cover.)
Bernd