Made in America: An Informal History of the English Language in the United States by Bill Bryson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Made in America might be the 'heaviest' book that I've read of Bill Bryson's and it wasn't until a few chapters in that I could really sift through it with the usual ease that I associate with his books. Mind you, Bryson still makes plenty of space for his usual wit - to the point of my laughing out loud, again, as usual - and his ability to bring together trivial anectodes into a compelling story is still second-to-none. In fact, I'm sure he could research some interesting facts about the word 'trivia' or trace back the expression 'second-to-none' and find a way to write about these with humour, gusto and panache. The only thing here is that I found the historical research more compelling than the etymological tidbits, which were almost too detailed and meant some parts dragged on a little bit. That said, I will surely return to some of these passages again in the future!



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