This was an entertaining and highly interesting read, a great pick for any fan of language, the internet, or both. In the words of the author, “Language is humanity’s most spectacular open-source project,” and the great thing about the advent of the internet is it allows scholars to analyze how language (specifically informal language) evolves in real time. Some of the more interesting topics include the difficulties of conveying irony and sarcasm through text, the relationship between gesture in spoken conversations and emoji, and the origin of the mysteriously hard-to-define cultural phenomenon known as memes.
–David, Beach Books, Seaside, OR
Let Beach Books and other independent bookstores point you to books that will make you the hit of the next Zoom cocktail party– or just, you know, enrich your life and understanding of our world.
