Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue
Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue

Author: John McWhorter

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2009-10-27

Total Pages: 258

ISBN-13: 1592404944

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A survey of the quirks and quandaries of the English language, focusing on our strange and wonderful grammar Why do we say “I am reading a catalog” instead of “I read a catalog”? Why do we say “do” at all? Is the way we speak a reflection of our cultural values? Delving into these provocative topics and more, Our Magnificent Bastard Language distills hundreds of years of fascinating lore into one lively history. Covering such turning points as the little-known Celtic and Welsh influences on English, the impact of the Viking raids and the Norman Conquest, and the Germanic invasions that started it all during the fifth century ad, John McWhorter narrates this colorful evolution with vigor. Drawing on revolutionary genetic and linguistic research as well as a cache of remarkable trivia about the origins of English words and syntax patterns, Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue ultimately demonstrates the arbitrary, maddening nature of English— and its ironic simplicity due to its role as a streamlined lingua franca during the early formation of Britain. This is the book that language aficionados worldwide have been waiting for (and no, it’s not a sin to end a sentence with a preposition).

Magnificent Bastards
Magnificent Bastards

Author: Rich Hall

Publisher: Abacus

Published: 2010-03-04

Total Pages: 162

ISBN-13: 074811873X

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Comic genius Rich Hall introduces a series of magnificent bastards and lost souls in this hilarious collection of tall tales. Meet the man who vacuums bewildered prairie dogs out of their burrows; a frustrated werewolf who roams the streets of Soho getting mistaken for Brian Blessed; a smug carbon-neutral eco-couple; a teenage girl who invites 45,000 MySpace friends to a house party; the author of a business book entitled Highly Successful Secrets to Standing on a Corner Holding Up a Golf Sale Sign and a man whose attempts to teach softball to a group of indolent British advertising executives sparks an international crisis.

One Magnificent Bastard
One Magnificent Bastard

Author: Mark Huffman

Publisher: CreateSpace

Published: 2013-12-10

Total Pages: 240

ISBN-13: 9781492769446

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Bill Weise didn't plan on a career in the United States Marine Corps. He planned to become a lawyer. But life has a funny way of taking you to places you never expect, serving up experiences that change your life and your outlook forever. From his early life in a working class neighborhood in South Philadelphia during the Great Depression to battlefields in Vietnam to the halls of the Pentagon, Bill Weise was guided by core values he gained from his parents, his faith, and his community. Those values he brought to the Marine Corps, as well as a creative mind and a sense of daring that made him a great leader in both war and peace. Throughout his life Bill Weise has been presented with challenges. Some were economic, some were military and some were deeply personal. How he met and overcame these challenges provides a true measure of him as a man. Everything in Bill's life seemed to prepare him for tests. He always pushed himself and demanded the same of others. The story of Bill Weise is an American story. It contains lessons for today's military leaders and inspiration for all.

The Republic of Thieves
The Republic of Thieves

Author: Scott Lynch

Publisher: Del Rey

Published: 2013-10-08

Total Pages: 692

ISBN-13: 0553905589

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NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The third book of the suspense-filled, enduringly popular Gentleman Bastard Sequence about a roguish group of conmen, which George R. R. Martin has called “fresh, original, and engrossing . . . gorgeously realized.” “Fast paced, fun, and impossible to put down . . . Locke and company remain among the most engaging protagonists in fantasy.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review) ONE OF PASTE’S BEST FANTASY BOOKS OF THE DECADE With the greatest heist of their career gone spectacularly sour, con artist extraordinaire Locke Lamora and his trusted partner, Jean, have barely escaped with their lives. Or at least Jean has. Locke is slowly succumbing to a lethal poison that no alchemist can cure. With the end nearing, Locke’s only hope is to accept a mysterious Bondsmage’s offer: act as a political pawn in the Magi elections, and in exchange be healed. But the lifesaving sorcery promises to rival even the most excruciating death, and Locke refuses. Until the Bondsmage invokes the name of Sabetha, the love of Locke’s life, his equal in skill and wit . . . and now his greatest rival. From his first glimpse of Sabetha as a fellow orphan and thief-in-training, Locke was smitten. But after a tumultuous courtship, she broke away. Now they will reunite in another clash of wills. Faced with his only equal in both love and trickery, Locke must choose whether to fight Sabetha—or woo her. It is a decision on which both of their lives may depend. Don’t miss any of Scott Lynch’s epic fantasy Gentleman Bastard Sequence: THE LIES OF LOCKE LAMORA • RED SEAS UNDER RED SKIES • THE REPUBLIC OF THIEVES

Words on the Move
Words on the Move

Author: John McWhorter

Publisher: Henry Holt and Company

Published: 2016-09-06

Total Pages: 272

ISBN-13: 1627794735

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A bestselling linguist takes us on a lively tour of how the English language is evolving before our eyes -- and why we should embrace this transformation and not fight it Language is always changing -- but we tend not to like it. We understand that new words must be created for new things, but the way English is spoken today rubs many of us the wrong way. Whether it’s the use of literally to mean “figuratively” rather than “by the letter,” or the way young people use LOL and like, or business jargon like What’s the ask? -- it often seems as if the language is deteriorating before our eyes. But the truth is different and a lot less scary, as John McWhorter shows in this delightful and eye-opening exploration of how English has always been in motion and continues to evolve today. Drawing examples from everyday life and employing a generous helping of humor, he shows that these shifts are a natural process common to all languages, and that we should embrace and appreciate these changes, not condemn them. Words on the Move opens our eyes to the surprising backstories to the words and expressions we use every day. Did you know that silly once meant “blessed”? Or that ought was the original past tense of owe? Or that the suffix -ly in adverbs is actually a remnant of the word like? And have you ever wondered why some people from New Orleans sound as if they come from Brooklyn? McWhorter encourages us to marvel at the dynamism and resilience of the English language, and his book offers a lively journey through which we discover that words are ever on the move and our lives are all the richer for it.

Bastard Tongues
Bastard Tongues

Author: Derek Bickerton

Publisher: Macmillan + ORM

Published: 2008-03-04

Total Pages: 282

ISBN-13: 1429930306

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Why Do Isolated Creole Languages Tend to Have Similar Grammatical Structures? Bastard Tongues is an exciting, firsthand story of scientific discovery in an area of research close to the heart of what it means to be human—what language is, how it works, and how it passes from generation to generation, even where historical accidents have made normal transmission almost impossible. The story focuses on languages so low in the pecking order that many people don't regard them as languages at all—Creole languages spoken by descendants of slaves and indentured laborers in plantation colonies all over the world. The story is told by Derek Bickerton, who has spent more than thirty years researching these languages on four continents and developing a controversial theory that explains why they are so similar to one another. A published novelist, Bickerton (once described as "part scholar, part swashbuckling man of action") does not present his findings in the usual dry academic manner. Instead, you become a companion on his journey of discovery. You learn things as he learned them, share his disappointments and triumphs, explore the exotic locales where he worked, and meet the colorful characters he encountered along the way. The result is a unique blend of memoir, travelogue, history, and linguistics primer, appealing to anyone who has ever wondered how languages grow or what it's like to search the world for new knowledge.

The Magnificent Savages
The Magnificent Savages

Author: Fred Mustard Stewart

Publisher: Forge Books

Published: 1996

Total Pages: 383

ISBN-13: 9780312861117

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The illegitimate son of shipping tycoon Nathaniel Savage, Justin Savage copes with pirates, the Taiping rebellion, Garibaldi's Italian revolution, his love for the beautiful Samantha Aspinall, and the degenerate plots of his scheming and vicious half-brother Sylvaner. 50,000 first printing.

Magnificent Bastard
Magnificent Bastard

Author: Lili Valente

Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform

Published: 2016-04-17

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781532783753

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"Magnificently hot, and wonderfully written! This book is a definite MUST READ!" -5 STARS from Beneath the Covers Blog "THE must read standalone of the year!" -Bestselling author Lacey Black F*ck Prince Charming. Sometimes, you need a Magnificent Bastard. Face it, ladies: love sucks and then you cry...while your ex rides off into the sunset banging your best friend. But why let a break-up end in tears when it can end with sweet revenge? Enter Magnificent Bastard Consulting and me, chief executive bastard. I've got it all-looks, brains, a heart of gold, and the killer instinct guaran-damn-teed to make your ex regret the day he said goodbye. With the help of my virtual assistant, I've built an empire giving broken-hearted women the vengeance they deserve, while keeping myself far from the front lines of the heart. Life is a bowl of cherries, until my virtual assistant shows up on my real doorstep for the first time, begging for a Magnificent Bastard intervention of her own. Damn... She's a bona fide sex kitten. I pride myself on being a true pro, but pretending to be her lover soon leads to giving it to her good, hard, fast, and up against the wall. And somewhere between getting balls deep in my sweet and sexy assistant and watching her ex beg for a second chance, I break every last one of my damn rules-professional and personal. So what's my next move? Fight for the girl who makes me want to get up on a white horse and ride to her rescue, or stay a Magnificent Bastard to the end? Warning: MAGNIFICENT BASTARD is a stand-alone erotic romance told from the hero's point of view. No cliffhanger. Lots of dirty talk.

Delvers LLC
Delvers LLC

Author: Blaise Corvin

Publisher:

Published: 2019-11-14

Total Pages: 598

ISBN-13: 9781732808621

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An anthology collection of seven stories set on the planet Ludus.

Unleashed in Oregon
Unleashed in Oregon

Author: Sue Fagalde Lick

Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform

Published: 2017-09-28

Total Pages: 284

ISBN-13: 9781977712196

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What is a Californigonian? What was waiting by the door that night? What possessed us to adopt two puppies at once? How is playing the piano like ice skating? Why stay in Oregon when it rains all the time and the family is still back in California? Find the answers to these and other questions in these posts selected from ten years of the Unleashed in Oregon blog. Chapters will look at the glamorous life of a writer and the equally glamorous life of a musician, true stories from a whiny traveler, being the sole human occupant of a house in the woods, and dogs, so much about dogs.