Just a Phrase I'm Going Through ─ My Life in Language

Kidnapping, attempted assassination, espionage … not the answers you’d expect to the question ‘what happens when you become a linguist?’

But now, reflecting on a long and hugely successful career at the forefront of the field of English Language and Linguistics, David Crystal answers this question and offers us a special look behind the scenes at the adventures, rewards, challenges and pitfalls of his life in language.

Both an autobiography and a highly accessible introduction to the field of linguistics, Just a Phrase I’m Going Through illuminates and entertains us with its many insights into the ever-fascinating subject of language.

David Crystal is synonymous with language, both as a great populariser and linguistic pioneer, and his contribution to the field is unparalleled. This is a book not just for students and teachers but for all lovers of language.
For more about David Crystal at Routledge, visit: www.routledge.com/textbooks/9780415485746.

David Crystal received an OBE for services to the English language in 1995, and was made a Fellow of the British Academy (FBA) in 2000. He is patron of the International Association of Teachers of English as a Foreign Language (IATEFL) and the Association for Language Learning (ALL). Having published over 100 books, covering a diversity of language topics, his most recent publications include Txtng: the gr8 db8 (2008) and Thinking on my Words: Exploring Shakespeare’s Language (2008). He has been a freelance writer, lecturer, and broadcaster since 1984 and continues his work with language from his home in Holyhead, North Wales.

1. Being a Linguist 2. A Semilingual Start 3. New Worlds 4. Liverpool School 5. Extra-curricular Acts 6. Learning, and Not Learning, About Language 7. Becoming Academic 8. Surveying 9. Worlds Within Worlds 10. Becoming Professional 11. The Sexy Subject 12. Meeting a Need 13. Choices and Consequences 14. Meetings and Meetings 15. Looking for Remedies 16. Why Did You Resign? 17. The Encyclopedia Game 18. Schizoid Man 19. Busyness and Business