{"product_id":"9781942658207","title":"Talking Back, Talking Black: Truths about America's Lingua Franca","description":"\u003cbr\u003e“Superb.” —\u003cb\u003eSteven Pinker\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e“In \u003ci\u003eTalking Back, Talking Black\u003c\/i\u003e, John McWhorter, the maestro at communicating linguistics to the public, succeeds in helping the reader to ‘actually hear Black English in a new way,’ while hipping linguists to some features of this vibrant variety they might not have considered before.” —\u003cb\u003eJohn R. Rickford\u003c\/b\u003e, former president of the Linguistic Society of America and coauthor of \u003ci\u003eSpoken Soul: The Story of Black English\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“McWhorter debunks some of our most persistent myths about language.” —\u003cb\u003eNPR\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“McWhorter makes all the right arguments, and he makes them clearly.” —\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eNew Yorker\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Do you think Black English is a ‘dialect’ full of ‘mistakes’? You’re likely to change your mind about its ‘languageness’ after reading Mr. McWhorter.” —\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eWall Street Journal\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIt has now been almost fifty years since linguistic experts began studying Black English as a legitimate speech variety, arguing to the public that it is different from Standard English, not a degradation of it. Yet false assumptions and controversies still swirl around what it means to speak and sound “black.” In his first book devoted solely to the form, structure, and development of Black English, John McWhorter clearly explains its fundamentals and rich history, while carefully examining the cultural, educational, and political issues that have undermined recognition of this transformative, empowering dialect. \u003ci\u003eTalking Back, Talking Black\u003c\/i\u003e takes us on a fascinating tour of a nuanced and complex language that has moved beyond America’s borders to become a dynamic force for today’s youth culture around the world.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eJohn McWhorter\u003c\/b\u003e teaches linguistics, Western civilization, music history, and American studies at Columbia University. A \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e best-selling author and TED speaker, he is a columnist for \u003ci\u003eTime\u003c\/i\u003e and regular contributor to the \u003ci\u003eAtlantic\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eWall Street Journal\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eWashington Post\u003c\/i\u003e. His books on language include \u003ci\u003eThe Power of Babel\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eOur Magnificent Bastard Tongue\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eWhat Language Is\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Language Hoax\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eWords on the Move\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Bellevue Literary Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47052382109936,"sku":"9781942658207","price":19.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9781942658207_p0.jpg?v=1763799338","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9781942658207","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}