David Lyon, a star of Canada's foreign service, is on the brink of a career breakthrough. The Prime Minister himself has mapped out his future, leading to a post as Minister of External Affairs. It's the chance of a lifetime, an opportunity to shape the foreign policy he has so long followed as a diplomat. But Lyon's new life may crumble before it even begins. A yacht has been found adrift off the coast of Finland, the woman who chartered it missing and presumed dead. Francesca D'Anielli, the former model who has disappeared, was at the heart of the double life Lyon lived during the early years of his diplomatic career. Once her personal effects are discovered, Lyon knows, their affair will be exposed and he will face scandal, humiliation, personal and professional disaster.

The Voyage

Romance

Robert MacNeil

Paranormal

Nan A. Talese/Doubleday

Do You Speak American?

Is American English in decline? Are regional dialects dying out? Is there a difference between men and women in how they adapt to linguistic variations? These questions, and more, about our language catapulted Robert MacNeil and William Cran—the authors (with Robert McCrum) of the language classic The Story of English—across the country in search of the answers. Do You Speak American? is the tale of their discoveries, which provocatively show how the standard for American English—if a standard exists—is changing quickly and dramatically. On a journey that takes them from the Northeast, through Appalachia and the Deep South, and west to California, the authors observe everyday verbal interactions and in a host of interviews with native speakers glean the linguistic quirks and traditions characteristic of each area. While examining the histories and controversies surrounding both written and spoken American English, they address anxieties and assumptions that, when explored, are highly emotional, such as the growing influence of Spanish as a threat to American English and the special treatment of African-American vernacular English. And, challenging the purists who think grammatical standards are in serious deterioration and that media saturation of our culture is homogenizing our speech, they surprise us with unpredictable responses. With insight and wit, MacNeil and Cran bring us a compelling book that is at once a celebration and a potent study of our singular language. Each wave of immigration has brought new words to enrich the American language. Do you recognize the origin of 1. blunderbuss, sleigh, stoop, coleslaw, boss, waffle? Or 2. dumb, ouch, shyster, check, kaput, scram, bummer? Or 3. phooey, pastrami, glitch, kibbitz, schnozzle? Or 4. broccoli, espresso, pizza, pasta, macaroni, radio? Or 5. smithereens, lollapalooza, speakeasy, hooligan? Or 6. vamoose, chaps, stampede, mustang, ranch, corral? 1. Dutch 2. German 3. Yiddish 4. Italian 5. Irish 6. Spanish

Reference

William Cran

Words, Language & Grammar

Nan A. Talese

Now revised, The Story of English is the first book to tell the whole story of the English language. Originally paired with a major PBS miniseries, this book presents a stimulating and comprehensive record of spoken and written English—from its Anglo-Saxon origins some two thousand years ago to the present day, when English is the dominant language of commerce and culture with more than one billion English speakers around the world. From Cockney, Scouse, and Scots to Gulla, Singlish, Franglais, and the latest African American slang, this sweeping history of the English language is the essential introduction for anyone who wants to know more about our common tongue.

The Story of English

Robert McCrum

Foreign Language Study & Reference

VIKING

MacNeil's autobiography re-creates the world of his youth and the experiences that were opened up to him through his love of words. His delight and passion for the music and magic of language, have enabled MacNeil to transmute it into a work of art. Photos.

Wordstruck: A Memoir

Biographies & Memoirs

Professionals & Academics

Faber and Faber

Faber&Faber

Looking for My Country : Finding Myself in America

Travelers & Explorers

Random House Espanol

DOUBLEDAY

The Voyage [Paperback] [Jan 01, 1997] MacNeil, Robert ...

Literature & Fiction

BANTAM BOOKS

Julias Tagebuch

Europaverlag

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Books by Robert MacNeil