Speak to me

Routledge continues its Basics series with R. L. Trask’s Language: The Basics (£30 hbk, £7.99 pbk, ISBN 0 415 12540 5). A straightforward guide to the way in which language works, it’s worth a read before tackling some of the tough questions on language and consciousness, or the evolution of language, that writers such as Steve Pinker raise.