Founding Grammars: How Early America’s War over Words Shaped Today’s Language

A freelance writer specializing in American words and usage, Ostler has written an amiable but overly selective history of grammar in the U.S. She gives a sweeping account of American language and the personalities who shaped it, from the 18th century to the present. Ostler pays extended homage to the hugely influential Noah Webster. She also describes influential, little-known 19th-century grammarians, starting with Lindley Murray. David Crockett and Theodore Roosevelt make cameo appearances, representing powerful forces in American language. Ostler’s most vivid chapter details William Strunk Jr. and his primer, The Elements of Style, first published in 1918, and E.B. White’s work on subsequent editions of the book. Her survey is entertaining, but omits important arbiters of American language, from Emily Post to the Associated Press, and neglects the role of mass market schoolbooks such as the McGuffey Readers and the Dick and Jane series. Still, Ostler will find an appreciative audience among the many readers who delight in the rules, ideals, and controversies of English expression. Agent: Janet Rosen, Sheree Bykofsky Associates. (May)