The Adventure of English

The Biography of a Language

By: Melvyn Bragg

Narrated by: Robert Powell

Length: 12 hrs and 9 mins

Publisher's summary

This is the remarkable story of the English language; from its beginnings as a minor guttural Germanic dialect to its position today as a truly established global language.

The Adventure of English is not only an enthralling story of power, religion, and trade, but also the story of people, and how their lives continue to change the extraordinary language that is English.

©2003 Melvyn Bragg (P)2014 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Both entertaining and informative." (Booklist)
"This 'biography' succeeds in its broad, sweeping narrative." (Publishers Weekly)

a bit too many lists

Have done some reading in the past about this issue and while Bragg adds some perspectives that I had not known, overall as a book to listen to, it has far to many "examples" from other languages that infiltrated English to make the listening pleasant. The chief point, that English is a continuingly flexible language in contrast to many others which are "pure" is a good one but didn't need a book to tell.

To my dearest love, English

I love, love, love our beautiful language, but I was uncertain whether I would like this book. People who write about (or teach) English can be a bit boring, even if they also love it. The reviews for this book were mostly positive, so I took a chance, and I was not disappointed.

Mr. Bragg writes about English as if it were a person, able to make decisions and will itself into being whatever it wishes. It fights for it's life and gobbles up other languages for survival and sport.

I knew a good bit of our language's history, but this was very in depth and specific. I didn't find the word lists to be tedious, rather, they were quite entertaining. I also found it interesting how close we were at many points to speaking another language altogether. French, for instance. The origins of many of our words and phrases are fun to learn, as well as why we spell words the way we do.

The narrator is fantastic! He speaks every dialect and forgotten language with precision. His accents are spot on, from Australian to Cockney. It's worth a listen just to hear the wonderful job done by Robert Powell.

Fascinating, But Has Some Low Points

At its best when reading like a fast-paced etymological biography, at its worst when slogging through too much minutiae, or lists of words changed over time. Being from America, I found the segments focusing on the evolution of American English to be most fascinating, though I imagine everyone would feel that way about their country of origin when reading this book. Extraordinary narrator, who is able to effortlessly effect several convincing accents throughout. [AUDIBLE]

A real treat

What did you love best about The Adventure of English?

The history of English is fascinating, but even better when narrated by someone who seems able to fluently read in all the different dialects. I am sure I would not have enjoyed this book reading it myself and struggling to attempt the various dialects, since I am not a student of those languages. Hearing the old languages spoken fluentlyadded another dimension to the experience.

Nice diversion but not completely satisfying

I'm not sure why I felt ultimately dissatisfied with this book. The narrator, Robert Powell is very good. And I enjoyed the bits of the book where Melvyn Bragg talks about his own ancestry (wish he'd write about that). But the chapters near the end regarding the influences the slave trade had on English warranted more emphasis and the chapters on the more modern day influences on language felt rushed and had a slapped-on feel. All in all, not a bad way to spend the time but I wanted more.

Great listen

If you could sum up The Adventure of English in three words, what would they be?

Entertaining and informative. Fascinating to learn more about a language that has spread all over the world. Melvyn Bragg is an expert writer.

Adventure Indeed

I really enjoyed this listen. Without being dry or overly scholarly, this book offers a wealth of information in a most entertaining way.
There's much here about the growth of English and especially about the brilliance of the language in adopting and adapting from other tongues. I loved the emphasis on the variety and importance of the dialects through history - and this narrator is wonderful at giving examples!
How fortunate we are to have this huge, sloppy, constantly changing English. This read makes me appreciate everything I hear and read even more.

Learn more about our beautiful language

Much interesting info about the spread of English. Narration excellent.Story is history. A must for any speaker of English.

Outstanding Listen

What made the experience of listening to The Adventure of English the most enjoyable?

The reader was fantastic and I loved listening to the old dialects

What other book might you compare The Adventure of English to and why?

I have listened to this book 3 times already as there is such a vast amount of different areas he covers

Which scene was your favorite?

I loved the section on Australia, although each section was great in its own right

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

N/A

Any additional comments?

I have recommended this book to all of my friends. You don't have to love English or history to enjoy this book. It is so interesting on so many levels

What a story!

I have listened to this twice now, and found it hilarious both times. Now, I must admit that the reader is not perfect. Obviously, he has no idea what "okra" is, much less how to pronounce it. But even that was funny. I know I could not begin to produce the variety of accents required to make this work. What is great is the story. I understand so much about my native language that I never knew before. This should be a High School textbook. It's no wonder that English is such a wierd language. This book explains much.