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The Last Word

Tales from the Tip of the Mother Tongue

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The Last Word

By: Ben Macintyre
Narrated by: Ben Macintyre
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Bloomsbury presents The Last Word, written and read by Ben Macintyre

'A sprinkling of delightful nuggets about the uses and abuses of the English Language' Daily Telegraph, Books of the Year

'[There are] myriad delights in Ben Macintyre's musings on language' The Times, Books of the Year
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Do you know your geek-speak from your geek-chic? Ever wanted to put Humpty Dumpty together again? Can you distinguish Spanglish from Chinglish?

We adapt words from other languages, from slang, from developments in science, literature and art. Learn the advantages of having your own signature word; why the lifts in the House of Commons have posh accents; and discover the discreet art of the loophemism.

Witty and utterly delightful, The Last Word will tease, tickle and tantalise those who enjoy all things lexical.©2009 Ben Macintyre (P)2025 Bloomsbury Publishing PLC Art of Storytelling Entertainment & Performing Arts Words, Language & Grammar Writing & Publishing Witty
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Critic reviews

‘A sprinkling of delightful nuggets about the uses and abuses of the English language'
‘After reading The Last Word you may feel compelled to tell a "fib" - a poem whose syllables follow the Fibonacci sequence - one of myriad delights in Ben Macintyre's musings on language. Discover the accidental poetry of e-mail spam and the literary joy of peculiar cricketing terms'
‘Macintyre is simply a splendidly well-read man ... These pieces come up fresh and even wiser, and all the better for being so collated'
All stars
Most relevant
Packed full of interesting facts which clearly demonstrate a great depth of research. one to come back to again and again.

Highly engaging, witty, educational and thought provoking.

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