A history of book censorship.

Wherever people can read, there are stories about the magic, mystery, and power of what they read. Val Ross presents a history of reading that is, in fact, the story of the monumental, on-going struggle to read. From Enheduanna, daughter of Sargon the Great, the world’s oldest signed author to Empress Shotoku of Japan who in 764 ordered the printing of one million Buddhist prayers; from the story of Hulagu, Ghengis Khan’s nasty brother who destroyed the library of Baghdad to Bowdler and the censorship of Shakespeare, there have been barriers to reading ranging from the physical to the economical, social, and political. Written for children ages ten and up, You Can’t Read This explores the development of alphabets, the decoding of ancient languages, and censorship in Ancient Rome and modern America. It's about secret writing, trashed libraries, writers on the run, writers in hiding, books that are thought to have magical powers and mistranslations that started wars. It's about people: from the American slave Frederick Douglass to girls in Afghanistan in the year 2001 who defied laws that prevented them from learning to read. What do all these stories have in common? They’re all about how texts contain power – and how people everywhere throughout history have devoted their wills and their brains to reading and unleashing the power of the word. With lavish illustrations and an index, this is history at its finest.

When the Sex Pistols swore live on tea-time telly in 1976, there was outrage across Britain. Headlines screamed. Christians marched. TVs were kicked in. Thirty years on, all those words are media-mainstream - bandied about with impunity on TV and in the papers. This is the story of our bad language and its three-decade journey from the fringes of decency to the working centre of a more linguistically liberal nation. Silverton takes a clear, comprehensive and witty look at swearing and the impact of its new acceptability on our language, our manners and our society. He considers how we have become more openly emotional, yet more wary about insulting others. And how it's seemingly become alright to say **** and **** but not ****** or ****. This is the story of that cultural revolution, written by one who was there at the start, proudly striking some of the first blows in the long struggle for the right to reclaim filthy English and use it.

This is the only encyclopedia and social history of swearing and foul language in the English-speaking world. It covers the various social dynamics that generate swearing, foul language, and insults in the entire range of the English language. While the emphasis is on American and British English, the different major global varieties, such as Australian, Canadian, South African, and Caribbean English are also covered. A-Z entries cover the full range of swearing and foul language in English, including fascinating details on the history and origins of each term and the social context in which it found expression. Categories include blasphemy, obscenity, profanity, the categorization of women and races, and modal varieties, such as the ritual insults of Renaissance "flyting" and modern "sounding" or "playing the dozens." Entries cover the historical dimension of the language, from Anglo-Saxon heroic oaths and the surprising power of medieval profanity, to the strict censorship of the Renaissance and the vibrant, modern language of the streets. Social factors, such as stereotyping, xenophobia, and the dynamics of ethnic slurs, as well as age and gender differences in swearing are also addressed, along with the major taboo words and the complex and changing nature of religious, sexual, and racial taboos.

We all swear, whether we admit it or not, but do you know the fascinating origins of the curses and maledictions that we spout out of spite and malice, or simply to entertain? Here is practically every dirty word and foul phrase you’ve ever heard in English, along with a great many that you may not have heard. From Chaucer and Shakespeare to Lenny Bruce and Mel Brooks, Come Again? offers you the frank and the filthy, the obtuse and the obscene, and the stories behind them. Jeremy Ellis offers readers some things old, some things new, some things borrowed, and plenty of things blue. Chapters include Private Parts on anatomical descriptions, Caught in the Act on the act of sex, and even Black and Blue on African American phrases. This is absof*ckinglutely one of the dirtiest and most entertaining books on language ever published.

It is impossible to reflect upon children's books without considering the children who read them. Where Texts and Children Meet explores the ways in which children make meaning of the various texts they meet both in and out of school. Eve Bearne and Victor Watson have brought together chapters on all the major issues and topics in children's literacy including: * the meaning and relevance of terms such as literature and classic texts * an analysis of new genres including picture books and CD-ROMs * moral dilemmas and cultural concerns in children's texts * working with quality texts that children will also adore. Where Texts and Children Meet shows how the world of children's books is changing and how teachers can build imaginative learning experiences for their pupils from a whole range of published materials.