The Talking Book by Jane De Suza

Book Name : The Talking Book

Author : Jane De Suza

Genre : Language and Linguistics

Language : English

Format : Paperback 

Book Extent : 216 pages 

Price : ₹299/-

Publishing House : Puffin

Publication Date : 8th January, 2024

ISBN : 978-0143463542

My Rating : 4/5

Blurb :

Are you ready to solve one of the world’s biggest mysteries: how we talk?

The story of communication begins in prehistoric times, gallops through the dark arts, untranslatable words and languages brought back from the dead, and arrives in the age of AI.

Along the way, we meet outstanding characters―the one-word man, the 400-word monkey and the million-word computer―who play their part in the development of language.

Every tale in this book holds a clue to the gigantic puzzle of the evolution of language that has hypnotized brilliant minds over time. Handprints of not-quite-humans on ancient cave walls, secrets buried in ash from a seven-year-long winter, forbidden experiments by kings on babies and even a rogue gene hiding in your DNA―how do they all piece together?

WARNING: Enjoy the rollercoaster ride of language, hilarious histories and crazy quizzes, but ignore the wise-cracking dog who will insist he wrote this book.

How do readers enjoy reading so much?

It’s because of the language they read and comprehend.

What exactly is language?

A means to communicate

What and how exactly did communication begin though?

Curious to know?

Read The Talking Book by Jane De Suza to quench your curiosity.

Spanning across 9 chapters, this wonderful book promises and manages to take you on a journey wherein you are whisked off to a cave with Hominins.

The author has rightfully mentioned in the informal foreword of the book about the book being a bit different, in terms of how it has been written and I am in absolute agreement with it and how it managed to keep me hooked to it.

All the important milestones in the development of communication and language from the caveman to AI have been written about with an absolute delightful blend of humour.

The graphics will make the book enjoyable and interactive to the younger audiences.

If you like reading and knowing about things, this book is for you.

Thanks to Penguinsters for providing me with the review copy in lieu of an honest review.