'Sociophonetics: An Introduction will quickly become the standard text for students analyzing sound variation, as you would expect from someone of Thomas' stature in the field. This clearly written text fills an instructional gap and joins together strands of research in a thorough and organized manner' - Professor Thomas C. Purnell, University of Wisconsin 'Overall, what makes this text stand out as an excellent resource for sociophonetic research is its thorough handling of each topic, extensive coverage of such a wide range of practical, methodological and theoretical issues, and sheer readability. Thomas continually highlights gaps in existing knowledge, and suggests numerous possible avenues of exploration for budding (or established) sociophoneticians to study in the future. This text would be suitable for undergraduate or postgraduate study, or as a resource for seasoned researchers wanting to gain a knowledge and understanding of the key methodology of sociophonetics, and what- as an autonomous sub-discipline- it has to offer the larger linguistic community.' -International Phonetic Association