Words at Work and Play

Shirley Brice Heath, a leading social historian and ethnographer of family life, is Margery Bailey Professor of English and Dramatic Literature and Professor of Linguistics, Emerita, at Stanford University. Her previous publications include Ways with Words: Language, Life, and Work in Communities and Classrooms (Cambridge University Press, 1983) and On Ethnography (2008, with Brian Street).

• 1. On being long in company; 2. A boy finds his mama(s); 3. The closeness of strangers; 4. Embracing talk; 5. Lines of vision; 6. The hand of play; 7. Ways with time and words; 8. Shaping the mainstream.

'By following the children and grandchildren of Trackton and Roadville into adulthood, Heath provides a unique and moving account of how individuals' language use and lives are shaped by economic and technological developments. Like its predecessor, this is sure to be an instant classic.' Deborah Tannen, Georgetown University and author of You Just Don't Understand and Talking Voices