This was a good introduction to the history of the world's languages. I would have liked to have learned more about certain languages but there are always other books. The last chapter on writing crammed in too much information for me in such a short section that I skimmed it. Normally, I would have been fascinated. ( )

A *fantastic* book that tells the story of the world's languages. More than an atlas, it is a history of how languages developed and spread, with contemporary and historical statistics. Highly recommended for anyone interested in languages! ( )

Interesting visual presentation of where various languages are spoken, along with some additional information on language relationships, numbers of speakers, etc. ( )

I seem to have a talent for selecting books that can only be read in small pieces; this was another of them. It was an interesting overview of the various languages and writing systems both past and present with numerous illustrations and maps. However, the text assumed a greater knowledge of linguistics than I have and that slowed me down. Also the book itself suffered from poorly constructed map keys, etc. that made it more difficult to understand. Overall this book is only average.