Praise for THE ADVENTURE OF ENGLISH -- - 'Bragg's excellent radio programmes on the subject ...are the basis of this history of English over the past 1,500 years.' -- Guardian 'Always readable, often thought-provoking, and consistently entertaining.' -- Independent 'This is a highly readable, jargon-free treatise on a notoriously prickly subject. Bragg's affection for his subject is infectious.' -- Observer 'Melvyn Bragg's superb new history of the English language is told as an adventure story, and rightly so. There is much splendid intellectual firepower in this book.' -- Andrew Roberts, Spectator 'Beautifully clear and, indeed, thrilling' -- Waterstone's Books Quarterly 'Bragg's approachable account...gleams with little gems. His enthusiasm is appealing...he digs beneath modernity and examines our bedrock with a sympathetic eye. It has power and clarity...this adventure is rewarding.' -- Sunday Herald

Melvyn Bragg has written several works of non-fiction (as well as his bestselling novels): ON GIANTS SHOULDERS, based on his BBC radio series, 12 BOOKS THAT CHANGED THE WORLD and THE ADVENTURE OF ENGLISH. He was born in 1939 and educated at Wigton's Nelson Tomlinson Shool and at Oxford where he read history. He is controller of Arts at LWT and President of the National Campaign for the Arts and of Mind, and in 1998 he was made a life peer. He lives in London and Cumbria.