Description
This book explores the life and experiences of one of the world's most renowned and well-respected experts in bilingualism. Francois Grosjean takes us through his life, from his monolingual childhood in a small village outside Paris to the long periods of time he spent in Switzerland, England, France, and the United States, becoming bilingual and bicultural in the process. During his life, his dominant language has changed many times between English and French, and he has also acquired, and subsequently lost, other languages, including American Sign Language. Throughout the book, he combines his personal accounts and anecdotes with insights from and reflections on his extensive scholarly research in bilingualism and biculturalism, which has, in turn, been heavily influenced by his own experiences. Written in an engaging and accessible style, the book will appeal to general readers interested in bilingualism and language contact, educators and parents of bilingual children, researchers working on bilingualism, and to bilinguals themselves.
About the Author
Francois Grosjean is Professor Emeritus and former Director of the Language and Speech Processing Laboratory at the University of Neuchatel, Switzerland. He has worked at Northeastern University, Boston, was a Research Affiliate at MIT, and has lectured at the universities of Basel, Zurich, and Oxford. His research interests include bilingualism and biculturalism, the perception, comprehension, and production of speech, sign language and the bilingualism of the Deaf, the evaluation of speech comprehension in aphasic patients, and the modelling of language processing. He is the author of several books on bilingualism, including Studying Bilinguals (OUP, 2008), Bilingual: Life and Reality (Harvard University Press, 2010), The Psycholinguistics of Bilingualism (with Ping Li; Wiley Blackwell, 2013), and The Listening Bilingual (with Krista Byers-Heinlein; Wiley Blackwell, 2018).
Reviews
[Grosjean's] account shows a caring teacher and respected scholar leading a rich linguistic life. Highly recommended * C. B. Thurston, CHOICE *
Of value to students considering study abroad and those who advise them or otherwise provide support, A Journey in Languages and Cultures offers a realistic yet positive account of the transition to an institution of higher learning in another country ... [Grosjean provides] insight and hope to the families of heritage-language speakers in this era of global mobility. * Kathleen Stein-Smith, Global Studies Literature Review *
...this is an excellent book with rich insights into bilingualism. Hence, I highly recommend this book to scholars, educators, parents, bilinguals as well as people who are interested in this field. * Meizi Piao, University of Massachusetts, Boston, International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism *
Autobiography, family history and career account in one, A Journey in Languages and Cultures: The Life of a Bicultural Bilingual entertains, informs, and educates ... [the author] writes engagingly and authoritatively using little jargon. * Graham Elliott MCIL, The Linguist *
The fluid and dynamic view so clearly expressed in his research literally comes to life in this coming-of-age story by one of the greatest figures in the field of bilingualism and psycholinguistics. At the forefront of a new university, a new department, a new journal, and a new field, Francois Grosjean builds a bridge across the channels and oceans that seemingly divide us. This book is a must read for those old and young who would like to rekindle their view of language science as a largely human enterprise. He reveals a world not as a monolithic place filled with singular or opposing uniformity but rather as one filled with a dynamic linguistic and cultural multiplicity that traverses regions, nations, and continents. * Arturo Hernandez, author of The Bilingual Brain *
Book Information
ISBN 9780198754947
Author Francois Grosjean
Format Hardback
Page Count 210
Imprint Oxford University Press
Publisher Oxford University Press
Dimensions(mm) 216mm * 141mm * 17mm
About the Author
Francois Grosjean is Professor Emeritus and former Director of the Language and Speech Processing Laboratory at the University of Neuchatel, Switzerland. He has worked at Northeastern University, Boston, was a Research Affiliate at MIT, and has lectured at the universities of Basel, Zurich, and Oxford. His research interests include bilingualism and biculturalism, the perception, comprehension, and production of speech, sign language and the bilingualism of the Deaf, the evaluation of speech comprehension in aphasic patients, and the modelling of language processing. He is the author of several books on bilingualism, including Studying Bilinguals (OUP, 2008), Bilingual: Life and Reality (Harvard University Press, 2010), The Psycholinguistics of Bilingualism (with Ping Li; Wiley Blackwell, 2013), and The Listening Bilingual (with Krista Byers-Heinlein; Wiley Blackwell, 2018).
Reviews
[Grosjean's] account shows a caring teacher and respected scholar leading a rich linguistic life. Highly recommended * C. B. Thurston, CHOICE *
Of value to students considering study abroad and those who advise them or otherwise provide support, A Journey in Languages and Cultures offers a realistic yet positive account of the transition to an institution of higher learning in another country ... [Grosjean provides] insight and hope to the families of heritage-language speakers in this era of global mobility. * Kathleen Stein-Smith, Global Studies Literature Review *
...this is an excellent book with rich insights into bilingualism. Hence, I highly recommend this book to scholars, educators, parents, bilinguals as well as people who are interested in this field. * Meizi Piao, University of Massachusetts, Boston, International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism *
Autobiography, family history and career account in one, A Journey in Languages and Cultures: The Life of a Bicultural Bilingual entertains, informs, and educates ... [the author] writes engagingly and authoritatively using little jargon. * Graham Elliott MCIL, The Linguist *
The fluid and dynamic view so clearly expressed in his research literally comes to life in this coming-of-age story by one of the greatest figures in the field of bilingualism and psycholinguistics. At the forefront of a new university, a new department, a new journal, and a new field, Francois Grosjean builds a bridge across the channels and oceans that seemingly divide us. This book is a must read for those old and young who would like to rekindle their view of language science as a largely human enterprise. He reveals a world not as a monolithic place filled with singular or opposing uniformity but rather as one filled with a dynamic linguistic and cultural multiplicity that traverses regions, nations, and continents. * Arturo Hernandez, author of The Bilingual Brain *
Book Information
ISBN 9780198754947
Author Francois Grosjean
Format Hardback
Page Count 210
Imprint Oxford University Press
Publisher Oxford University Press
Dimensions(mm) 216mm * 141mm * 17mm
