LITERACY AND THE SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNER. Joann Hammadou Sullivan (Ed.). Greenwich, CT: Information Age, 2002. Pp. xii + 279. $29.95 paper.

In this age of Internet plenty, research collections need a justification for presentation in book format. According to the editor's introduction, the main justification for Literacy and the second language learner is to provide a sampling of the range of “possible voices and possible questions that make up the broad and complex field of second language literacy study” (p. xi).

EXTENDING THE SCOPE OF CORPUS-BASED RESEARCH: NEW APPLICATIONS, NEW CHALLENGES. Sylviane Granger and Stephanie Petch-Tyson (Eds.). Amsterdam: Rodopi, 2003. Pp. 261. $81.00 cloth.

The theme of the 2001 International Computer Archive of Modern and Medieval English conference was “Future Challenges for Corpus Linguistics.” Some of these challenges include the need for improved methodological standardization, for a clearer link between corpus-based research and linguistic theory, and for further research into the application of corpus linguistics in language teaching. The chapters in this edited volume of proceedings from the conference show how corpus-based research has begun to address these challenges.

FOSSILIZATION IN ADULT SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION. ZhaoHong Han. Clevedon, UK: Multilingual Matters, 2004. Pp. vii + 201. $29.95 paper.

Researchers often use metaphors to define abstract or complex phenomena in terms of more familiar concepts (Honeck & Temple, 1992). Fossilization (Selinker, 1972) is a trope coined to conceptualize a widely known but poorly understood characteristic of the majority of adult second language (L2) learners: failure to achieve targetlike competence despite continuous exposure to the target language, adequate motivation to learn, and sufficient opportunity for practice. Challenged by researchers who question the utility of the concept (see the overview in Long, 2003), Han's comprehensive and coherent eight-chapter book provides theoretical and empirical justification for the use of fossilization as an organizing trope (Kupferberg & Green, 1998) that encapsulates the meaning of adult SLA processes.

BILINGUALISM: BEYOND BASIC PRINCIPLES. Jean-Marc Dewaele, Alex Housen, and Li Wei (Eds.). Clevedon, UK: Multilingual Matters, 2003. Pp. ix +233. £49.90 cloth, £22.95 paper.

This volume is a festschrift in honor of Hugo Baetens Beardsmore on the occasion of his sixtieth birthday and the twentieth anniversary of the publication of his book Bilingualism: Basic principles (1982). The volume includes 12 articles in addition to an introduction and a laudatio. The volume reflects the important developments of studies in bilingualism in the last 20 years and covers a great variety of areas related to the sociolinguistic, educational, and psycholinguistic dimensions of bilingualism. The first chapter is a reprint of one of Baetens Beardsmore's lesser known publications (1988) and discusses the fears of bilingualism at different levels. Fifteen years later, this chapter still addresses the most important issues related to bilingualism often discussed by teachers, parents, and policy makers. The next three chapters focus on the social aspects of bilingualism: Edwards discusses bilingualism and identity in chapter 2, Clyne addresses the role of intrinsic motivation and metalinguistic awareness in bilingualism in chapter 3, and Cummins examines the differences between the criticism against bilingual education in the American press and the positive results of research on the outcomes of bilingualism in chapter 4. These three chapters each have a different focus but taken together provide an interesting perspective of the social factors affecting bilingualism. Chapter 5 by Martin and chapter 7 by Jones discuss multilingual education in Brunei. These two chapters describe the languages used in schools, the educational context, and the most recent changes in education in Brunei and could be of interest for educators in other bilingual contexts. Chapter 6 by Baker and chapter 8 by Wei and Milroy both discuss language and society but focus on minority languages in two completely different settings—Wales and Singapore. Both chapters discuss interesting theoretical aspects that are then applied to specific settings. Chapter 9 (Fraser Gupta) has a very weak link to the rest of the chapters in the book and analyzes seven self-study books of Malay from different periods. Chapter 10 (Lüdi) and chapter 11 (Myers-Scotton) discuss interesting theoretical aspects of codeswitching, and the last chapter (Genesee) focuses on the similarities and differences between early monolingual and bilingual acquisition. These three chapters are more research oriented than the rest of the chapters in the book, both because of their theoretical basis and the empirical data they discuss. They may also be the most interesting for researchers in SLA.

DISCOURSE INTONATION IN L2: FROM THEORY AND RESEARCH TO PRACTICE. Dorothy M. Chun. Amsterdam: Benjamins, 2002. Pp. xvii + 285. CD-ROM. $52.95 paper.

The objectives of this book are to emphasize the importance of intonation within the discourse domain and to draw upon research to suggest ways of teaching discourse-based intonation to second language (L2) learners. This book is organized in three parts. The first provides an overview of linguistic theories on prosodic elements. In this part, the author discusses four major categories of intonation according to function: grammatical (e.g., using intonation to mark prominence or stress), affective (e.g., to express attitudes or emotions), sociolinguistic (e.g., to signal politeness), and, importantly in this book, discourse (e.g., to contribute to cohesion in speech). Part 2 takes a look back at L2 research on pronunciation and intonation and the early teaching focus on individual sounds. This leads to the discussion of the current and future direction for teaching that emphasizes the discourse level of speech with an eye toward developing interactional competence at the macro level of communication. Studies have shown that improvement in the functional use of prosody contributes to higher production ratings for L2 speakers (Wennerstrom, 1998).

PRAGMATIC DEVELOPMENT IN A SECOND LANGUAGE. Gabriele Kasper and Kenneth R. Rose. Oxford: Blackwell, 2002. Pp. x + 352. $36.95 paper.

The goal for this useful volume is to survey and evaluate research on pragmatic development of second language learners. In the first chapter, Kasper and Rose note that numerous studies in crosscultural pragmatics assess nonnatives' language use and contrast it with the performance of natives but that relatively few studies have focused on how language learners' pragmatic abilities change and develop over time. For researchers in SLA, however, this question of development is central.

A PHILOSOPHY OF SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION. Marysia Johnson. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2004. Pp. ix + 207. $40.00 paper.

Johnson states “the purpose of this book is twofold…to introduce the reader to Lev Vygotsky's sociocultural theory (SCT) and Mikhail Bakhtin's literary theory…. Second, … to discuss the existing cognitive bias in SLA theory and research” (p. 1). To this end, the book is divided into two parts: Part 1, which focuses on a review of traditional cognitive approaches to SLA research, and Part 2, which focuses on a more sociocultural perspective, reviewing the theories of Vygotsky and Bakhtin and culminating in Johnson's proposal for a dialogic approach to SLA research.

VALUES IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING. Bill Johnston. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum, 2003. Pp. xiii + 171. $45.00 cloth, $24.50 paper.

In a world marred by political instability, social inequality, and ethnic and cultural intolerance, Johnston's book comes as a strong reminder that teaching is not a neutral act. The theoretical framework behind the seven chapters of the book is the centrality of morality and values in English language teaching (ELT).

NOUN COMBINATION IN INTERLANGUAGE: TYPOLOGY EFFECTS IN COMPLEX DETERMINER PHRASES. Christiane Bongartz. Tübingen: Niemeyer, 2002. Pp. xv + 161. 48.00 € paper.

Bongartz's monograph uses a crosslinguistic typological approach to examine the impact of first language (L1) noun combination strategies on the development of analogic interlanguage forms. A three-language comparison of the typologically distinct languages Czech, Chinese, and English shows two basic noun combination patterns: phrasal combinations and the use of incorporation strategies for the creation of compounds. Czech prefers phrasal combinations, English allows for both phrasal combinations and compounds, whereas Chinese is at the opposite end of the typological continuum insofar as it demonstrates a preference for compounds. Empirical data from Czech and Chinese learners of English as a second language reveal that L1 combination preferences indeed affect which English strategy is chosen: Czech learners use phrasal combinations more often and Chinese learners prefer compounds.

INVISIBLE WORK: BILINGUALISM, LANGUAGE CHOICE, AND CHILDREARING IN INTERMARRIED FAMILIES. Toshie Okita. Amsterdam: Benjamins, 2002. Pp. vi + 274. $102.00 cloth.

In recent years, studies of bilingualism and SLA have paid increasing attention to the contexts in which languages are acquired and used. This broadened perspective has led scholars to combine insights from a number of different disciplines. In this highly original study, Okita combines insights from studies of families, ethnicity, and bilingualism to examine the factors that promote or inhibit Japanese maintenance by the children of British fathers and Japanese mothers living in Britain. The result is a finely nuanced study that illustrates the difficulties of maintaining a minority language in a setting that provides few sources of institutional support.

Publications received.

WASHBACK IN LANGUAGE TESTING: RESEARCH CONTEXTS AND METHODS. Liying Cheng, Yoshinori Watanabe, and Andy Curtis (Eds.). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum, 2004. Pp. xxi + 233. $27.50 paper.

Since Alderson and Wall (1993) posited a seemingly rhetorical question, “Does washback exist?” language testing professionals have directed attention to the impact of testing on teaching, learning, educational outcomes, and individuals. This edited volume is the culmination of language testing professionals' conscious efforts to better understand washback. It bears rich testimony to the complex nature of washback phenomena in every corner of educational systems. It is a useful resource for those seeking guidance on their own washback studies—for teachers and school administrators who are haunted by the power of tests and for those who need empirical evidence for and against test washback in specific testing situations.

ACCENTS AND SPEECH IN TEACHING ENGLISH PHONETICS AND PHONOLOGY. Ewa Waniek-Klimczak and Patrick James Melia (Eds). Bern: Peter Lang, 2002. Pp. 358. $62.95 paper.

This volume is a potpourri of articles written mostly by Polish scholars (all but four authors are from Polish universities; the others are from universities in Croatia, Slovenia, and England). Because of the shear number of articles (24), space limitations preclude my providing more than a brief summary and comments.

In SSLA 26:3 (September 2004), an error was introduced in the conclusion of Alison Mackey's review of Robinson, P. (Ed.). (2001). Cognition and second language instruction. The final two sentences should read: “This book takes a perspective on the field that involves exploring the connections between SLA and aspects of human cognition, such as attention, awareness, and memory as well as the role of individual differences in SLA and L2 learning conditions. It provides an excellent overview of theoretical as well as instructional issues in cognition and L2 instruction.”

AN INTRODUCTION TO APPLIED LINGUISTICS. Norbert Schmitt (Ed.). London: Arnold, 2002. Pp. viii + 344. $72.00 cloth, $25.00 paper.

Applied linguistics is currently undergoing interesting developments connected with new research areas and tools. At the same time, there exist numerous introductory textbooks to various subbranches and general overviews of the discipline. The present volume is yet another addition to the field, covering both traditional areas and approaches as well as more recent tendencies. In his preface, Schmitt describes the book as a “broad overview of applied linguistics” written at “the ‘sophisticated introduction’ level” (p. vii). The book is indeed broad in scope and sophisticatedly simple. It opens with a concise overview of applied linguistics, followed by three major parts devoted to the description of language and language use, major areas of inquiry, and language skills and assessment, respectively. Part 1 covers grammar, vocabulary, discourse analysis, pragmatics, and corpus linguistics. Part 2 investigates SLA, psycholinguistics, sociolinguistics, and the language learner. Finally, Part 3 covers listening, speaking and pronunciation, reading, writing, and assessment. The book concludes with suggested solutions to the activities, references for individual chapters, and an index. The chapters, authored by 31 leading experts, are all organized in similar fashion, with introductory discussion and appropriate definitions, further analyses, notes on possible implementations and implications for language teaching and research, numerous quotations from source literature, annotated further readings, and stimulating hands-on activities.

(IN)VULNERABLE DOMAINS IN MULTILINGUALISM. Natascha Müller (Ed.). Amsterdam: Benjamins, 2003. Pp. xiv + 374. $90.00 cloth.

This volume is the first in the series Hamburg studies in multilingualism and consists of an introduction and 11 articles, based on presentations at two conferences at the Hamburg Multilingualism Research Centre in July 1999.

THE HANDBOOK OF HISTORICAL LINGUISTICS. Brian D. Joseph and Richard D. Janda (Eds.). Oxford: Blackwell, 2003. Pp. xviii + 882. $146.95 cloth.

This is the latest of some 15 volumes in Blackwell's series Handbooks in Linguistics. The volume reviewed here—although not without interest to specialists in SLA—is probably of less interest to readers of this journal than others of the series (e.g., The handbook of second language acquisition edited by Doughty & Long, 2003). All volumes included in the series are handbooks only in the sense of including presentations of basic knowledge; in reality, they are lengthy books that go well beyond such basics. Closely related to this title is The handbook of language variation and change (Chambers, Trudgill, & Schilling-Estes, 2003), which is concerned with the interface of historical and sociolinguistics.

CRITICAL PEDAGOGIES AND LANGUAGE LEARNING. Bonny Norton and Kelleen Toohey (Eds.). New York: Cambridge University Press, 2003. Pp. xiii + 362. $77.00 cloth, $28.00 paper.

Language is not simply communication; rather, it is a practice that constructs the ways language learners understand themselves and their social surroundings. This collection assembles the work of 22 scholars interested in critical perspectives on language education in different sites of practice. They investigate how social relationships and issues of power are centrally important in developing critical language education pedagogies.

AN INTRODUCTION TO CONTACT LINGUISTICS. Donald Winford. Oxford: Blackwell, 2003. Pp. xvii + 416. $77.95 cloth, $38.95 paper.

Winford begins with a thorough review of the literature on language contact and an outline of the areas of dispute—for instance, challenges to the family tree view of language change and the resistance of many to accept explanations for change that are not internally motivated. He believes that more debate is necessary concerning the degree of language mixing in all languages and laments the continued belief held by some historical linguists that contact-induced change plays little—if any—role in change.

ECOLOGY OF LANGUAGE ACQUISITION. Jonathan Leather and Jet van Dam (Eds.). Dordrecht: Kluwer, 2003. Pp xiv + 225. $88.00 cloth.

This volume contains 11 papers on various aspects of language acquisition both in first language (L1) and second language (L2) from an ecological perspective. This approach departs from generative grammar by rejecting both its theoretical and methodological axioms. It first questions the generative assumption that language is a mental state determined by human biology and experience. In its stead, proponents of the ecological view treat language as an entity inseparable from the speakers and their social network (Leather & van Dam, chapter 1). Methodologically, they dismiss generative grammar's essential tenet that competence should be investigated independently of performance; along with this, they also reject idealization in the study of language and language acquisition. Leather and van Dam also presume a priori the nonexistence of context-free meanings (cf. Higginbotham, 1988). As for language acquisition, they claim that the notion of primary linguistic data is too narrow; rather, data in other forms such as gestures and deictic motion are equally relevant in language acquisition. Although both the generative and ecological approaches emphasize individual language learners, for the former, language development constitutes the normal human biology, triggered by sensory input (Chomsky, 1995), whereas for the latter, it results from the interaction of the individuals and their cultural environment.