The aim of this book is to provide an introduction to the study of topics related to African American English (AAE). The focus is on presenting a description of AAE and explaining the types of rules that speakers follow when they speak it. This book evolved from plans to collaborate on a similar project with John R. Rickford, who is a leading scholar in the field and a great teacher. I gratefully acknowledge his foresight and the key role he played during the early stages of this work.

In this book and my overall research on AAE, I try to show that speakers know more than just a few unique words and phrases when they know AAE and that the variety is not a version of bad English. The book is divided into eight chapters, whose themes center on linguistic and social issues in the study of AAE. Each chapter begins with a focal point, which highlights the major thrust of the discussion, and a quote that makes a relevant point or includes an example of a linguistic construction that is addressed in the chapter. Each chapter ends with a summary and exercises that can be used in applying the material discussed in separate sections.

This book is intended for students who are taking general courses that address AAE as well as for those who want to learn about the ways in which the variety is systematic. The book may be of interest to educators and those in education-related fields.