The book delivered what I had hoped for: easily consumable but nuanced descriptions of twenty of the most commonly spoken languages on the planet. What I wasn't expecting was for it to be so funny. I thoroughly enjoyed the author's appreciation for language and his dry wit.

Each chapter has a surprisingly varied tone. Initially I found this unpleasant, but over time I appreciated the variations. Some chapters focus on the language's social history, some focus on a linguistic quirk, some are brief or lightweight, some are lengthy or linguistics-heavy. I appreciated the author using whatever method seemed best suited to what they found interesting to share about the language, rather than trying to fit all the languages into one mold.

While I agree with the complaints of other readers, namely that some languages seem to get short shrift, I feel I can't possibly give less than 5 stars to a book that I highlighted as extensively as I did this text. (>100, although I tried to be sparing with what I made public).

It was an easy book to pick up and put down. I read it in short bits over several weeks, most of it over a vacation. I suspect frustrated readers were reading it in one or two sessions or otherwise less casually.

I will say that I was surprised by how few sources were listed at the end of the book. I’m hoping that the author ultimately used more and only listed their primary sources. I did feel comforted that when I asked a native speaker of a language - and native resident of the culture described - about details I found surprising, they confirmed that the author was correct. (They in fact said almost the exact same thing, word for word.)

I appreciate that the author is not a native speaker of the language in which he wrote the book. His personal multilingual experience, I think, provided a richer perspective.