A Talking Book with a Talking Dog! [Review]

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Title: The Talking Book
Author: Jane De Suza
Publisher: Puffin
Type: Paperback
Pages: 216
Age group: 10 – 12 years (older readers will enjoy this book as well)

Jane De Suza, an award winning author and advertising veteran, has come up with a compelling creative work on ‘communication’. As The Talking Book blurb says…the wild journey of communication – from caveman to AI.

Jane’s well researched and well written book traces the story of communication from prehistoric times, through the dark ages, and meanders finally into the age of AI. It’s a fun read for all age groups, with an interesting design (that makes it easy to read even for non non-fiction enthusiasts!) and a “wise-cracking” dog!

Everything we learnt in our history books and GK Quizzes becomes larger than life here. Early Caveman to Indus Valley Civilization to bird brains and animal calls. You have to read to discover the rich nuances of communication.

The author in her foreword poses interesting questions:
-why can’t a chimp that shares 98% of our DNA talk like us humans?
-where do a thousand new words appear from every year?
-And finally the AI leap: will we end up talking without speaking!

The nuggets keep coming page after page. For example, the Oxford University Press commissioned the task of compiling a dictionary. The largest contributor with roughly 10,000 words, was Dr Manor, a convicted murderer! The more famous wordsmiths are also featured, from William Shakespeare to John Milton to Dr Seuss.

Dive in to understand animal speak, bird chirping and whale singing as well as the art of ciphers, codes, conlangs.

This book teases you as much as it teaches you. Think Cave Popcorn, 3000 year old Emojis, Laughing Tablets. Interesting? Read on to unravel the mystery of language. The Talking Book will leave you speechless, asking for more. A rare family collectible!

The author’s previous books include When the World Went Dark, Flyaway Boy, Uncool and the SuperZero Series. Our daughter Aarini, was “blown away” by Flyaway Boy and that initiated her journey of exploring books on different kinds of themes, and not just her preferred mystery/thriller/funny books.

If you enjoyed this review and are intrigued to buy the book from Amazon (kbc affiliate link),

CLICK & BUY NOW!

Disclaimer: Vinay is part of the #kbcReviewerSquad and received this book as a review copy from the publisher via kbc.