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If Eats, Shoots & Leaves lays down the law, Weeds in the Garden of Words picks it right up again. Or, at least, makes you feel better if you do so.

Weeds in the Garden of Words is a fascinating cultural history of the language we use. It’s not particularly useful if you want a concise style guide, but it can come in very useful at parties or in heated arguments about grammar.

It’s divided into sections that you can dip into, much like a gardening book (it’s obvious the author is a keen gardener), so if you need quick backup from an academic on your heretical position on grammar, it’s easy to find.

Perhaps the most interesting part of Weeds is the story of how language evolves. Take, for instance, the F word. Originally spelt and pronounced “firk”, it originally meant to hit or bang. Just goes to show we as a race have dirty minds!

There is also some news that will be welcome to some: apostrophes are a dying breed. People just can’t handle them properly, so they will probably disappear in favour of something easier. What that ’something easier’ will be is anyone’s guess.

If you don’t mind the odd digression into gardening, Weeds in the Garden of Words is a very good read indeed.