{"product_id":"ok-the-improbable-story-of-americas-greatest-word-9780195377934","title":"Ok: The Improbable Story of America's Greatest Word","description":"It is said to be the most frequently spoken (or typed) word on the planet, more common than an infant's first word \u003cem\u003ema\u003c\/em\u003e or the ever-present beverage \u003cem\u003eCoke\u003c\/em\u003e. It was even the first word spoken on the moon. It is OK--the most ubiquitous and invisible of American expressions, one used countless times every day. Yet few of us know the hidden history of OK--how it was coined, what it stood for, and the amazing extent of its influence. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Allan Metcalf, a renowned popular writer on language, here traces the evolution of America's most popular word, writing with brevity and wit, and ranging across American history with colorful portraits of the nooks and crannies in which OK survived and prospered. He describes how OK was born as a lame joke in a newspaper article in 1839--used as a supposedly humorous abbreviation for oll korrect (ie, all correct)--but should have died a quick death, as most clever coinages do. But OK was swept along in a nineteenth-century fad for abbreviations, was appropriated by a presidential campaign (one of the candidates being called Old Kinderhook), and finally was picked up by operators of the telegraph. Over the next century and a half, it established a firm toehold in the American lexicon, and eventually became embedded in pop culture, from the I'm OK, You're OK of 1970's transactional analysis, to Ned Flanders' absurd Okeley Dokeley! Indeed, OK became emblematic of a uniquely American attitude, and is one of our most successful global exports. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAn appealing and informative history of OK.\u003cbr\u003e--\u003cem\u003eWashington Post Book World\u003c\/em\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAfter reading Metcalf's book, it's easy to accept his claim that OK is 'America's greatest word.'\u003cbr\u003e--Erin McKean, \u003cem\u003eBoston Globe\u003c\/em\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eEntertaininga treat for logophiles. \u003cbr\u003e--\u003cem\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/em\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eMetcalf makes you acutely aware of how ubiquitous and vital the word has become.\u003cbr\u003e--Jeremy McCarter, \u003cem\u003eNewsweek\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Allan Metcalf\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Oxford University Press, USA\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 11\/09\/2010\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 224\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.63lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 7.25h x 5.31w x 0.79d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780195377934\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eChoice\u003c\/i\u003e 04\/01\/2011\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eChronicle of Higher Education\u003c\/i\u003e 10\/01\/2010 pg. 18\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eNewsweek\u003c\/i\u003e 11\/08\/2010 pg. 55\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eNew York Times Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e 11\/21\/2010 pg. 9\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAllan Metcalf \u003c\/strong\u003eis Professor of English at MacMurray College and Executive Secretary of the American Dialect Society. He is the author of many other books on language, including most recently\u003cem\u003e Presidential Voices: Speaking Styles from George Washington to George W. Bush\u003c\/em\u003e (2004). He participates in the Lingua Franca blog of the Chronicle of Higher Education.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eThis title is not returnable\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Oxford University Press, USA","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":40490331701363,"sku":"9.7802E+12","price":39.34,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0555\/9255\/0515\/products\/img_b8206872-c6b8-4301-8953-eba3d6584beb.jpg?v=1664888823","url":"https:\/\/bookstorenmore.com\/products\/ok-the-improbable-story-of-americas-greatest-word-9780195377934","provider":"Bookstore N More","version":"1.0","type":"link"}