Time for a new project! But this is one I can’t do on my own, so here comes a crowd sourcing request!

Do we find usage guides on display in bookshops? Or other types of books that deal with language and that are directed at a general audience? The Dutch term for such publications is taalboekjes, inexpensive books for the popular market that are written for (linguistic) entertainment rather than education.

In a pilot search, I found different practices between bookshops in different countries (the UK, The Netherlands, Germany). Here are two examples. The first is a picture I took in Foyles (London, city centre) in the summer of 2022, where I was surprised to find an old hand like Partridge side by side with a new usage guide I hadn’t heard about, Writing Wrongs by Robert Martin (2017).

The second one I took last Saturday in a fairly large bookshop in a small town called Almelo (75,000 people) in the east of The Netherlands (my home country), which I happened to be visiting during my summer holidays this year. It showed only taalboekjes and dictionaries. (Taalboekjes were present in Foyles, too, like Have You Eaten Grandma? in the above picture.)

So … if you happen to step into a bookshop wherever you are – and most of us can’t resist the temptation, I know from experience – please look for the language section (as in the above pictures), take a snapshot with your phone and mail me the picture! This will help me create a database which I will be able to use for proper research on the topic. Your help will of course be acknowledged!

Email: i.m.tieken@hum.leidenuniv.nl