This is a student's guide to the whole process of studying English, and as such begins with the key question of what denotes “English” studies. The writer is Canadian, so it appears particularly important for him to establish the extent to which any books written in the English language might be included, when the term English actually denotes “British” and the extent to which language and literature are differentiated.
Whitla's first section on “What is English and what is literature”, encompasses an overview of the historical perspective, literary periods, views, “canons” of the literature and four approaches to the past. Having set the scene he takes the reader through what he terms “foundational skills” – ways of reading text, of finding and annotating sources and of writing, beginning each time with first principles and following the process through.
He then moves to the major genres of literature – drama, fiction, poetry. The final section is on theory and becomes the meatiest for the reader. Here we find described the three strands of linguistics, rhetoric and stylistics, followed by a chapter on recent critical practice and a final one on the politics of reading.
Each chapter contains short lists of further reading and websites of interest. The index is comprehensive and there is a list of all references alphabetically by author. Dotted through the text are useful tables and help boxes on a range of topics. These would have benefited from a separate listing for ease of reference.
The book is very accessible for undergraduate students and might also benefit some students of English in the sixth‐form. Mature readers wishing to take a more systematic study of English literature would also find it helpful. It is the sort of book that might be worth buying oneself for dipping into as required, and in paperback is reasonably modestly priced. It would certainly be helpful to students to have multiple copies available in their academic libraries.
