SITUATION-BOUND UTTERANCES IN Ll AND L2. Istvan Kecskes. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter, 2003. Pp. x + 228. $118 cloth.

This volume discusses issues related to situation-bound utterances (SBUs)—a particular type of formulaic expression—from a cognitive-pragmatic perspective. It consists of an introduction, nine chapters, and a conclusion. The introduction defines SBUs, briefly presents the theoretical framework, and points to the key topics to be discussed in the book. These key topics include the distinction between linguistic and conceptual knowledge (chapter 1). This is important to Kecskes' dynamic model of meaning (DMM), which consists of culture-specific conceptual properties (CSCP)—or attributes of a particular concept—at the conceptual level and word-specific semantic properties (WSP) at the lexical level. Uniting these two levels yields the coresense of the SBU, the most salient decontextualized sense of the utterance. This contrasts with the SBUs' consenses, or other senses that the utterance can have depending on the context (chapter 2). The sense that is accessed in a particular situation will depend on the salience of the various meanings to the hearer, which, in turn, depends on the hearer's prior knowledge as well as the contextual cues available, which can bias the interpretation toward a particular consense (chapter 3). It is hypothesized (chapter 4) that the more structurally and culturally similar the first language (L1) and second language (L2), the easier for the learner to interpret the meaning of SBUs in the L2 (chapter 4). This hypothesis is supported by empirical evidence in chapter 9. Interpretation of the meaning of a SBU can be difficult because the meaning is not usually readily transparent from its components (chapter 5). In this way, SBUs are unlike patterned formulas, which have a compositional structure and whose meanings are typically transparent and which, therefore, can play a role in the acquisition of grammar (chapter 7). Ultimately, in order to accurately interpret and appropriately use SBUs in the L2, learners must undergo a process of conceptual socialization. The knowledge base underlying their language use must be transformed from a system that is originally an Ll conceptual system to a dual-language system, thus forming a common underlying conceptual base (CUCB) for the two languages (chapter 8).

LINGUISTICS: A VERY SHORT INTRODUCTION. P. H. Matthews. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003. Pp. xiii + 134. $9.95 paper.

This volume belongs to Oxford's series of Very Short Introductions to topics, events, texts, philosophies, individuals, and places. Unlike many contemporary linguistic texts written for introductory college courses, its chapters do not proceed from one area of structural analysis to another and then conclude with a few chapters on topics such as language acquisition and writing systems. Instead, this book focuses on some of the more philosophical questions associated with the field, which, no doubt, hold greater interest for the public at large. The exploration of structures is left to supporting examples and a chapter on sounds near the end of the book.

THE HANDBOOK OF APPLIED LINGUISTICS. Alan Davies and Catherine Elder (Eds.). Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, 2004. Pp. x + 866. $146.95 cloth.

Davies and Elder's volume is the latest in the Blackwell series of Handbooks in Linguistics. In this volume, the editors compile over 30 newly commissioned, well-written, and comprehensive articles that provide an in-depth view of the field of applied linguistics. Unlike Cook's (2003) recent introduction to applied linguistics for nonspecialists, the Davies and Elder volume shares the same intended audience—students and researchers in applied linguistics, language teaching, and SLA—as the works of McCarthy (2001), McDonough (2002), and Seidlhofer (2003). Because of its comprehensive nature, this volume would best serve as a reference tool for SLA scholars and applied linguists rather than as a course text.

MODERN LANGUAGES ACROSS THE CURRICULUM. Michael Grenfell (Ed.). New York: RoutledgeFalmer, 2002. Pp. 222. $39.95 paper.

The European Union has succeeded in breaking down monetary and legal barriers among its members. This volume presents a program for breaking down linguistic barriers by teaching European languages in primary and secondary schools using the approach of Modern Languages Across the Curriculum (MLAC), what is essentially called content-based instruction in the United States.

SECOND LANGUAGE SPEECH PERCEPTION AND PRODUCTION: ACQUISITION OF PHONOLOGICAL CONTRASTS IN JAPANESE. Takako Toda. Landam, MD: University Press of America, 2003. Pp. 213. $63.00 cloth.

This volume is an investigation into second language (L2) phonology. The subject of Toda's study is the development of the syllable timing system of Japanese by learners who are native speakers of English. Toda points out that acquiring a L2 phonology involves more than producing the language without an accent. It is also necessary to develop a system of representations and rules that will govern language use. English and Japanese differ in that while English relies on stress to determine syllable weight, Japanese uses time. This study investigates the extent to which learners of Japanese as a L2 have acquired that aspect of the Japanese syllable and makes use of both perception and production tasks. One of the assumptions of this study—an assumption founded on previous studies in L2 phonology—is that perception and production are interrelated, but that they are not mirror images of one another.

Publications received.