There is a substantial introduction which covers the etymology of “fuck”, the censorship it has received, and the way in which the word has emerged into wider usage from having been absolutely taboo. Because bilingual resources make stories in your target language way more accessible and hassle-free, they’re truly an ideal tool for language learners. Dual language books (or DLBs for short, as they are sometimes known) are books in which the whole book is written in two languages throughout, in as close a translation as possible. Learning a language becomes fun and easy when you learn with movie trailers, music videos, news and inspiring talks. Fyodor Dostoevsky’s “Crime and Punishment” in this Russian-English bilingual volume is a snap to read.

The judges of the Royal Society Young People’s Book Prize look for books that explain high quality science in an engaging and accessible way. She offers information on enormous amounts of supporting slang – truckers’ slang, college slang and all that kind of thing. Many parts of the NHS also produce dual language resources to help patients access healthcare services in the UK. It can be particularly difficult to track down dual language works if you are looking for languages outside the UN “Big Six” list of Spanish, Russian, French, English, Chinese and Arabic.I’ve put Julie Coleman in because she does stand out in the relatively small circle of slang experts. They’re useful in the classroom or other language learning arena; they’re useful as an addition to a child’s bookcase (or an adult’s collection, come to that); and they’re useful as an aide-memoire. Try to choose at least some books that have more idiomatic language to increase your ability to know and use lingo appropriately.

If you’ve ever used Google Translate or other automated translation software to translate a language, and then, just for fun, translate what you have back into the original language, you’ll know there is absolutely no substitute for a native speaker translation. You may also sometimes hear them described as parallel texts although these are also sometimes used to transpose an older type of language into modern words, as with Chaucer or medieval French. If you want to find the starting point at which to look at slang, rhyming slang, back slang and a variety of other sub-sets, plus a very good assessment of what was available in terms of slang lexicography in 1859, then Hotten’s your man. His tour of the continent is a richly diverting exercise, organised into sections on languages and their families, history, politics, writing, vocabulary, grammar and state of endangeredness. It’s definitely less frustrating to read without having to use a translation app or dictionary, and bilingual e-books (as opposed to just bilingual books) also have the added advantage of separate dictionary look-ups if you’re using an e-reader like a Kindle.

Rather than translate directly, word for word, with no interpretation, dual language translators take into account the cultural and linguistic differences and similarities all the way through.