Delivered in a style that is highly engaging, as well as thought provoking, The Cultural Memory of Language offers a fascinating insight into the experience of people who do not share the first language of their parents (PL1). Samata takes the reader on a journey that combines academic insight with a personal connection to the project. That current of personalisation, which recurs throughout the research, is a refreshing perspective that brings [her scholarship] to life ... [This book] is written in a style that informs the specialist, as well as the intelligent general reader, and provides a highly useful addition to an under-researched area.

Language in Society

A very moving, ethnographically sensitive and theoretically supported study of four immigrants who have little or no knowledge of the language of their parents but feel a strong cultural affiliation to that language. Its cross-disciplinary orientation, grounded in insights from language attrition studies, social psychology, sociolinguistics, cultural memory studies and distributed language studies, combined with a highly reflexive research stance can serve as a model of applied linguistic research for doctoral students and researchers alike.

Claire Kramsch, Professor of German and Affiliate Professor of Education, University of California at Berkeley, USA

This book represents the long-awaited contribution of applied linguistics to cultural memory studies. A wonderfully interdisciplinary study and a fascinating read.

Astrid Erll, Professor of Anglophone Literatures and Cultures, Goethe-University Frankfurt am Main, Germany

This brilliant interdisciplinary book focuses on individuals who have (partly) forgotten or not fully acquired the parental language, and who face the sometimes unexpected social and psychological consequences. Gripping stuff!

Jean-Marc Dewaele, Professor in Applied Linguistics and Multilingualism, Birkbeck College, University of London, UK