"...it is a rewarding [book] both in what it tells us about the families we have had the privilege to hear indirectly and for what it shows about the ability of fine analysis to illuminate the culture of speakers."—Journal of Sociolinguistics"Blum-Kulka's book is a valuable resource for both sociolinguists and sociologists of language who are interested in pragmatic socialization and cross-cultural analysis. The work will be of interest to those who explore the construction of cultural identity in talk, as well as those more specifically concerned with cultureal divergence among American and Israeli Jewish communities. The study also serves as an excellent example of the micro-analytic approach to questions about the relationship between language and culture."—Language in Society"A child's illness and death is a family tragedy, terrifying and ultimately devastating for every member of the family. Too often we give little attention to the child's siblings. Fanos brings home to us with insight and compassion the siblings' reactions: their resentments, their guilts, their fears, and their deep and persisting sense of loss. This book should be consulted regularly by all parents of seriously ill children, and it should be on the desk of all professionals who would provide parents of seriously ill children with support and counsel or provide siblings of seriously ill children with understanding."—Robert S. WeissUniversity of Massachusetts, Boston"You will never sit down at dinner with your family again, without thinking of this book. It shows how the simple act of sharing a meal can be a mechanism for teaching children, for expressing one's identity, and for transmitting one's culture."—Catherine SnowHarvard University

• Contents: Introduction: Cultural Patterns of Communication Method. Part I: Cultural Styles of Sociability. The Dynamics of Dinner Talk. Topical Actions and Thematic Frames. Telling, Tales and Tellers in Family Narrative Events. Part II: Patterns of Pragmatic Socialization. Politeness in Family Discourse: The Traffic of Control Acts. Metapragmatic Discourse at Dinner. Bilingual Socialization: The Intercultural Style of the American Israeli Families. Conclusion: Family, Talk and Culture.

"...it is a rewarding [book] both in what it tells us about the families we have had the privilege to hear indirectly and for what it shows about the ability of fine analysis to illuminate the culture of speakers."—Journal of Sociolinguistics"Blum-Kulka's book is a valuable resource for both sociolinguists and sociologists of language who are interested in pragmatic socialization and cross-cultural analysis. The work will be of interest to those who explore the construction of cultural identity in talk, as well as those more specifically concerned with cultureal divergence among American and Israeli Jewish communities. The study also serves as an excellent example of the micro-analytic approach to questions about the relationship between language and culture."—Language in Society"A child's illness and death is a family tragedy, terrifying and ultimately devastating for every member of the family. Too often we give little attention to the child's siblings. Fanos brings home to us with insight and compassion the siblings' reactions: their resentments, their guilts, their fears, and their deep and persisting sense of loss. This book should be consulted regularly by all parents of seriously ill children, and it should be on the desk of all professionals who would provide parents of seriously ill children with support and counsel or provide siblings of seriously ill children with understanding."—Robert S. WeissUniversity of Massachusetts, Boston"You will never sit down at dinner with your family again, without thinking of this book. It shows how the simple act of sharing a meal can be a mechanism for teaching children, for expressing one's identity, and for transmitting one's culture."—Catherine SnowHarvard University

• Contents: Introduction: Cultural Patterns of Communication Method. Part I: Cultural Styles of Sociability. The Dynamics of Dinner Talk. Topical Actions and Thematic Frames. Telling, Tales and Tellers in Family Narrative Events. Part II: Patterns of Pragmatic Socialization. Politeness in Family Discourse: The Traffic of Control Acts. Metapragmatic Discourse at Dinner. Bilingual Socialization: The Intercultural Style of the American Israeli Families. Conclusion: Family, Talk and Culture.