If you're anactressor acoedjust trying to do aman-size job, ayes-manwhoturns a deaf earto somesob sister, anheiressaboard heryacht, or abookwormenjoying aboy's night out, Diane Ravitch's internationally acclaimedThe Language Policehas bad news for you: Erase those words from your vocabulary! Textbook publishers and state education agencies have sought to root out racist, sexist, and elitist language in classroom and library materials. But according to Diane Ravitch, a leading historian of education, what began with the best of intentions has veered toward bizarre extremes. At a time when we celebrate and encourage diversity, young readers are fed bowdlerized texts, devoid of the references that give these works their meaning and vitality. With forceful arguments and sensible solutions for rescuing American education from the pressure groups that have made classrooms bland and uninspiring,The Language Policeoffers a powerful corrective to a cultural scandal.