Book excerpt: This Language, A River is an introduction to the history of English that recognizes multiple varieties of the language in both current and historical contexts. The book aims to enable students to both grasp traditional histories of English and to extend and complicate those histories. This accompanying workbook includes exercises keyed to each chapter of the textbook. Exercises are graded into beginning, intermediate, and advanced groupings, which will aid in making the textbook appropriate for different levels of students.