Congressman Jose Serrano, for example, describes learning English from Frank Sinatra records. Cuban-American author Oscar Hijuelos picked it up as a sick little boy in an American hospital bed. Many find it a daunting ordeal; for others English came easily. But from TV personality Cristina Saralegui to Hall of Fame baseball player Orlando Cepeda, every last one remembers what it felt like to do battle with bizarre idioms, irregular verbs, and all the other incomprehensible intricacies that tangle the tongue. And of course, every new English speaker has a tale to tell: an immigrant yearning to assimilate and achieve, or a political exile suddenly alone and far from home, or a child who just wants to fit in. This wonderful, eclectic, inviting collection speaks to- and for- all of them, and goes directly to the heart of the national debate on language and immigration.

Tom Miller has been bringing us extraordinary stories of ordinary people for more than thirty years. His highly acclaimed travel books include The Panama Hat Trail, about South America, On the Boarder, an account of his adventures in the U.S.-Mexico frontier, Trading with the Enemy, which takes readers on his journews through Cuba, and, about the American Southwest, Jack Ruby's kitchen Sink. Additionally, he has edited two collections of travel essays, and his articles have appeared in Smithsonian, The New Yorker, The New York Times, LIFE, Natural History, and many other publications. He lives in Tucson, Arizona. More about Mr. Miller may be found at www.tommillerbooks.com.