Given a dramatic increase in the number of young learners of English throughout the world in recent years and a general lack of understanding about beginning-level second language (L2) reading processes, this volume is quite timely. As the subtitle suggests, this volume provides an examination of the ways in which first language (L1) linguistic features can influence L2 reading at the bottom of the reading process. Intended for English as a second language (ESL) or English as a foreign language (EFL) reading researchers, teachers, and teacher trainers, it offers an account of bottom-up reading processes and, as such, attempts to provide balance to a field that might have been characterized by a greater emphasis on top-down strategies. However, the author's position is not that of abandoning the whole language ideology. Rather, she maintains that supplementing whole language with a systematic focus on bottom-up strategies can strengthen an overall L2 literacy program, making it truly holistic and comprehensive.

As a teacher educator in a Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) program who has taught ESL reading methods courses for a number of years, I think most teachers-in-training and graduate students will find the information covered in this work helpful as an introduction to L2 reading. In chapter 1, the author provides an overview of research on reading acquisition and describes reading as an interactive (both top-down and bottom-up) process. Much of her discussion draws from L1 reading literature, and she is correct to point out that there is a severe dearth of empirical research on L2 reading. Chapter 2 offers a description of various common writing systems (logographic, syllabic, and alphabetic) and their differences. Chapter 3 explains the L2 reading strategies developed by readers in response to their own writing systems (Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, Hebrew, other alphabets, or transparent Roman alphabetic systems) and explicates how low-level processing strategies could either aid or hinder L2 English reading. It is argued that the more different the L1 and L2 writing systems are—for example, between Chinese and English as opposed to between Spanish and English—the more likely it is that transfer from the L1 will interfere with L2 reading.

Chapter 4 explores the relationship between pronunciation and reading. Contrary to the popular assumption that accurate pronunciation is directly linked to reading, the author argues that accurate listening comprehension is a better indicator of success in L2 reading than pronunciation. Chapters 5–8 advocate direct instruction in English phonics and spelling and show that English writing follows fairly consistent morphophonemic spelling rules that, if taught systematically, can be learned successfully by L2 learners of English. The exercises in the “Workbook Supplement” section should help readers review important concepts such as phonemes and allophones as well as onsets, rimes, and decoding by analogy. Finally, chapters 9 and 10 discuss strategies for learning vocabulary and developing fluency.

Overall, the author's goal of empowering teachers to become better able to address specific student needs while maintaining their whole language methodology seems to be met. However, readers interested in more in-depth explorations of L2 reading processes will find the volume's treatment of key research questions wanting. For example, the case histories of English learners of various L1 backgrounds in chapter 3 are rather skimpy and are mostly about their L1 writing systems, which are but one aspect of their backgrounds. The reader is left wondering about numerous other important details such as the students' prior schooling and literacy experiences, learning styles, and motivations for immigration among other things, all of which have considerable influence on how the L2 is learned. Additionally, many of the questions about L2 reading are still open-ended (e.g., Are the strategies developed by readers of opaque writing systems such as Arabic useful for reading English? To be a fluent reader of English, is it necessary to have English brain activation?). However, this is surely no fault of the author's, as there is currently little research on L2 reading processes. Indeed, it is the author's goal to stimulate more researchers to explore this “relatively uncharted ‘ocean’ with vigor, persistence, and imagination” (p. x).

On the whole, this would be a suitable textbook in a reading methods course if combined with a text that focuses more on hands-on techniques in teaching reading. It should also be required reading for those interested in undertaking L2 reading research. We need many more books like this.