With language ideology as a central topic in sociolinguistic research, linguistic purism has become an increasingly popular area. Olivia Walsh's investigation of purism, by examining the actual language circumstances in French and by making comparisons with that of the French-speaking community in Quebec, enriches our understanding regarding the operation of purism in different sociocultural contexts.

The book contains seven chapters. Chapter 1 introduces the aim and the scope of the study. Chapter 2 provides an overview of linguistic purism and introduces George Thomas's framework for describing and evaluating linguistic purism. The development of purist French in France and Quebec is then delineated to offer readers background information on the case studies drawn upon throughout the course of the book. In chapter 3, Walsh makes a comparative analysis of language policy and planning at the official level in France and Quebec, in which the stated aims of the linguistic legislation and terminology commissions in two research sites are examined, and the respective outcomes are presented. Findings suggest discrepancies between stated attitudes and purist behavior in practice. While, in practice, the Québécois terminology commissions have a less purist rationale than their French counterparts, they enact a more elaborated purification cycle. In chapter 4, the author analyzes a number of French and Québécois societies dedicated to the promotion and protection of the French language in relation to language use, activities, and aims. The Quebec societies are found to be markedly more purist than the French ones, with the latter displaying more language-based cultural purism.

Chapter 5 compares individuals’ purist attitudes in France and Quebec. Attitudes towards the French language, the English language, and anglicisms are examined and contributory factors analyzed. The chapter also looks at the attitudes that respondents hold towards particular categories of anglicisms and the use of French. The quantitative data indicate a higher level of external purism among Québécois respondents, while French respondents display an internal elitist orientation. Moreover, despite the positive attitude towards English among both French and Quebec respondents, they have a negative attitude towards anglicisms. Chapter 6 discusses the qualitative findings on purist attitudes among respondents, such as the attitudes towards anglicisms, ‘errors’, the perceived qualities of the French language, the associations between the French language and national identity, and government intervention in the domain of language. The analytical results confirm the findings from chapter 5, showing that French respondents exhibit a higher level of internal purism. In chapter 7, a follow-up questionnaire is used to test findings generated in previous chapters, focusing in particular on respondents’ attitudes towards anglicisms and the ‘incorrect’ usage of French. It further reinforces the finding that respondents from France are more oriented to internal purism than Quebec respondents. Chapter 8 concludes by summarizing the major findings and pointing to future research directions. The work will be of interest to scholars of linguistic purism, language ideology, language policy and planning, and to scholars of Francophone and French studies.