Kay McCormick's book is a multifaceted analysis of language norms and language practices in the bilingual District Six of Cape Town (South Africa). District Six is probably the best-known inner city neighborhood of Cape Town: In the 1980s the eyes of the world witnessed the forced removal of many of its inhabitants and the brutal demolition of homes in yet another attempt by the apartheid government to get rid of a cosmopolitan and ethnically mixed area. The area is relatively well defined, and its language contact situation makes it an excellent site for the study of language alternation and code-switching.

McCormick's study is an in-depth approach to the norms and practices of language choice in Chapel Street, the only remaining sector of District Six. Chapel Street houses a linguistically mixed (Afrikaans-English) working-class population. The area was researched twice by McCormick with a 20-year interval (in the 1980s and in 1999–2000). During the first study the apartheid system was still in place; the second phase occurred after the transition to majority rule. McCormick's research involved an impressive proportion of Chapel Street's inhabitants, well spread out over the entire neighborhood. In addition to the functional patterns of language switching, McCormick also describes the local varieties of English and Afrikaans as well as the patterns of language switching within conversational turns.

The author starts off with a broad picture of the historical context of Cape Town's language situation and with an assessment of the (historical and social) context of District Six. This external description is followed by an analysis of the way District Six was perceived by its own inhabitants. This complex background (the actual situation as well as the perceived context) is then used as an explanatory basis for the language norms and practices (especially code-switching) which are dealt with in the main body of the book.

McCormick's original interest was in children's code-switching ability, but she soon realized that she had to look at language attitudes and practices on a much wider scale. She decided to combine meticulous analysis of excerpts (mostly recorded during conversations with children and adults) with interviews and with a close look at the context in which the interaction among institutions, language ideologies, and language practices takes place.

Language in Cape Town's District Six opens with an introduction that sets the tone: The author takes the social constructivist approach, implying a focus on the language user as someone who uses code-switching to create a localized identity and social meaning. Code-switching itself is seen as unproblematic and common (cf. Auer 1998, Dirim & Hieronymus 2003).

The second chapter covers the linguistic history of South Africa, concluding with a section that brings together the factors in the political and economic background that had an impact on the position (and the fate) of District Six. The perception of District Six is described in chap. 3. It includes a description of District Six's development as well as an appraisal of the area as a community with specific characteristics (in terms of employment, households, religion, education, and leisure). In the fourth chapter McCormick documents her approach and the data collection techniques used in both data-gathering rounds. Chap. 5 concentrates on the Chapel Street neighborhood, with a focus on its linguistic codes. The codes as such are covered, as well as their development. The author concludes with a summary of the changes to be taken into account when comparing her 1980s research with her more recent data.

In the next three chapters (6–8) the specific role of standard English, standard Afrikaans, and the local vernacular in individuals' language norms and use is approached from various angles. Chap. 6 deals with perceived norms and code choices in the family, the neighborhood, and the workplace. Chap. 7 deals with schools, a domain that obviously plays a major role in shaping the overall development of norms and practices. Chap. 8 goes into code-switching in bilingual dialogue. The brief chap. 9 links together the findings of the study as a whole.

The book has eight appendices, with information on the sources used, an annotated list of representations of District Six, an inventory of homes in the area in 1912, details on the corpus used, a discussion of the term Afrikaner, a linguistic characterization of the language varieties in the area, and examples of intra-clause code-switches.

Data from the 1980s research include written records and observations by the author herself and by others who were trained to observe types of interaction that were not accessible to the author (in the 1980s, contacts with whites were a possible hazard for many members of the target group). In 1999–2000, the author was again helped by assistant researchers.

By diligently combining various methods, McCormick was able to produce a multifaceted approach that makes possible a very thorough and insightful analysis. In the 1980s research period, for instance, she collected a corpus of 25 hours of interviews with children, supplemented by observations of school interaction, interviews with adults (to tap language ideologies and observe language practices), and interaction in meetings. The 1999–2000 research focused on a limited number of issues: the influence of wider political changes on language attitudes, the effect on the local vernacular of the shift toward English, and longitudinal changes in language proficiencies and preferences of children observed in the 1980s. The data for the second observation period comprise a total of 68 hours of tape-recorded interaction of 158 speakers (covering 38% of homes).

McCormick makes an important contribution on several levels. Definitely, her exploration of the factors that have shaped the community under consideration and have led to the local language ideologies is very insightful. It elucidates the puzzling and conflicting positions of languages (Afrikaans, English, and the local vernacular) in people's repertoires. McCormick's ethnographic description is an impressive example of the way various sources can be brought together to produce an encompassing picture of the system of code-switching norms and practices.

In her analysis of bilingual conversations, McCormick convincingly shows that an appropriate description of language alternation and code-switching requires clear distinctions (e.g., between language alternation and code-switching). Code-switching implies awareness of (symbolic) difference. In Chapel Street it almost always serves an identifiable purpose, but the author leaves room for macro factors as well, and she explicitly identifies a certain amount of “bilingual code in operation” that is not guided by social factors or discourse functions.

The chapter on language policies and practices in schools goes well beyond the role of education in language shift. As a matter of fact, the chapter demonstrates clearly that code choices have an institutional side (groups are formed on the basis of parents' official language choice). But other systems of code-switching and code selection take effect as well. Within school groups children are continuously busy constructing systems of symbolic values for various codes in particular situations. The latter is a pattern that can also be observed in the analysis of code-switching by adults at “formally constituted meetings.” Finally, the book provides a carefully composed and encompassing picture of the development of a situation of language contact, for an identifiable community, over a sizable time period.

As a whole, Language in Cape Town's District Six shows how a community of individual people at a particular time in history use language(s) as a resource, not only to construct an identity of their own (cf. Rampton 1995), but also to create, maintain, and manage their interpersonal relations. The book provides detailed insight into the complexity of the obvious shift toward English, which has apparently taken place between the 1980s and the end of the century.

As a detailed and thorough analysis of language norms and practices, the book definitely addresses a specialized audience. However, McCormick consistently sets her code-switching research in the wider context of social and political developments in South Africa. As such, the book will also appeal to a more general readership and to those with sociological interests.

The book's diachronic slant is a valuable asset because it allows a better view of patterns of development that take place over a long time. As such, it provides insight into the interconnections between high-level political and social developments on the one hand, and low-level social and linguistic practices on the other.