On the Ted Radio hour, linguist Ann Curzan says she gets a lot of complaints about people using the pronoun they to refer to one person.
I sometimes get into arguments with people where they will say to me, but.
It can't be singular.
And I will say, but it is.
The history behind words causing a lot of debate.
That's on the Ted radio hour from NPR.
This is FRESH AIR.
I'm David B.
And Cooley.
Today we feature our interview with the writer John Green.
He has a huge following, mostly among teenagers who are fans of his young adult novels.
His best selling 2017 novel, Turtles all the Way down has been adapted into a new film.
It premieres on the streaming service Max next week.
Greene's previous young adult novel, the Fault in our Stars, sold over 23 million copies, was on the bestseller list for 24 weeks and also was adapted into a film.
His young adult novels wrestle with the kind of issues youd expect from someone like Greene, who had considered joining the seminary and worked at a childrens hospital as a student chaplain.
The fault in our stars is about two teenagers with cancer who fall in love.
Turtles all the way down is about a 16 year old named Aza whos still getting over the death of her father.
Shes also dealing with OCD, obsessive compulsive disorder, which leads to intrusive thoughts that get in the way of her day to day life.
Her thoughts also interfere with her relationship with her best friend and with her ability to have a boyfriend.
Her obsession is with all the microorganisms that live on and in her body and her fear that she will become infected with the deadly bacteria.