The World in Words 59: Bilingual romance in Paris, “whatever” in Mexico, and the fog of Pentagon acronyms in Afghanistan

First, an interview with Vanina Marsot, whose new novel “Foreign Tongue” is about French, English, being bilingual, and translation. It also includes more false cognates than you can hurl a dictionary at, a racy story within a story, and lots of French attitude. Then, a quick detour to Mexico to learn about a Spanish expression that’s favored there. And finally to Afghanistan, where Pentagon acronyms are the lingua franca.