Writing "approachably," in your case so approachable that the book can serve as a sort of introduction to English, is an underrated and under-appreciated skill.

Writing "approachably," in your case so approachable that the book can serve as a sort of introduction to English, is an underrated and under-appreciated skill. I am not a fan of writers like Dan Brown or James Patterson, who seem to write badly, but I think Doctorow is making a choice to write approachably, not badly. His non-fiction writing on his blog seems to demonstrate mastery of the language, and his books work very well as audiobooks, which is a mark (in my opinion) of a stylistic choice. In my opinion, his zealotry sometimes overpowers the stories he tells, but usually I find the stories engaging and the writing good.