A very interesting anthology of different schools of thought on how to define and dissect discourse. Thre is a good balance between the philosophy, methodology and analyses themes which span 34 chapters. Perhaps the loosest section is that entitled 'Power, ideology and Control' where there is an eclectic mix of views.
My two major criticisms of the text are that, given its size (600 pages), one could reasonably expect more 'how to do it' chapters. They are not there in sufficient numbers.
Secondly, while Schegloff and Schriffin are represented. Mann and Thompson are not. In fact Rhetorical Structure Theory doesn't feature at all.
This is a serious weakness and while it should merit the loss of a 'star', the introduction by Jaworksi and Coupland is superbly compensatory. Even if one were to read only one third of the pieces, the book would be worth it for the Introduction alone.
A very good graduate resource text. Certainly one to have on the shelves.