When the seventeenth-century settlers brought the English language to America, they immediately and necessarily began to adapt   it to their new environment. These changes were clear early and criticized by some people on both sides of the Atlantic. However, after the Revolution, Americans began to be proud of their own form of English. Noah Webster was the major early supporter of American meanings and spellings over British ones and published the earliest American dictionary, An American Dictionary of the English Language. During the years since Webster, language differences have continued to develop, proving   the truth of George Bernard Shaw's often-repeated words that the two nations are divided by a common language. Like the American language, the earliest American literature   copied English models. However, after the Revolution and the War of 1812, writers began to create a clear American literature. However, in 1820, Sydney Smith asked the famous question "Who reads an American book?" Answering to this and similar taunts   with creative anger, American writers soon produced works that plenty of British people read. Works by Washing-ton Irving, Walt Whitman, and Mark Twain had been _ greatly in Britain by the end of the nineteenth century. Even as American writers got respect in Britain, British writers continued to have great influence in America. Charles Dickens went to America twice, in 1842 and 1867-68. Other major British writers who traveled and lived in the United States include D.H. Lawrence and Aldous Huxley. British best works continue to be widely read. The works of William Shakespeare and Jane Austen became popular films. At the turn of the twenty-first century, many books and writers continue to cross the Atlantic in both directions -- made possible by the proud heritage   of the shared language. From the question asked by Sydney Smith, we can infer   _  .
the British had to translate American books into English ones the British found American books difficult to understand the British thought highly of books written by Americans the British looked down upon American books at first