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Summary: To the reader from Cambridge, MA
Review: I'm sorry you didn't care for this book. I thought it was fantastic, and brought to light many of the same grammatical foibles that bother me. I don't consider myself "pointed-headed and grammar-obsessed," although I am very careful with language and punctuation. While I agree with you that "it's better to have something to say and say it with skill and grace," this applies only to the spoken word. It is difficult to write anything skillfully or gracefully when you lack basic punctuation. And while I also agree that "Our language evolves," to cling to the niceties of grammar and punctuation is to embrace the bigger picture, not to miss it. As our language evolves so quickly, it is vital to retain elements of standard punctuation so that meanings are not misconstrued. To punctuate correctly is to ensure that your message will be read clearly and understood as you intended.
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Summary: A necessary book!
Review: Some will say "Language is evolving" and consider punctuation a "nicety". However, as this book deftly illustrates, clarity and meaning itself are lost when punctuation fails, such as in the phrases "No dogs please" and "Children drive slowly". Commas and apostrophes are not merely decorative marks; "its" and "it's" are entirely different words with different meanings and functions. A few will dismiss this principle as nitpicking but the function of language itself is to express thought, and poor punctuation sabotages the written expression of thought by forfeiting clarity. In some cases you will express exactly the opposite of what you mean by punctuating incorrectly! To contradict a previous reviewer, poor punctuation and grammatical ineptitude have nothing to do with the "evolution" of language, merely with the deficiencies of education. A person's clumsiness with a language says nothing about the way that language may be evolving, only about his own inability to command it. Of course if that person doesn't care about expressing himself clearly, or doesn't have anything worthwhile to express in the first place, these "niceties" won't mean anything to him and he won't mind being misunderstood. Ignorance is bliss!
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Summary: funny and encouraging
Review: Maybe one has to be an English teacher to love this book, but I am and I did. It's always encouraging to discover someone else who shares one's own obsessions. I too am enraged by the ubiquitous misuse of quotation marks (not the same thing as "quotes," incidentally, even in the US). And as Ms Truss points out in the chapter on the apostrophe, differentiating "its" and "it's" is so simple -- there's NO EXCUSE for confusing them. Also I was delighted to learn that the comma I was taught to include and my children were taught to omit is known as the "Oxford comma."
Many of the other customer reviewers seem to have missed the point of this book: it is a funny book about a serious matter, not the other way around. If you cringe every time you see an RV with ""The Smith's"" emblazoned across the back, you will enjoy Eats,Shoots and Leaves.
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Summary: must have for any grammer hound
Review: This book is an interesting spin on things for those like myself who have a library of grammer books: MLA, Chicago Style, APA, etc. It's a light hearted look at common errors without the stuffiness of most other style books. A needed book for any editor, writer, or publisher.
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Summary: Breezy and panda-covered
Review: Author Lynne Truss is not above vigilantism. Indeed, given her druthers, Truss would arm the citizenry--that portion of it, at least, that takes its punctuation very seriously--with permanent markers. Truss's plea for violent action in the face of mixed up itses may go unheeded, but her light-hearted, best-selling paean to punctuation, originally published in Great Britain (and retaining British punctuation practices), has clearly tapped into a vein of previously voiceless pedants who believe that the lives of punctuation marks are worth celebrating. Evidently, as Truss writes, "a lot of well-educated sensitive people really have been weeping friendlessly in caves for the past few years, praying for someone--anyone--to write a book about punctuation with a panda on the cover."Truss's Eats, Shoots & Leaves is a breezy, funny account of the history, abuse, and proper use of a host of punctuation marks--the apostrophe (with which the author's affections clearly lie), the comma, the semi-colon (failure to use which was, according to George Bernard Shaw, "a symptom of mental defectiveness"), the exclamation point (among punctuation marks "the big attention-deficit brother who gets over-excited and breaks things and laughs too loudly"), and so on. The book is a quick, amusing read, and it is besides an attractive little volume, panda-covered, of course: the perfect gift for the sticklers in your life.
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Summary: Catchy title drew me in
Review: I bought this book because of the catchy title. I was surprised to find out that this book has great punctuation rules for the UK, but they are very different from what is considered correct USA punctuation. It was interesting to note the subtle, and sometimes not so subtle, differences. Debbie Farmer, parenting author 'Don't Put Lipstick on the Cat'
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Summary: Entertaining and informative!
Review: Lynne Truss so eloquently expresses the frustration that many of us feel when we see inept and haphazard use of punctuation, especially when this incorrect punctuation is published or found on permanent signage. Her accounts of her encounters with mis-punctuated text are entertaining and often hilarious. Those of us who are fellow "sticklers" often feel despair or even anger when we come across text that is not punctuated correctly. However, there is room for us to laugh at our own obsession and take a step back to note the comedy in the common errors in the language. Truss presents this humorous perspective while still setting a serious, take-no-prisoners tone on the need for everyone to strive towards correct punctuation usage. She not only explains the history of punctuation marks but also clarifies why knowing the history of the marks is beneficial to understanding their usage and evolution. Trust deserves extra commendation for focusing her book on discussions of punctuation and not straying into the topics of misspellings and incorrect grammar, as tempting as that must have been. This book will be most appreciated by those of who pay close attention to detail, not only in their own writing, but also in the writings of others. While Truss clearly explains the rules for the usage of various punctuation marks, I would hesitate to call this book instructional or label it a reference manual. Instead, it's more of an entertaining read for those individuals who feel exasperation when they come across the misuse (or absence) of apostrophes, commas, hyphens, and the like--these readers certainly will find a kindred spirit in Truss.
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Summary: Brilliant Essay About Language & Life
Review: Like many readers, I bought this book after a glowing review in The New York Times, and I love it's cranky, crackling intelligence--a love for words, the English language and for the pleasures of reading, writing and speaking. Perhaps it's not everyone's cup of tea, but it certainly is an important book; If you have children in school, do you want them to grow up and speak like a character in an MTV commercial or the principal of your local school? It's also a funny and insightful look at what language reveals about ourselves. For extremely intelligent humor in a different subject, try, "I Sleep At Red Lights: A True Story of Life After Triplets," by Bruce Stockler, a passionate, literate and extremely funny account of fatherhood, marriage and the meaning of life.
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Summary: An amusing overview of punctuation
Review: A great way to begin investigating the more subtle rules governing punctuation. It will probably not make you an expert, but will give you the tools you need to start practicing to become one. The author is terrific. It's as though you've got your very own witty English schoolteacher guiding you while you read. I would recommend this book to anyone just starting out (like me) or to anyone looking for a refresher course. Although there are some subtle differences between the rules for the US and UK, the author makes a point of providing examples of how things differ. This is the type of book you can refer to later on; it provides numerous examples of proper usage, and is organized in a way that makes it easy to access the rules you would like to review. A funny, fast, and informative read. I really enjoyed it.
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Summary: A Perfect Little Companion
Review: Eats, Shoots & Leaves isn't for everyone. But if you're the type of person whose jaw drops at the ever-increasing public display of bad punctuation, you'll feel right at home with Lynne Truss's great little tome. If you're one of the great unwashed who neither properly grasps punctuation nor understands why anyone else would, look elsewhere. To her everlasting credit, Ms. Truss is offended by such punctuational travesties as a bus ad for the Hugh Grant film, "Two Weeks Notice." And well she should be. The correct forumulation, of course, is "Two Weeks' Notice." Eats, Shoots & Leaves is full of such observations, rendered in an easily-read, witty style. Truss's observations on commas, apostrophes, and periods (or, "full stops" in the British style)
had me nodding my head in total agreement. This relatively short book can be digested in a single evening, but I guarantee you will pick it up again and again.
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