Book cover of Says Who?: A Kinder, Funner Usage Guide for Everyone Who Cares about Words

Book description

A kinder, funner usage guide to the ever-changing English language and a useful tool for both the grammar stickler and the more colloquial user of English, from linguist and veteran professor Anne Curzan
 
“I was bowled over, page after page, by the author’s fine ear for our language and her…

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Why read it?

1 author picked Says Who? as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

This book gave me a new perspective into the role that book and newspaper editors play in shaping the language—although they cannot stand unmoved against the strong currents of usage changes. And, I enjoyed discovering how words and usage trends have shifted in my own lifetime without my noticing: for example, how the verb sneak gained a new, irregular past tense (snuck). That snuck up on me!

Curzon’s voice is warm and witty rather than professorial—like a true “word nerd” friend. Reading this makes me feel better about my own word foibles.

Hey, if enough people do them and people…

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Book cover of December on 5C4

December on 5C4 by Adam Strassberg,

Magical realism meets the magic of Christmas in this mix of Jewish, New Testament, and Santa stories–all reenacted in an urban psychiatric hospital!

On locked ward 5C4, Josh, a patient with many similarities to Jesus, is hospitalized concurrently with Nick, a patient with many similarities to Santa. The two argue…

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