Book description
'Fascinating... I loved this book; I really did' David Crystal, Spectator
A biography of a much misunderstood punctuation mark and a call to arms in favour of clear expression and against stifling grammar rules.
Cecelia Watson used to be obsessive about grammar rules. But then she began teaching. And that…
Why read it?
1 author picked Semicolon as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?
This is such a different kind of book, and genuinely, one that really should be very boring; how much is there to say about a punctuation mark? But instead, it’s totally winning. The story of the semi-colon, and that of the authors who loved (and hated) it, is a delightful romp through history and literature.
Watson herself is a “reformed grammar fetishist” and approaches her topic with real curiosity while she probes our collective obsession with grammar.
From Deirdre's list on good books about seemingly boring things.
If you love Semicolon...
These Blue Mountains
A moving story of love, betrayal, and the enduring power of hope in the face of darkness.
German pianist Hedda Schlagel's world collapsed when her fiancé, Fritz, vanished after being sent to an enemy alien camp in the United States during the Great War. Fifteen years later, in 1932, Hedda…
Want books like Semicolon?
Our community of 12,000+ authors has personally recommended 56 books like Semicolon.
Share your top 3 reads of 2025!
And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.
1,340
readers submitted
so far, will you?
📚 If you like Semicolon, you might also like...
Foxfire in the Snow
It's a time of change, between magic and alchemy.
Born the heir of a master woodcutter in a queendom defined by guilds and matrilineal inheritance, nonbinary Sorin can’t quite seem to find their place. At seventeen, an opportunity to attend an alchemical guild fair and secure an apprenticeship with the…
The Main Gate
Dr. Elise Marquette has spent years burying the past—until the past refuses to stay buried.
Hired to join Earth’s first interstellar contact team, she hopes the vastness of space will finally offer distance from the ghosts of war and the wounds left by a mother who never let her be…
