When You Catch an Adjective, Kill It by Ben Yagoda

Advance praise for 'If You Catch an Adjective, Kill It' (And there are more of us than you might think.)'ģ. Yagoda's invigorating interrogation of our language will excite every syntax-obsessed reader and writer. 'All hail to Ben Yagoda! Not only has he publicly rescued 'mother' from the ubiquitous debasement of 'mom', and consigned 'shall' to the schoolmarm's dead-rules inferno, but-ebulliently-he dresses Fowler, his eminent usage-predecessor, in relaxed American shoes. Marvelous in every way.' -Christopher Buckley 'Absolutely required-and utterly fun-reading for anyone who cares about the work-in-progress that is the English language. (And there are more of us than you might think.) 'Īdvance praise for 'If You Catch an Adjective, Kill It' Yagoda ' s invigorating interrogation of our language will excite every syntax-obsessed reader and writer. ' All hail to Ben Yagoda! Not only has he publicly rescued mother from the ubiquitous debasement of mom, and consigned shall to the schoolmarm ' s dead-rules inferno, but - ebulliently - he dresses Fowler, his eminent usage-predecessor, in relaxed American shoes. ' Absolutely required - and utterly fun - reading for anyone who cares about the work-in-progress that is the English language. 'Īdvance praise for If You Catch an Adjective, Kill It Read, and discover a book whose pop culture references, humorous asides, and bracing doses of discernment and common sense convey Yagoda s unique sense of the beauty, the joy, the artistry, and the fun of language. Laugh when Yagoda says he shall call anyone a dork to the end of his days who insists on maintaining the distinction between shall and will.

Marvel at how a single word can shift from adverb ( I did okay ), to adjective ( It was an okay movie ), to interjection ( Okay! ), to noun ( I gave my okay ), to verb ( Who okayed this? ), depending on its use.Īvoid the pretentious preposition at, a favorite of real estate developers (e.g., The Shoppes at White Plains ). Learn how to write better with classic advice from writers such as Mark Twain ( If you catch an adjective, kill it ), Stephen King ( I believe the road to hell is paved with adverbs ), and Gertrude Stein ( Nouns. Read If You Catch an Adjective, Kill It and: Not since School House Rock have adjectives, adverbs, articles, conjunctions, interjections, nouns, prepositions, pronouns, and verbs been explored with such infectious exuberance. In his waggish yet authoritative book, Ben Yagoda has managed to undo the dark work of legions of English teachers and libraries of dusty grammar texts. What do you get when you mix nine parts of speech, one great writer, and generous dashes of insight, humor, and irreverence? One phenomenally entertaining language book. Not since 'School House Rock' have adjectives, adverbs, articles, conjunctions, interjections, nouns, prepositions, pronouns, and verbs been explored with such infectious exuberance.

When You Catch an Adjective, Kill It by Ben Yagoda