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Eats, Shoots and Leaves
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Eats, Shoots and Leaves
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Eats, Shoots and Leaves
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Eats, Shoots and Leaves

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

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About this ebook

Anxious about the apostrophe? Confused by the comma? Stumped by the semicolon? Join Lynne Truss on a hilarious tour through the rules of punctuation that is sure to sort the dashes from the hyphens.

We all had the basic rules of punctuation drilled into us at school, but punctuation pedants have good reason to suspect they never sank in. ‘Its Summer!’ screams a sign that sets our teeth on edge. ‘Pansy’s ready’, we learn to our considerable interest (‘Is she?’) as we browse among the bedding plants.

It is not only the rules of punctuation that have come under attack but also a sense of why they matter. In this runaway bestseller, Lynne Truss takes the fight to emoticons and greengrocers’ apostrophes with a war cry of ‘Sticklers unite!’

LanguageEnglish
Release dateMay 26, 2011
ISBN9780007431595
Unavailable
Eats, Shoots and Leaves
Author

Lynne Truss

Lynne Truss is one of Britain’s most well-loved comic writers and is the author of the worldwide bestsellers ‘Eats, Shoots & Leaves’ and ‘Talk to the Hand’. She reviews for the Sunday Times and writes regularly for radio.

Read more from Lynne Truss

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Reviews for Eats, Shoots and Leaves

Rating: 3.80356618444061 out of 5 stars
4/5

3,477 ratings210 reviews

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  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Hilarious take on grammar and punctuation.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    This is a quirky punctuation guide; more anecdote than rote -- sort of a Bridget Jones's Elements of Style. The author uses lots of good examples ("cute" may be more accurate) and is good about pointing out the differences between British and American usage. Although aimed at punctuation sticklers, it would be an entertaining introduction for the punctuation-challenged. It covers all the basic punctuation marks and rules, but not the trickier stuff.
  • Rating: 1 out of 5 stars
    1/5
    Though this was billed at my library as the audio edition of "Eats, Shoots & Leaves", it's actually a collection of BBC radio broadcasts that inspired the book. They're interesting enough, but not what I was looking for!
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    The English language (British or otherwise) seems to be in grave danger. Atrocious use of punctuation is only one symptom of the continuing decline of the language, and according to Truss, appropriate use of punctuation and spelling must be vehemently defended and employed.Because this book was originally written to address a British audience, some discrepancies creep into the American publication since British English and American English differ in grammar, spelling, punctuation, meaning, and nuance. Truss notes this briefly in her introduction to the American version; the book is still useful in addressing punctuation, although it shouldn't be used as substitute for a style manual.Part punctuation manual, and part satirical and cynical commentary, Eats, Shoots & Leaves alternates between being informative, amusing, and sometimes even annoying. Some of her examples could have been better chosen; she didn't always convince me of her arguments in some cases. Perhaps I was just being difficult, but better examples would have helped her make her point. A little bit of the history of the use and development of punctuation found its way into the text, providing a welcome diversion from the somewhat lengthy and sometimes contradictory "lessons."Experiments in Reading
  • Rating: 1 out of 5 stars
    1/5
    I couldn't get through this one. Putting aside any quibbles based on the differences between American and British usage, the "Zero Tolerance" bit in the subtitle pretty much indicates where we part ways. The usage guides I adore are based on a love for the English language. They revel in the ongoing development of the language, being part of a multi-generational conversation about how words are used and how they ought to be used. They relish the continuous tug-of-war between language snobs and language slobs, prescriptivists and descriptivists, the mavens and the guys in the street. They appreciate a well-turned sentence. They're aware of the importance of cadence. They enjoy a comma placed in just the right location. And they understand that the rules serve the language and its users, not the other way around. On the other hand, you also find people like Lynne Truss. They may be tone-deaf, but by golly, they know the rules they've been taught. And heaven help anybody who dares to break those rules in their presence. In this approach, grammar and usage aren't things to be appreciated; they're bludgeons used to pummel those lesser creatures who misuse them, and they provide ways of feeling smugly superior to others. Any alternative approaches are seen as stupidity, criminal negligence, or signs of a complete societal breakdown. I couldn't disagree more.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    The history lessons were interesting...the rants less so. Good thing I used an ellipsis instead of a dash, else Ms. Truss might protest.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    An excellent book on punctuation, should be the textbook used in language arts classes!
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    A delightfully written grammar guide that feels more like an extended conversation and rant rather than an attempt to teach, yet I learned so much!
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    A very amusing read that can reconcile even the most grammar phobic writer with English as it is punctuated in England.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Well this was the perfect “geek-read” for me. My writing may not always be correctly punctuated, but I do try to adhere to the general rules of grammar and punctuation. There were more than a few moments when I felt Truss was channeling the good Sisters at Ursuline Academy who first tried to drum those rules into my head. Truss writes with a delightfully irreverent style, and yet still conveys the seriousness of her purpose. Clearly there is a difference betweenA woman, without her man, is nothing.AndA woman: without her, man is nothing.It was a fast, enjoyable read, and I think I learned a few things.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    An excellent book on punctuation, should be the textbook used in language arts classes!
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    A romp and a must for sticklers. If only all nonfiction were this much fun!
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Who knew grammar could be so funny?
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    An amusing critical soliloquy on the state of English. Very very prescriptivist.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Interesting read.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Laughed out loud while reading it in the emergency room in Albany, GA (waiting to admit my mother).

    For language geeks.
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    A disappointment.
  • Rating: 1 out of 5 stars
    1/5
    I thought I would like this book. Boy howdy, was I wrong. Honestly, if the copy I read hadn't been the property of my local library, then I would have used it as compost already. Eats, Shoots & Leaves is written in a very divisive style. Readers will either laugh with their noses in the air at those who don't follow Lynne Truss's grammatical rules and pat themselves on the back for falling in line, or they'll be offended by Truss's purist take on the English language. What I found most irritating is that any worthwhile grammatical advice Truss gives her readers is prescribed in an utterly condescending and elitist tone. Essentially, her "high moral arguments" (202) amount to linguistic prescriptivism, a practice I am wholeheartedly against.

    Oh, but I did love how she has the hypocritical gall to call those who haven't mastered (and don't want to master) the semicolon "pompous sillies" (109). "I'm talking 'bout the man in the mirror/ I'm asking him to change his ways." - Michael Jackson
    pot = kettle, or whatever. While I'm on the subject of semicolons, who on earth thinks semicolons are too middle-class? Where did Truss get her research data for any of the "most common" excuses listed on pages 109-110? Probably, Truss should master the art of annotation and/or citing sources before she writes another reference book.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    A wonderfully witty book about grammar, making what is usually a dreaded topic something to be cherished. The author does not suffer punctuation fools gladly, and handily trounces all who would slouch through life with grammatical laziness.
  • Rating: 1 out of 5 stars
    1/5
    Painful, painful, painful, painful, painful. Yawn.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Made me smile
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Scathing as fuck. Hells yes.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    A very readable book about punctuation. Entertaining and highly informative, I also learned quite a bit. Now to just put the deed into practice.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    A witty yet insightful book.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I have read this book a few times, and I enjoy each time. As a former English teacher and a self-proclaimed grammar nerd, I found the writing to be laugh-out-loud funny at times. (I think I used the hyphens correctly.) There are some slight differences in usage due to the author's being British, but I had no concerns with that. The history of some of the punctuation we use today is particularly interesting too, and it's presented in an very readable manner. Good book!
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    If I ran the world, this would be required reading for every English speaker.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Hilarious and informative discussion/guide about (of all things) punctuation.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I would wager that this is one of the most famous books about the English language of the present day. It's entertaining, amusing and I found myself nodding and grinning the whole way through. Where's my marker pen, I'm off to sort out the grocer's apostrophe...
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Funny, public-radio-style essay about punctuation. The book is small and the line leading large, but that just means you can digest it all in one enjoyable sitting.I confess I laughed more at the conversational Britishisms than at the poor punctuation examples; there's something hilarious about yobs and hoovering and cock-a-hoop all mixed up with proper punctuation rules.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    A fun way to check whether my grammar and punctuation is correct. And those dreaded apostrophes...