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Shop nowThe Elements of Expression, Revised and Expanded Edition
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Learn moreA funny and useful grammar book! There are many grammar and usage books that give advice on correct English. This isn’t one of them. The Elements of Expression targets expressiveness as a goal apart from getting it technically right. Imagine the yawns a sportscaster would induce by announcing, “His bat struck the ball and the ball went into the stands,” instead of “He took that ball downtown!” And why say, “I’d prefer it if you didn’t volunteer your opinions,” if what you really mean is “When I want your advice, I'll beat it out of you” (Chuck Norris, Code of Silence)? Written with uncommon wit and humor, The Elements of Expression offers writers, speakers, and self-improvers a fresh look at how they express (or fail to express) their thoughts and feelings. Plotnik supplies many engaging examples of adventurous language to show the tremendous power of words to describe and enliven human experience. For people who care about language and want to write or speak forcefully, effectively—in a word, expressively—this is the audiobook to turn on!
Arthur Plotnik is a versatile author with a distinguished background in editing and publishing. Two of his works have been featured as Book-of-the-Month Club selections: The Elements of Editing and The Elements of Expression. He has written scores of magazine articles and columns, nonfiction books, short stories, and poems. His work has appeared in publications ranging from Playboy to the New York Times and Los Angeles Times.
Richard Waterhouse is an actor, teacher, director, and producer who is featured in the Hallmark Christmas classic Moonlight and Mistletoe and the independent feature Karl Rove, I Love You. He lives with his partner in Newbury, Vermont.
Reviews
“Mr. Plotnik challenges his readers to set themselves apart…Genuinely funny.”
“[An] entertaining potpourri of thoughts about words…A helpful little compendium for writers and speaking wishing to brush up on their prose.”
“Richard Waterhouse’ interpretive skills and playful approach make this thoughtful book on writing shine in the audio format. With youthful and reasoned enthusiasm, he reads long sentences, lists, and quotations with razor clarity and sounds authentically engaged with the author’s ideas and sensibilities. He’s especially effective when reading the examples offered on oral presentations, which allow listeners to hear how phrasing, tone, and emphasis can vary. For experienced writers and newbies alike, this is an invaluable book on how one’s choice of words can influence the formality, style, and effectiveness of our writing.”
“Funny and fundamentally helpful.”
“With sincerity, humor, and the occasional precision-lobbed ‘grenade,’ Plotnik teaches by example, demonstrating dozens of ways we can ‘abuse’ English and add interest and tension to dozy prose—all without forsaking authenticity and restraint.”
“Plotnick succeeds where many writers fail. he not only enlightens, he entertains. To be guided by such a sure and steady hand is a delight—a romp through the ever-changing trends of taste and style that shape our use of English.”
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