A recent article in the April 29 edition of the New York Review of Books, "Editing Humanity's Future" by Natalie de Souza, awoke in me a very insistent interest in the topic of bioetics. Rather than begin with any of the books reviewed in de Souza's article, I took an interest in a considerably lighter... Continue Reading →
The Horologicon by Mark Forsyth – Book Review
Mark Forsyth's non-fiction books are a treat. Erudite jaunts through the origins of the English language, every one of Forsyth's works has been accompanied with hours of laughter, and The Horologicon: A Day's Jaunt Through the Lost Words of the English Language is no different. It doesn't quite measure up to my memory of The... Continue Reading →
Sentence Structure #03: Long and Short Sentences
Previous || Next Few elements of style can harm your work the way an overbusy, cluttered sentence can. But reading about cluttered sentences from a theoretical standpoint is one thing -- seeing one such sentence is entirely different. Let's construct a glorious Example: My ratonnastick, being a perfectly good fellow at heart who always knew... Continue Reading →
Ecstasy and Terror by Daniel Mendelsohn – Book Review
I don't remember how I came across Ecstasy and Terror but I knew when I read its blurb that I would love it. Having read every one of the essays in this collection, I've found myself not only loving it but hungry for more of Mendelsohn's writing. This anthology by Mendelsohn(who is Editor at Large... Continue Reading →