Semicolon: The Past, Present, and Future of a Misunderstood Mark - Hardcover

In this existential romp through the life and times of the world's most polarizing punctuation mark, Cecelia Watson charts the rise and fall of this infamous bit of punctuation. For years, it was the biggest trend in the world of writing. Then, when grammar books became popular and more widely distributed in the nineteenth century, the rules of how we use grammar and language became both stricter and more confusing - and the semicolon was its prime victim. Watson reveals how these stricter traditional grammar rules served to negatively impact creative writing - and how they made us less successful at communicating with each other than we'd think. Die-hard grammar and writing fanatics alike will love this book as you learn how we are better off tossing the rule books aside and learning better and more creative ways to engage with language - and each other.(This title may contain a sharpie mark on the top or bottom edge and may show mild signs of shelfwear.)