Name: The Sense of Style
ISBN: 9780143127796

Steven Pinker

"Pinker has a lot of ideas and sometimes controversial opinions about writing and in this entertaining and instructive book he rethinks the usage guide for the 21st century. Don't blame the internet, he says, good writing has always been hard. It requires imagination, taking pleasure in reading, overcoming the difficult we all have in imaging what it's like to not know something we do know."--Publisher information.

The Thinking Person's Guide to Writing in the 21st Century

The Sense of Style

A renowned cognitive scientist and author of the Pulitzer finalist The Blank Slate, shares upbeat reflections on the art of writing well, discussing such topics as the role of imagination in writing and the influence of texting in shaping language today. 75,000 first printing.

Yash

Steven Pinker has written a jaunty style guide, with an extra dosis of sense of humor, for people who think they can write well but want to believe they could write better. It's for English writing but a pretty big chunk of its thoughtful advice works perfectly with Spanish language.

Rob Winters

What is the secret of good prose? Does it matter in an age of digital media? In this witty, mind-expanding book about the art and science of writing well, Steven Pinker shows that good style isn't just about rules - it's about empathy, coherence and adding beauty to the world. 'Witty, direct and idiosyncratic . . . often laugh-out-loud funny . . . refreshingly uncensorious . . . It helps enormously that he is such a beautiful stylist himself.' Paula Byrne, The Times 'Wonderful . . . No true lover of this chaotic, unregulated, magnificently vital language could fail to thrill.' Christopher Hart, Sunday Times 'Brainy, funny . . . a comedy of linguistic bad manners.' Peter Conrad, Guardian 'Outstanding . . . the one book I can unreservedly recommend as a guide on how to write well . . . unique as well as brilliant.' Oliver Kamm, The Times

Jürgen Schweizer

Yago Ramalho

Marc Bacvanski

Miroslav Bekyarov

Sang Park

Michael Burkhardt

Daniel Lauzon

Brendan M

Christopher Wheeler

“Charming and erudite," from the author of Enlightenment Now, "The wit and insight and clarity he brings . . . is what makes this book such a gem.” —Time.com Why is so much writing so bad, and how can we make it better? Is the English language being corrupted by texting and social media? Do the kids today even care about good writing—and why should we care? From the author of The Better Angels of Our Nature and Enlightenment Now. In this entertaining and eminently practical book, the cognitive scientist, dictionary consultant, and New York Times–bestselling author Steven Pinker rethinks the usage guide for the twenty-first century. Using examples of great and gruesome modern prose while avoiding the scolding tone and Spartan tastes of the classic manuals, he shows how the art of writing can be a form of pleasurable mastery and a fascinating intellectual topic in its own right. The Sense of Style is for writers of all kinds, and for readers who are interested in letters and literature and are curious about the ways in which the sciences of mind can illuminate how language works at its best.

The Sense of Style The Thinking Person's Guide to Writing in the 21st Century

Reviews

Highlights