Reading Like a Writer: Chapter 2 - Words

by Francine Prose, Nanette Savard (Narrator)

In her entertaining and edifying New York Times bestseller, acclaimed author Francine Prose invites you to sit by her side and take a guided tour of the tools and the tricks of the masters and discover why their work has endured. Written with passion, humor, and wisdom, Reading Like a Writer will inspire readers to return to literature with a fresh eye and an eager heart—to take pleasure in the long and magnificent sentences of Philip Roth and the breathtaking paragraphs of Isaac Babel; to look to John Le Carré for a lesson in how to advance plot through dialogue, and to Flannery O'Connor for the cunning use of the telling detail. And, most importantly, she cautions readers to slow down and pay attention to words, the raw material out of which all literature is crafted.

Genres: Writing

Audio

First published September 26, 2006

About the author

Francine Prose is the author of twenty works of fiction. Her novel A Changed Man won the Dayton Literary Peace Prize, and Blue Angel was a finalist for the National Book Award. Her most recent works of nonfiction include the highly acclaimed Anne Frank: The Book, The Life, The Afterlife, and the New York Times bestseller Reading Like a Writer. The recipient of numerous grants and honors, including a Guggenheim and a Fulbright, a Director's Fellow at the Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center for Scholars and Writers at the New York Public Library, Prose is a former president of PEN American Center, and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Her most recent book is Lovers at the Chameleon Club, Paris 1932. She lives in New York City.

Reviews

[A.B. Neilly · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is an interesting book because it helps you to look at the language in all its aspects, and that is something few books on writing help you to look at. Also, it teaches that all the rules of writing can be surpassed provided you are a good writer, which can give a lot of freedom once you know the rules and how to use them.

[Cat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very helpful!!

[Annie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very fun read. You don't often find a non-fiction book about writing that is this entertaining and fun. I found so many books I want, and need, to read. If you're interested in being a writer then this is a must read.

[Jennifer Louden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rereading this classic and so appreciating the erudition Ms. Prose brings to learning writing through reading. I recommend this to all writers who want to read closely. I especially love the chapter on paragraphs.