The Accidental Apostrophe and Other Misadventures in Punctuations

by Caroline Taggart

BRAND NEW, Exactly same ISBN as listed, Please double check ISBN carefully before ordering.

Genres: Nonfiction, Language, Linguistics, Reference

Paperback

Published January 1, 2017

About the author

I was an editor for 30 years before Michael O’Mara Books asked me to write what became I Used to Know That. I think its success took everyone by surprise – it certainly did me – but it led to my writing a lot of other books and finally, after about three years, feeling able to tell people I was an author. It's a nice feeling.

Until recently the book I was most proud of was The Book of London Place Names (Ebury), partly because I am passionate about London and partly because, having written ten or so books before that, I finally felt I was getting the hang of it.

Now I have to confess I’m really excited by my first venture into continuous narrative. For A Slice of Britain: around the country by cake (AA) I travelled the country investigating, writing about and eating cake. From Cornish Saffron Cake to Aberdeen Butteries, I interviewed about 25 people who are baking cakes, biscuits and buns that are unique to their region, part of their heritage – and pretty darned delicious. The Sunday Times reviewed it and described me as ‘engaging, greedy and droll’, which pleased me enormously.

Reviews

[Nick Lewis · Rating 4 out of 5]

At last, I think I know how to use a semicolon; it has taken me far too many years to learn though.

[Eustacia Tan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve always had a very laissez-faire approach to punctuation; if it looks right, it probably is. Which is also how I end up using too! many! exclamation! points!

The Accidental Apostrophe is supposed to help with those problems. Subtitled “And Other Misadventures in Punctuation”, Taggart uses a conversational tone to discuss the uses and rules of punctuation. The book is fun – everything from the writing style to the examples chosen suggests Taggart enjoys the topic and the writing process.

Now for the most important question: did it help improve my grammar?

I think it could, if I started to memorise the rules. The trickiest punctuation topics, for me, are the comma, the semicolon, and the em-dash. Taggart explains them well, and with enough examples that I understand, but I’m not sure if reading this once will help to override years of “just do whatever looks right”. I suppose it’s a good thing that I own this book because I should probably read it a few more times.

This is a short review because there’s not much to talk about when it comes to a book about grammar. I thought it was an enlightening and enjoyable read and I definitely have to reread it sometime in the future to retain what I’ve just learnt!

This review was first posted at Eustea Reads

[Grace Tierney · Rating 3 out of 5]

My DH bought this for me because he knows I care about punctuation, which was kind of him but it meant I didn't learn much from it, and hence found it a chore to read. It's well written and clear. It covers all the basics and explains modern usage.

I enjoyed the section on rare punctuation marks. The ideal reader would not be a grammar expert, but would such a person select this book? It might be useful for English teachers and teen students.

[Debi Emerson · Rating 5 out of 5]

While most people don't read grammar books for, this is an exception. The author inserts humor (or as she would put it, "humour") into a very helpful guide to correct use of punctuation. I highly recommend !

[Pixie Kris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Always useful to brush up on language usage. I like how Caroline represents the difference between her opinions and fact.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent book to teach you all about punctuation and more. If you think you know it, the book is a great refresher, or reinforcer for those things you think you know but are slightly unsure of.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It contained a lot of punctuation humour which I enjoy. I didn't find it as accessible as Eats Shoots but a very enjoyable book all the same.

[Phil Vivian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nothing I didn't already know, apart from one or two technical terms in the final chapter, but very well organised and explained so will be a very useful additional tool.

[Asiuol K · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have just read better books about grammar. Some parts even made punctuation more confusing.

[Tom Wing · Rating 3 out of 5]

Informative and surprisingly witty.

[Mikeh5972 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nicely written with clear explanations. There are many nice examples used to show the grammatical and punctuation issues being discussed. Highly recommended.