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The Right Word
The book his readers have asked for--on the uses and abuses of language, vocabulary, diction and dictionaries, journals and journalists, style, eloquence, interviews and reviews--Buckley: The Right Word includes interviews with Charlie Rose and The Paris Review, verbal encounters with Borges, le Carre, Galbraith, Schlesinger, Playboy, Cosmopolitan, The New York Times, essays on formality and style--even a Buckley lexicon. Online promo.
524 pages, Hardcover
First published December 3, 1996
10 people are currently reading
244 people want to read
About the author
William F. Buckley Jr.
183 books337 followersWilliam Frank Buckley, Jr. was an American author and conservative commentator. He founded the political magazine National Review in 1955, hosted 1,429 episodes of the television show Firing Line from 1966 until 1999, and was a nationally syndicated newspaper columnist. His writing style was famed for its erudition, wit, and use of uncommon words.
Buckley was "arguably the most important public intellectual in the United States in the past half century," according to George H. Nash, a historian of the modern American conservative movement. "For an entire generation he was the preeminent voice of American conservatism and its first great ecumenical figure." Buckley's primary intellectual achievement was to fuse traditional American political conservatism with economic libertarianism and anti-communism, laying the groundwork for the modern American conservatism of US Presidential candidate Barry Goldwater and US President Ronald Reagan.
Buckley came on the public scene with his critical book God and Man at Yale (1951); among over fifty further books on writing, speaking, history, politics and sailing, were a series of novels featuring CIA agent Blackford Oakes. Buckley referred to himself "on and off" as either libertarian or conservative. He resided in New York City and Stamford, Connecticut, and often signed his name as "WFB." He was a practicing Catholic, regularly attending the traditional Latin Mass in Connecticut.
Buckley was "arguably the most important public intellectual in the United States in the past half century," according to George H. Nash, a historian of the modern American conservative movement. "For an entire generation he was the preeminent voice of American conservatism and its first great ecumenical figure." Buckley's primary intellectual achievement was to fuse traditional American political conservatism with economic libertarianism and anti-communism, laying the groundwork for the modern American conservatism of US Presidential candidate Barry Goldwater and US President Ronald Reagan.
Buckley came on the public scene with his critical book God and Man at Yale (1951); among over fifty further books on writing, speaking, history, politics and sailing, were a series of novels featuring CIA agent Blackford Oakes. Buckley referred to himself "on and off" as either libertarian or conservative. He resided in New York City and Stamford, Connecticut, and often signed his name as "WFB." He was a practicing Catholic, regularly attending the traditional Latin Mass in Connecticut.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
July 4, 2020
Willam F. Buckley dominated conservative writing with his wit and style for nearly 50 years. His protégés and readers continue to influence the thought of the “country club” Republicans that still exist. The book is a somewhat disjointed collection of his writings, largely drawn from National Review, but also other letters, columns and interviews. You can get a good sense of the style and humor of Buckley, without getting weighed down in the politics of Buckley. I wish it was a better flowing read, but it was enjoyable to look at 40 years of his writings.
January 3, 2017
This is a nicely edited collection of essays by William F. Buckley, Jr. on writing. It covers matters of style and vocabulary, including the classic column about his sesquipedalian vocabulary. The columns do teach a lot about constructing arguments and being an opinion writer. Recommended for would-be opinion journalists.
January 29, 2022
You may like or dislike his politics. You may agree or disagree with his positions. But you can't believably say that William F. Buckley was a tyro in the use of the English language. You may love or loathe his vocabulary, but the plain fact is he knew how to use that vocabulary.
In a day when you can listen to people for minutes at a stretch and not hear them actually say anything (just eavesdrop on a cell phone conversation sometime), and when they say that nothing in a vocabulary that apparently consists of about 23 words, it's refreshing to read someone who knew English. And if anyone knew English, it was William F. Buckley. His first language was Spanish, his second was French - but when he came to English, he learned it all. He also picked up a mid-Atlantic accent from somewhere, although apparently none of his siblings did; it's the accent that at one time all educated Americans learned, and which Hollywood taught to its actors. By the time I was born it was something of an oddity (though Jacqueline Kennedy spoke in that accent), and by the time Mr. Buckely died, it was pretty much extinct (I can't think of a single other American who speaks in that accent - there may be someone, there may be a lot, but if so, I've never heard that person speak). But whatever his accent (and it's odd to think that this man, with that accent, was the son of a Texan and a Louisianan), William F. Buckley knew how to use English.
This is a collection of things from here and there. It includes selections from his "Notes & Asides" from National Review. It includes some of his newspaper columns. It includes some obituaries and eulogies - and here Mr. Buckley was a master; I've never done anything worth eulogizing, but if I had, and he were still alive, I'd want William F. Buckley to do it. There's a little bit of everything, even a few bits of his fiction, which is the only place he fell down; his Blackford Oakes novels are only mildly entertaining; Mr. Buckley's strength wasn't fiction, but non-fiction.
I could wish for some excerpts from his sailing books, which may be the best writing he ever did (I have absolutely no interest in going to sea, certainly not in a sailing yacht - but when I read the sailing books, I can't wait to go aboard). I would wish for more from Cruising Speed and Overdrive, the "personal documentaries" he wrote, 10 years apart, about a single week of his life (anyone else, even someone with a more interesting life, would've been boring doing it, but Mr. Buckely was not boring). But if there's a book I've read which I thought was perfect, and didn't need a single editorial correction, I can't recollect it - and such a thing would be so extraordinary that I would remember it, so finding that The Right Word isn't quite perfect is no surprise.
What is surprising is that a world which has for decades not only not valued the elegant use of English, but actively disvalued it, turned out someone like William F. Buckley, and something like this book.
In a day when you can listen to people for minutes at a stretch and not hear them actually say anything (just eavesdrop on a cell phone conversation sometime), and when they say that nothing in a vocabulary that apparently consists of about 23 words, it's refreshing to read someone who knew English. And if anyone knew English, it was William F. Buckley. His first language was Spanish, his second was French - but when he came to English, he learned it all. He also picked up a mid-Atlantic accent from somewhere, although apparently none of his siblings did; it's the accent that at one time all educated Americans learned, and which Hollywood taught to its actors. By the time I was born it was something of an oddity (though Jacqueline Kennedy spoke in that accent), and by the time Mr. Buckely died, it was pretty much extinct (I can't think of a single other American who speaks in that accent - there may be someone, there may be a lot, but if so, I've never heard that person speak). But whatever his accent (and it's odd to think that this man, with that accent, was the son of a Texan and a Louisianan), William F. Buckley knew how to use English.
This is a collection of things from here and there. It includes selections from his "Notes & Asides" from National Review. It includes some of his newspaper columns. It includes some obituaries and eulogies - and here Mr. Buckley was a master; I've never done anything worth eulogizing, but if I had, and he were still alive, I'd want William F. Buckley to do it. There's a little bit of everything, even a few bits of his fiction, which is the only place he fell down; his Blackford Oakes novels are only mildly entertaining; Mr. Buckley's strength wasn't fiction, but non-fiction.
I could wish for some excerpts from his sailing books, which may be the best writing he ever did (I have absolutely no interest in going to sea, certainly not in a sailing yacht - but when I read the sailing books, I can't wait to go aboard). I would wish for more from Cruising Speed and Overdrive, the "personal documentaries" he wrote, 10 years apart, about a single week of his life (anyone else, even someone with a more interesting life, would've been boring doing it, but Mr. Buckely was not boring). But if there's a book I've read which I thought was perfect, and didn't need a single editorial correction, I can't recollect it - and such a thing would be so extraordinary that I would remember it, so finding that The Right Word isn't quite perfect is no surprise.
What is surprising is that a world which has for decades not only not valued the elegant use of English, but actively disvalued it, turned out someone like William F. Buckley, and something like this book.
June 22, 2021
Nothing but Bill Buckley's opinions on writing and a few other things but it's excellent to read because he wrote so damned well. I remember whilst studying for my A-levels I used to read Buckley's essays online to help improve my own writing and now that I'm at University I'm following the same principle by reading this book and a few others. Within this particular book Buckley recommends a few other authors such as Kilpo, and Weaver (whose book Ethics of Rhetoric I'm now currently reading) to further understand English and argumentation.
July 13, 2021
Fun way to explore the 70s and 80s. Letters, articles, essays, torts and retorts (Ha!). Conservative ideas that stand the test of time. Snarky back and forths. Clear, precise language, and the people who want to keep making it more precise and clearer. Ramblings about writing, language, culture, politics, humor, and lots more. Not done reading - it's a fat book of the best kind. I will be dipping into this from time to time. It fills that little hollow spot in my heart that misses fussing over the op/ed section of my local newspaper.
I am also checking out National Review a little more often.
I am also checking out National Review a little more often.
April 11, 2014
This one's certainly only viable for Buckley fans: it's heavy on Buckley wit and riposte, although there's plenty of good usage to profit by. Personally I think it imperfectly edited having expected more discussions of the language and not as much unrelated essay work from WFB's lengthy curriculum vitae.
January 8, 2022
The great conservative form the 1960s and 70s. He had a tv show called Firing Line and a magazine titled National Review.
Anyway this book is a little too hi brow for me. Buckley had a vocabulary unlike most people. Its almost as if you would have had to attend Harvard to understand what he's saying.
One note: people have been asking me if any relation to him since kindergarten.
Anyway this book is a little too hi brow for me. Buckley had a vocabulary unlike most people. Its almost as if you would have had to attend Harvard to understand what he's saying.
One note: people have been asking me if any relation to him since kindergarten.
August 28, 2014
Buckley was a master of the English language. His sense of humor keep this from overwhelming. If you love English, or you love sharp skill with words, this is for you.
February 10, 2015
Collections of Buckley's writiings; always well written.
November 22, 2019
Phenomenal vocabulary.
October 21, 2025
Have you noticed that the use of an unusual word sometimes irritates the reader to such a point that he will accuse the user of affectation, that which there is no more heinous crime in the American republic? But what, indeed, is an unusual word? A word may be unusual, but well-known; or it may be unusual because it is not well-known. We tend to conclude that people who use words which we happen to not be familiar with are using unusual words. There are reasons for using words even when they are unfamiliar. It can be a matter of rhythm, it can be a matter of exact fit. It could be the word that matches specifically what you are trying to say.
William F. Buckley, Jr was often accused with using unfamiliar or unusual words as an affectation. Indeed, beyond his politics, his polysyllabic vocabulary is one of is most known traits. This book collects many of his articles and letters on uses and abuses of the English language. It is full of the verve and zest and a sprinkle of the mischief for which Buckley was famous.
If I was the editor, I would have truncated the sections on fiction and reviewing and would have organized the Buckley Lexicon appendix differently. But those are minor quibbles in an otherwise excellent volume.
William F. Buckley, Jr was often accused with using unfamiliar or unusual words as an affectation. Indeed, beyond his politics, his polysyllabic vocabulary is one of is most known traits. This book collects many of his articles and letters on uses and abuses of the English language. It is full of the verve and zest and a sprinkle of the mischief for which Buckley was famous.
If I was the editor, I would have truncated the sections on fiction and reviewing and would have organized the Buckley Lexicon appendix differently. But those are minor quibbles in an otherwise excellent volume.
October 9, 2022
This is an excellent book for all adults who love words! You don't have to share Buckley's political or religious views, in order to love the book!
February 16, 2014
This book purports to be a usage guide (its cover even indicating that it should be filed under "reference"), but serves as little more than an excuse to republish an almost random assortment of Buckley's writings. The sections relating to English usage comprised primarily Buckley editorials boasting of his superior vocabulary. A chapter compiling some of Buckley's book reviews proved the best, or least obnoxious, section of the book, as the subject matter rendered self aggrandizement more difficult.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews