"Takes the straitjacket off punctuation....Lukeman's wit and insight make this an instant classic."—M. J. Rose

The first practical and accessible guide to the art of punctuation for creative writers. Punctuation reveals the writer: haphazard commas, for example, reveal haphazard thinking; clear, lucid breaks reveal clear, lucid thinking. Punctuation can be used to teach the writer how to think and how to write. This short, practical book shows authors the benefits that can be reaped from mastering punctuation: the art of style, sentence length, meaning, and economy of words. There are full-length chapters devoted to the period, the comma, the semicolon, the colon, quotation marks, the dash and parentheses, the paragraph and section break, and a cumulative chapter on integrating them all into "The Symphony of Punctuation." Filled with exercises and examples from literary masters (Why did Poe and Melville rely on the semicolon? Why did Hemingway embrace the period?), A Dash of Style is interactive, highly engaging, and a necessity for creative writers as well as for anyone looking to make punctuation their friend instead of their mysterious foe.

Customer Rating:
Summary: Superb
Comment: I purchased this book because I wanted to learn how to properly use commas, colons and semicolons. But, I learned more than just proper usage from this book. Lukeman, as the title indicates, discusses how punctuation can be employed to create style and effect in one's writing. He also warns of the pitfalls that one can fall into when using punctuation. All through out this book he illustrates his points with excerpts from other literary works. As a plus, this book was neither boring nor difficult to read. On the contrary, I found it quite interesting and easy to get through. While not as entertaining as Eats, Shoots & Leaves, by Lynne Truss, I did find the material more substantive and valuable.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: A great user-friendly punctuation book
Comment: As an incoming freshman entering college, I wanted to find some way to improve my writing. The aspects of my writing were fine, but sometimes it felt short of fully emphasizing an idea, or just connecting sentences better. So I picked up this book (I'll admit, the only thing that caught my attention was the cover at first) and I learned more about punctuation from this book than I ever did from elementary school!

The good and bad examples of good punctuation usuage ultimately helped me understand how to correctly use puncation to improve writing. Also, the author explained the differences and similarities between the punctuation marks quite well. The examples were interesting; the danger of overuse and underuse of various punctuation kept me glued to the book; overall, a must read!

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Customer Rating:
Summary: a dash of style
Comment: Noah Lukeman's books on writing, I believe there are three total, are the last word for any aspiring writer anywhere--I can't recommend him enough! :)

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Not your typical grammar aid book!
Comment: This book offers readers a chance to approach the complex world of proper grammar usuage in a manner that is both educational and personal. The chapter construction is easy on the eyes and non-threatening. In the past, grammar books have been text oriented, with less emphasis on making the subject accessible to struggling writers. This book makes learning grammar a cinch!

Definitely a book for all writers!

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Excellent complement!
Comment: This compact new book on punctuation uniquely complements standard college writing guides like THE BEDFORD HANDBOOK, now in its seventh edition, the all-time bestselling college textbook. The Bedford as well as several other college writing handbooks, such as THE HARBRACE HANDBOOK, I have used in my teaching cite punctuation examples mostly from nonfiction works.

This book's uniqueness arises from its approach: illustrating punctuation "rules" with examples drawn mostly from literary works. Moreover, the author points out how literary masters flout "rules" to create special effects. The works cited include excerpts from numerous writers such as Mark Twain, William Faulkner, and Joyce Carol Oates.

Excellent book for fiction writers.

C J Singh

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