Book picks similar to
Spatial Form in Narrative by Jeffrey Smitten
creative-writing
english
language
literacy
4000 Essential English Words 1
I.S.P. Nation
The series presents a variety of words that cover a large percentage of the words that can be found in many spoken or written texts. Thus, after mastering these target words, learners will be able to fully understand vocabulary items when they encounter them in written and spoken form. Each unit presents 20 words which are defined and used in sample sentences. The activities in the books are designed to present the words in different uses so that learners can fully see how they can be utilized. Also at the end of each unit there is a story whch contains the unit's target words to give learners further examples of the words in use. Each level properly prepares the learner for the next which progressively challenges the learner with more sophisticated vocabulary and stories. Key features include: (1) Clear, easy to understand definitions and examples; (2) Various activities to reinforce target vocabulary; (3) Progressive development of vocabulary across levels; (4) Original stories which utilize target words; (5) Useful color images that illustrate each target word; and (6) Free downloadable supplemental audio recordings of target word lists and stories to aid in listening and pronunciation.
Shakespeare on Toast: Getting a Taste for the Bard
Ben Crystal - 2008
He wrote too much and what he did write is inaccessible and elitist. Right? Wrong. "Shakespeare on Toast" knocks the stuffing from the staid old myth of Shakespeare, revealing the man and his plays for what they really are: modern, thrilling and uplifting drama. Actor and author Ben Crystal brings the bright words and colourful characters of the world's greatest hack writer brilliantly to life, handing over the key to Shakespeare's plays, unlocking the so-called difficult bits and, astonishingly, finding Shakespeare's own voice amid the poetry.Told in five fascinating Acts, "Shakespeare on Toast" sweeps the cobwebs from the Bard - from his language, his life, his time - revealing both the man and his work to be relevant, accessible and full of beans. This is a book for everyone, whether you're reading Shakespeare for the first time, occasionally find him troublesome, think you know him backwards, or have never set foot near one of his plays but have always wanted to ...It's quick, easy and good for you. Just like beans on toast.
How to Write Everything
David Quantick - 2014
It tells you about every aspect of writing, from having an idea to getting the idea out into the world (and getting paid for it too). It covers everything from journalism to screen-writing, from speeches to sketches, from sitcoms to novels. With thirty years' experience as an award-winning script-writer, journalist, author and broadcaster David Quantick is ideally suited, as a writer, to write this definitive writer's guide to writing... everything.
Ella Minnow Pea: A Novel in Letters
Mark Dunn - 2001
Nollop was named after Nevin Nollop, author of the immortal pangram,* "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog." Now Ella finds herself acting to save her friends, family, and fellow citizens from the encroaching totalitarianism of the island's Council, which has banned the use of certain letters of the alphabet as they fall from a memorial statue of Nevin Nollop. As the letters progressively drop from the statue they also disappear from the novel. The result is both a hilarious and moving story of one girl's fight for freedom of expression, as well as a linguistic tour de force sure to delight word lovers everywhere.*pangram: a sentence or phrase that includes all the letters of the alphabet
The Little Red Writing Book
Brandon Royal - 2004
Brimming with clever advice, this book offers writers, students, and business professionals a concise guide to penning strong and effective work for all occasions.The Little Red Writing Book is designed for visual appeal and ease of use. Elegant yet practical, it will be an intriguing, inviting reference you'll turn to again and again. Author Brandon Royal offers concise explanations and nonintimidating instruction based on the four pillars of sound writing: structure, style, readability, and grammar. His discussion centers on 20 immutable writing principles as well as 30 commonly encountered rules of grammar. A wealth of examples, charts, and engaging exercises make The Little Red Writing Book an invaluable guide for anyone who wants to master those skills that will make a good writer even better.
Rereadings: Seventeen Writers Revisit Books They Love
Anne Fadiman - 2005
Her chosen authors include Sven Birkerts, Allegra Goodman, Vivian Gornick, Patricia Hampl, Phillip Lopate, and Luc Sante; the objects of their literary affections range from Pride and Prejudice to Sue Barton, Student Nurse.These essays are not conventional literary criticism; they are about relationships. Rereadings reveals at least as much about the reader as about the book: each is a miniature memoir that focuses on that most interesting of topics, the protean nature of love. And as every bibliophile knows, no love is more life-changing than the love of a book.
Letters to a Young Writer: Some Practical and Philosophical Advice
Colum McCann - 2017
McCann asks his readers to constantly push the boundaries of experience, to see empathy and wonder in the stories we craft and hear.A paean to the power of language, both by argument and by example, Letters to a Young Writer is fierce and honest in its testament to the bruises delivered by writing as both a profession and a calling. It charges aspiring writers to learn the rules and even break them.These fifty-two essays are ultimately a profound challenge to a new generation to bring truth and light to a dark world through their art.
Word by Word: The Secret Life of Dictionaries
Kory Stamper - 2017
While most of us might take dictionaries for granted, the process of writing them is in fact as lively and dynamic as language itself. With sharp wit and irreverence, Kory Stamper cracks open the complex, obsessive world of lexicography--from the agonizing decisions about what and how to define, to the knotty questions of usage in an ever-changing language. She explains why small words are the most difficult to define (have you ever tried to define is ?), how it can take nine months to define a single word, and how our biases about language and pronunciation can have tremendous social influence. Throughout, Stamper brings to life the hallowed halls (and highly idiosyncratic cubicles) of Merriam-Webster, a world inhabited by quirky, erudite individuals who quietly shape the way we communicate. A sure delight for all lovers of words, Word by Word might also quietly improve readers grasp and use of the English language."
The Art of Memoir
Mary Karr - 2015
She followed with two other smash bestsellers: Cherry and Lit, which were critical hits as well.For thirty years Karr has also taught the form, winning graduate teaching prizes for her highly selective seminar at Syracuse, where she mentored such future hit authors as Cheryl Strayed, Keith Gessen, and Koren Zailckas. In The Art of Memoir, she synthesizes her expertise as professor and therapy patient, writer and spiritual seeker, recovered alcoholic and “black belt sinner,” providing a unique window into the mechanics and art of the form that is as irreverent, insightful, and entertaining as her own work in the genre.Anchored by excerpts from her favorite memoirs and anecdotes from fellow writers’ experience, The Art of Memoir lays bare Karr’s own process. (Plus all those inside stories about how she dealt with family and friends get told— and the dark spaces in her own skull probed in depth.) As she breaks down the key elements of great literary memoir, she breaks open our concepts of memory and identity, and illuminates the cathartic power of reflecting on the past; anybody with an inner life or complicated history, whether writer or reader, will relate.Joining such classics as Stephen King’s On Writing and Anne Lamott’s Bird by Bird, The Art of Memoir is an elegant and accessible exploration of one of today’s most popular literary forms—a tour de force from an accomplished master pulling back the curtain on her craft.
Book by Book: Notes on Reading and Life
Michael Dirda - 2006
Drawing on sources as diverse as Dr. Seuss and Simone Weil, P. G. Wodehouse and Isaiah Berlin, Pulitzer Prize–winning critic Michael Dirda shows how the wit, wisdom, and enchantment of the written word informs and enriches nearly every aspect of life, from education and work to love and death.Organized by significant life events and abounding with quotations from great writers and thinkers, Book by Book showcases Dirda's capacious love for and understanding of books. Favoring showing as much as telling, Dirda draws us deeper into the classics, as well as lesser-known works of literature, history, and philosophy, always with an eye to how we might better understand our lives.
The Girl in the Spider's Web (Millennium Series Book 4): Sidekick
Clarity Hawkins - 2015
The Girl in the Spider's Web is the fourth book in the Millennium series. The novel retains many of the main characters we have come to know in the three novels. We find Lisbeth Salander trying to hack into the NSA and Blomkvist attempting to reconcile the possible end of his magazine. The death of Professor Balder sets off an investigation being carried out by many separate organizations, of which Blomkvist and Salander are also part. The novel expertly highlights current social issues on a global scale concerning watchdog organizations, technology, and crime. This sidekick will help you keep track of the many characters and their journeys throughout the novel. In this sidekick, you'll find: Chapter Summaries Characterization and arcs of each main character References Imagery Noteworthy quotes Disclaimer: This book serves as an accompaniment to the bestseller "The Girl in the Spider's Web" by David Lagercrantz. It is meant to broaden the reader's understanding of the book and to offer some insights which can easily be overlooked. You should order a copy of the actual book before reading this.
Sorrows and Smiles
Dee Williams - 2000
Robbie's a lovely lad, much less dangerous than Lu Cappa, who's always giving her the eye when he's out in his ice-cream van. Pam has to ask her best friend Jill to cover for her while she's out with Robbie. When Ivy finds out Pam's been lying, she makes sure the relationship with Robbie is over for good. Then Jill falls in love, and it's loneliness that makes Pam accept a date with Lu Cappa. Before she knows it, they're married. Even then, Pam knows Lu's still jealous of Robbie. And she can't help wondering what Lu's up to when he's out with his shifty brother. When Robbie comes back into their lives, it could be the last straw. One thing's for sure: until everyone starts to tell the truth, there will be as many sorrows as smiles in Pam's marriage...
A Man to Die for
Suvika - 2015
After three broken engagements I’m not going to waste my emotional energy on something that’s not going to give me anything.” – Shikha Bose.“I think my husband is having an affair with one of his colleagues. But I’m afraid to ask. Now it’s just in my head but if I ask and he doesn’t deny, it will become a reality.” – Preeti Singh.“My boyfriend doesn’t want to acknowledge me even as his friend in front of his family, let alone the fact that we’re lovers. It’s like I’m his dirty little secret.” – Siya Grewal.So the three friends come to a unanimous conclusion. Men suck. And like the characters in a sci-fi flick, perfect men are fictitious. The discussion takes off from there and ends with a post on social media. Attributes that this fictitious man should possess; some genuine, some funny and some downright naughty. Response to that post is unexpected in more ways than one. A Man to Die for creates a sensation with countless likes, retweets and forwards. And when the identities of the post-makers are revealed, the three friends are left to face the judging looks and snide comments. But when comments escalate to threatening calls and one of the three gets brutally murdered, the other two flounder in shock, grief, fear and fury. Someone has taken the post as a personal insult and was out for retribution by killing their friend and vowing to kill them too. Now, with the help of a DCP, who, according to Shikha was a dubious combination of a jerk and a hero, the killer must be caught. As the police race to unravel the identity, the killer strikes again...
Dr Dhurandhar's Fat-loss Diet
Nikhil Dhurandhar - 2018
Here are all the secrets you need: The reasons for weight gain The things you ll need The meal plans Motivation tips and tricks How to stop the lost weight from returning Dr Dhurandhar s Fat-Loss Diet is for all who don t have the time to go to the gym like Aamir, and for all looking for actual results.
After the Fire
John Pilkington - 2011
All are linked to the new Dorset Gardens Theatre where feisty young Betsy Brand is playing First Witch in Macbeth. It seems that a shadowy figure called The Salamander, who haunted London during the Fire, has returned to wreak cruel revenge on his enemies. With the authorities utterly baffled, Betsy takes on a new role as an investigator. She reasons that perhaps a clever, courageous actress can unravel the deepening mystery. But soon she faces a more terrible foe than ever stalked upon a stage—and finds her own life is at stake.