25 Great Sentences and How They Got That Way

"This delightful book surprises on nearly every page.--Richard Cytowic ""New York Journal of Books"" [A] delightfully readable examination of the foundation of literary architecture for writers and language enthusiasts alike.-- ""Poets & Writers"" [A]n upbeat, informative guide for writers and readers.-- ""Kirkus Reviews"" An inherently fascinating read for anyone with an interest in the English language and storytelling...very highly recommended, especially for community, college, and university library Grammar, Rhetoric, and Linguistics Reference collections.-- ""Midwest Book Review"" Finally, someone who appreciates the engine of a fine sentence and isn't afraid to tinker with all the parts!--Brenda Miller, author of An Earlier Life and coauthor of Tell it Slant: Creating, Refining, and Publishing Creative Nonfiction Geraldine Woods breaks down twenty-five of the greatest sentences in the history of the written word and obsesses over them in a way that writers and nonwriters can appreciate.--David Mandel, Emmy-winning executive producer of Veep The premise of taking 25 'great' sentences to study might have been limiting, but the author...explores each sentence in context, giving pertinent details and insight, and uses numerous notable sentences from other sources to illustrate similar techniques...Woods is engaging and entertaining, a self-described 'language enthusiast', and her dry wit lifts both the book and the reader's spirits.-- ""Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading"" This handy, practical guide prompts would-be writers to think critically about how to create effective and meaningful sentences.-- ""Publishers Weekly"" Using hundreds of examples from writers as diverse as Bruce Springsteen and Virginia Woolf, Geraldine Woods articulates the precise ways in which a writer can send a sentence spinning.--Mary Norris, author of Between You & Me: Confessions of a Comma Queen Have you ever needed a book without knowing it, until it's in your hands? 25 Great Sentences is that book. You'll savor it. You'll pick it up again and again.--John Allman, winner of the Pushcart Prize and Helen Bull Prize for poetry, author of Loew's Triboro and Clio's Children"