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Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation
by Lynne Truss

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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8600.Eats_Shoots_Leaves_The_Zero_Tolerance_Approach_to_Punctuation?utm_medium=api&amp;utm_source=blog_review" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img alt="Eats, Shoots &amp; Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation" border="0" src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/photo.goodreads.com/books/1165672357m/8600.jpg" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8600.Eats_Shoots_Leaves_The_Zero_Tolerance_Approach_to_Punctuation?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation</a> by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5571.Lynne_Truss">Lynne Truss</a> 
 <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/9910964?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review"><h3>My review</h3></a>
 rating: 4 of 5 stars The joke upon which the title of this book is based goes roughly like this:
 
 A panda walks into a restaurant and eats a meal. He picks up a pistol, fires it at the waiter, and walks out. As he's leaving, the victim moans, "Why????" The panda says, "I'm a panda; look it up." With his last burst of strength, the man grabs a dictionary (yes, there is a dictionary in the restaurant) and reads the following entry: Panda: Large black-and-white bear-like mammal, native to China. Eats, shoots and leaves.”
 
 If you found that funny, then several things are true about you:
 1. You are as insufferable a know-it-all as I am about punctuation;
 2. You have a great sense of humor (and are probably devastatingly attractive); 
 and
 3. You will probabably like <a href="/search/search?q= Eats, Shoots and Leaves&t=title"> Eats, Shoots and Leaves</a> by <a href="/search/search?q= Lynne Truss&t=author"> Lynne Truss</a>.
 
 Fortunately, we share these traits with the author of <a href="/search/search?q= Eats, Shoots and Leaves&t=title"> Eats, Shoots and Leaves</a>, who was also the host of BBC's "Cutting a Dash." She can make punctuation interesting and fun, both orally and in writing.
 
 This book was a surprise best-seller on both sides of the Atlantic. Truss devotes entire chapters to such fascinating characters as the semicolon and the apostrophe. The apostrophe, which is promisciously overused in modern society, is near and dear to my heart. For the last time, people, do not put "The Smith's" on your mailbox. You are the Smiths, plural. If you wish to identify yourself as such, say so without the apostrophe. If you are trying to denote ownership of the mailbox (which seems petty and redundant, since it is on your property, but who am I to judge), then the apostrophe should follow the final S, not precede it. Otherwise, let the poor apostrophe have a little peace and stop advertising your ignorance to the neighbors. <a href="/search/search?q= Lynne Truss&t=author"> Lynne Truss</a>, being British and all, says all of this and more, but in a much more polite, genteel, and, well, British way than I just did.
 
 Yes, this book really is about punctuation. Yes, it really is a hoot. And yes, I obviously am a pain in the butt. Thank you, <a href="/search/search?q= Lynne Truss&t=author"> Lynne Truss</a>, for showing me that I'm in good company.
 <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/405638?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">View all my reviews.</a>

Bobbi's review
rating:

The joke upon which the title of this book is based goes roughly like this:

A panda walks into a restaurant and eats a meal. He picks up a pistol, fires it at the waiter, and walks out. As he's leaving, the victim moans, "Why????" The panda says, "I'm a panda; look it up." With his last burst of strength, the man grabs a dictionary (yes, there is a dictionary in the restaurant) and reads the following entry: Panda: Large black-and-white bear-like mammal, native to China. Eats, shoots and leaves.”

If you found that funny, then several things are true about you:
1. You are as insufferable a know-it-all as I am about punctuation;
2. You have a great sense of humor (and are probably devastatingly attractive);
and
3. You will probabably like Eats, Shoots and Leaves by Lynne Truss.

Fortunately, we share these traits with the aut...more The joke upon which the title of this book is based goes roughly like this:

A panda walks into a restaurant and eats a meal. He picks up a pistol, fires it at the waiter, and walks out. As he's leaving, the victim moans, "Why????" The panda says, "I'm a panda; look it up." With his last burst of strength, the man grabs a dictionary (yes, there is a dictionary in the restaurant) and reads the following entry: Panda: Large black-and-white bear-like mammal, native to China. Eats, shoots and leaves.”

If you found that funny, then several things are true about you:
1. You are as insufferable a know-it-all as I am about punctuation;
2. You have a great sense of humor (and are probably devastatingly attractive);
and
3. You will probabably like Eats, Shoots and Leaves by Lynne Truss.

Fortunately, we share these traits with the author of Eats, Shoots and Leaves, who was also the host of BBC's "Cutting a Dash." She can make punctuation interesting and fun, both orally and in writing.

This book was a surprise best-seller on both sides of the Atlantic. Truss devotes entire chapters to such fascinating characters as the semicolon and the apostrophe. The apostrophe, which is promisciously overused in modern society, is near and dear to my heart. For the last time, people, do not put "The Smith's" on your mailbox. You are the Smiths, plural. If you wish to identify yourself as such, say so without the apostrophe. If you are trying to denote ownership of the mailbox (which seems petty and redundant, since it is on your property, but who am I to judge), then the apostrophe should follow the final S, not precede it. Otherwise, let the poor apostrophe have a little peace and stop advertising your ignorance to the neighbors. Lynne Truss, being British and all, says all of this and more, but in a much more polite, genteel, and, well, British way than I just did.

Yes, this book really is about punctuation. Yes, it really is a hoot. And yes, I obviously am a pain in the butt. Thank you, Lynne Truss, for showing me that I'm in good company....less

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message 1: by Terri

12/04/2007 07:15AM

You offer wonderful book reviews, Bobbi. Thank you for keeping me on your list. One day soon, I will have time to again read voraciously. (Ignore my grammar; it needs work!)