The Art of Spelling: The Madness and the Method

by Marilyn vos Savant

Drawing on the thousands of reponses to the "Ask Marilyn" spelling survey, the Parade magazine columnist examines what spelling reveals about an individual's personalitiy, native intelligence, education, and desire; traces the history of English spelling; and discusses ways to improve one's own spelling ability. 40,000 first printing.

Genres: Nonfiction

204 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Marilyn vos Savant is an American magazine columnist, author, lecturer and playwright who rose to fame through her listing in the Guinness Book of World Records under "Highest IQ". Since 1986 she has written Ask Marilyn, a Sunday column in Parade magazine in which she solves puzzles and answers questions from readers on a variety of subjects.

Reviews

[SmarterLilac · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'll just cut to the chase for everyone—the author's 'method' is essentially writing every word you misspell 10 times in a row whenever you misspell it. I was expecting something with more cleverness.

I will say, however, that this book provides excellent justification for anyone who wants to improve their English learning the basics of the Latin roots of our words. This is one thing that helped improve my own spelling immensely. (So did getting a copy of Spell Check, a small and sturdy reference book I keep by my computer.)

Other learn-how-spell tip I learned from a woman who was a Northwern J-School grad: pneumonic devices for all the words we habitually misspell. (Ex.: the three Es in 'cemetery' are lined up like little tombstones.)

This manual just isn't remarkable enough for me to recommend.

[Julie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've always been fascinated by language (my mom, the elementary school librarian, found a book in her to-be-discarded pile about word origins, and brought it home for me - being that I had been the only kid to ever sign it out, 15 or so years before) but this book really tested that fascination.

If you want to wade through a dense thicket of information on the history of spelling, it's great. If you are really trying to improve your spelling and you're looking for ways to do so, skip the first 2/3 and just read the bit on the exercises at the end - if you try to wade through the first part, you'll never make it.

Even the suggestions given for working on spelling would daunt anyone but the most determined. She basically wants people to carry a dictionary around with them at all times, along with a notebook for listing words you have difficulty spelling. If this method works for you, go for it! I heartily applaud you... but I think most people would find this book less than helpful.

[Emily · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was hoping for a discussion/examination of the social history of spelling, but this wasn't it. Most of the basis for the book is a survey the author conducted in Parade magazine, and a pseudo-scientific examination of the survey results. While the author mentions that the results were self-reported and therefore not really reliable, she still bases the majority of the book on the flawed data. There are a few chapters full of quotes and examination of other people's research as it supports her survey data, and then some coverage on tips for improving spelling. I feel like this was a waste of my time; never a good way to leave a book.

[Andy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I got the impression that this was some sort of pet research project for Marilyn Vos Savant. Neat little book with some interesting facts about history of spelling and some useful advice. (Now I have to return it to the public library. They have it listed as lost!)

[Lesley · Rating 2 out of 5]

How geeky am I that I read a book about spelling? I liked some of the spelling history and this book has practical advice on improving your spelling. It got to be a bit much, especially near the end,though.

[Alex]

The Art of Spelling: The Madness and the Method by Marilyn Vos Savant (2001)

[Shawna · Rating 3 out of 5]

An excellent history of our language. Fun to read.

[Kelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh, a little interesting, but not worth the effort.