Watching My Language:

by William Safire

• ISBN13: 9780679423874
• ISBN10: 0679423877
• Format: Nonspecific Binding
• Copyright: 2011-08-03
• Publisher: Random House Digital Inc.

Summary

"The ninth volume of tidbits of stylistic wit and wisdom from a man willing to display his grammar in public. . . . Yet again, readers will find that William Safire's apparently endless capacity to be fascinated by language is highly contagious. " --Kirkus Reviews America's most entertaining language maven is back with more words to live by in his latest exploration of hot catchphrases, syntactical controversies, and other matters of national linguistic importance. Before you scratch that seven-year-itch, you might want to know where it came from. And before someone blurts, "You just don't get it," perhaps you should consult the Pulitzer Prize winning language columnist on the origins of that snappy feminist motto. InWatching My Language, William Safire investigates these questions and many others, including: What language was Bill Clinton speaking when he fumed, "I want to put a fist halfway down their throats with this. . . . I want their teeth on the sidewalk ?" Why is Ukraine no longer the Ukraine? Should there be an insurrection against this usage? Did baseball manager Leo Durocher really say, "Nice guys finish last" ? Who deserves credit for coining the expressions policy wonk, digerati, and Not!? William Safire, a man hip enough to explore the meaning of hip-hop, answers these questions and many more in this witty and enlightening collection. Praise for William Safire "Safire infuses his verbiage with humor, timely examples, and quotes, resulting in mini-essays that are informative and intriguing. " --Nashville Banner "Wonderful. . . . Where once stood your seventh-grade English teacher guarding the narrow gates of good usage and correct grammar now stands William Safire. . . . His true calling is chasing down first-time uses of a trendy phrase, spotting literary allusions, and most of all, keeping the American language on the straight and narrow. . . . Your old English teacher would approve." --The Dallas Morning News

Author Biography

William Safire is a writer of many incarnations: reporter, publicist, White House speechwriter, historian, novelist, lexicographer, and provocative pundit. His primary occupation since 1972 has been political columnist for <i>The New York Times</i>, usually taking the point of view of a libertarian conservative; in 1978, he was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for commentary. His column "On Language" in <i>The New York Times</i> is syndicated around the world and has made him the most widely read and vociferously argued-with writer on the subject of the English language.<br><br>Mr. Safire is married to a jeweler, is the father of a multimedia software developer and a graphic artist, and is able to communicate with all of them.