The New New Journalism
Conversations with America's Best Nonfiction Writers on Their Craft
Written by Robert Boynton

Format: Trade Paperback, 496 pages
Publisher: Vintage
On Sale: March 8, 2005
Price: $15.95
ISBN: 978-1-4000-3356-0 (1-4000-3356-X)

Forty years after Tom Wolfe, Hunter S. Thompson, and Gay Talese launched the New Journalism movement, Robert S. Boynton sits down with nineteen practitioners of what he calls the New New Journalism to discuss their methods, writings and careers.

The New New Journalists are first and foremost brilliant reporters who immerse themselves... Read more >

Composition of Scientific Words

Written by Roland Wilbur Brown

Format: Trade Paperback, 882 pages
Publisher: Smithsonian Books
On Sale: July 17, 2000
Price: $37.95
ISBN: 978-1-56098-848-9 (1-56098-848-7)

Born of the linguistic fascination of a noted paleontologist, Composition of Scientific Words includes a brief introduction to the history and elementary structure of English, Greek, and Latin, followed by a guide for the formulation of technical terms. The main selection, the lexicon, is an alphabetical list of key words. It... Read more >

Bryson's Dictionary of Troublesome Words
A Writer's Guide to Getting It Right
Written by Bill Bryson

Format: Trade Paperback, 256 pages
Publisher: Broadway
On Sale: September 14, 2004
Price: $14.00
ISBN: 978-0-7679-1043-9 (0-7679-1043-5)

As a copy editor for the London Times in the early 1980s, Bill Bryson felt keenly the lack of an easy-to-consult, authoritative guide to avoiding the traps and snares in English, and so he brashly suggested to a publisher that he should write one.

Now, a decade and a half later, revised... Read more >

Spellbound
The Surprising Origins and Astonishing Secrets of English Spelling
Written by James Essinger

Format: Trade Paperback, 336 pages
Publisher: Delta
On Sale: May 1, 2007
Price: $13.00
ISBN: 978-0-385-34084-7 (0-385-34084-2)

Welcome to the illogical, idiosyncratic, outrageous linguistic phenomenon known as the English language. The story of how this ragtag collection of words evolved is a winding tale replete with intriguing accidents and bizarre twists of fate. In this insightful and luminous book, James Essinger unlocks the mysteries that have confounded linguists... Read more >

Home
American Writers Remember Rooms of Their Own
Edited by Sharon Sloan Fiffer and Steven Fiffer

Format: Trade Paperback, 256 pages
Publisher: Vintage
On Sale: October 1, 1996
Price: $19.00
ISBN: 978-0-679-76885-2 (0-679-76885-8)

In Home, eighteen of our finest writers evoke different rooms--from their pasts, their present, or simply their imaginations--in order to investigate the ways in which homes contain our lives. The results are touching, provocative, and sometimes hilarious. And since a portion of the editors' proceeds will go to organizations that help... Read more >

Script and Scribble
The Rise and Fall of Handwriting
Written by Kitty Burns Florey

Format: Hardcover, 208 pages
Publisher: Melville House
On Sale: January 20, 2009
Price: $22.95
ISBN: 978-1-933633-67-1 (1-933633-67-0)

Steeped in the Palmer Method of Handwriting she learned in Catholic school, Kitty Burns Florey is a self-confessed “penmanship nut” who loves the act of taking pen to paper. So when she discovered that schools today forego handwriting drills in favor of teaching something called keyboarding, it gave her pause: “There... Read more >

Wild Mind
Living the Writer's Life
Written by Natalie Goldberg

Format: Trade Paperback, 256 pages
Publisher: Bantam
On Sale: October 1, 1990
Price: $17.00
ISBN: 978-0-553-34775-3 (0-553-34775-6)

Wild Mind takes students beyond craft to the true source of creative power: the mind that is "raw, full of energy, alive and hungry." Goldberg offers students practical advice on how to find time to write, discover personal style, make sentences come alive, and how to overcome procrastination and writer's block... Read more >

Writing Down the Bones
Freeing the Writer Within
Written by Natalie Goldberg

Format: Trade Paperback, 224 pages
Publisher: Shambhala
On Sale: December 6, 2005
Price: $14.95
ISBN: 978-1-59030-261-3 (1-59030-261-3)

Goldberg's book on tapping the well-springs of creativity has become a staple of the writing classroom and an invaluable source for students and writers of all levels. Organizing her subject matter in a simple and user-friendly fashion, she discusses how to generate ideas, form writing habits, getting through "writer's block," and... Read more >

1001 Comics You Must Read Before You Die
The Ultimate Guide to Comic Books, Graphic Novels and Manga
Edited by Paul Gravett
Foreword by Terry Gilliam

Format: Hardcover, 960 pages
Publisher: Universe
On Sale: October 25, 2011
Price: $36.95
ISBN: 978-0-7893-2271-5 (0-7893-2271-4)

Over the centuries, comic books and their offshoots, such as graphic novels, manga, and bandes dessinées, have evolved into a phenomenally popular, influential, and unique art form with which we can express our opinions, our fantasies, our nightmares, and our dreams. In short: comics are emphatically no longer just for kids... Read more >

Thank You for Arguing
What Aristotle, Lincoln, and Homer Simpson Can Teach Us About the Art of Persuasion
Written by Jay Heinrichs

Format: Trade Paperback, 336 pages
Publisher: Three Rivers Press
On Sale: February 27, 2007
Price: $15.00
ISBN: 978-0-307-34144-0 (0-307-34144-5)

Thank You for Arguing is your master class in the art of persuasion, taught by professors ranging from Bart Simpson to Winston Churchill. The time-tested secrets the book discloses include Cicero’s three-step strategy for moving an audience to action--as well as Honest Abe’s Shameless Trick of lowering an audience’s expectations by... Read more >

Word Hero
A Fiendishly Clever Guide to Crafting the Lines that Get Laughs, Go Viral, and Live Forever
Written by Jay Heinrichs

Format: Trade Paperback, 352 pages
Publisher: Three Rivers Press
On Sale: October 4, 2011
Price: $14.00
ISBN: 978-0-307-71636-1 (0-307-71636-8)

In Word Hero, Jay Heinrichs rescues the how-to of verbal artistry from staid textbooks and makes it entirely fresh and engaging. Here, there are no dry, abstract ideas hidden in academic jargon. Rather, Heinrichs brilliantly reveals mechanisms that make powerful language work.

Students will learn how to choose words strategically and draw... Read more >

Writing Begins with the Breath
Embodying Your Authentic Voice
Written by Laraine Herring

Format: Trade Paperback, 208 pages
Publisher: Shambhala
On Sale: September 11, 2007
Price: $16.95
ISBN: 978-1-59030-473-0 (1-59030-473-X)

Laraine Herring’s distinctive new approach to the writing craft provides a welcome jump-start for new writers—and will open up a whole world of creativity for people who may not have considered themselves writers before—while also providing keen insights into the craft for seasoned writers. Her secret is to move the focus... Read more >

The Writing Warrior
Discovering the Courage to Free Your True Voice
Written by Laraine Herring

Format: Trade Paperback, 208 pages
Publisher: Shambhala
On Sale: July 20, 2010
Price: $14.95
ISBN: 978-1-59030-796-0 (1-59030-796-8)

All writers are faced at some point with feelings of self-consciousness and self-doubt about their work. In this invaluable guide, Laraine Herring offers advice to writers who want to become more comfortable with their writing, face their inhibitions, and gain the confidence to release their true voice. Utilizing the breath, a... Read more >

Random House Guide to Good Writing

Written by Mitchell Ivers

Format: Paperback, 288 pages
Publisher: Ballantine Books
On Sale: October 4, 1993
Price: $7.99
ISBN: 978-0-345-37996-2 (0-345-37996-9)

Read more >

Roget's 21st Century Thesaurus, Third Edition

Written by Barbara Ann Kipfer

Format: Trade Paperback, 976 pages
Publisher: Delta
On Sale: June 14, 2005
Price: $15.00
ISBN: 978-0-385-33895-0 (0-385-33895-3)

Combining scholarly authority with a new awareness of today’s communication demands, Roget’s 21st Century Thesaurus is the simple, reliable way to find the perfect word for your needs. It features an easy-to-use dictionary format plus a revolutionary Concept Index that arranges words by idea, thus enhancing the user’s process of association... Read more >

Roget's 21st Century Thesaurus, Third Edition

Written by Barbara Ann Kipfer

Format: Paperback, 976 pages
Publisher: Dell
On Sale: June 14, 2005
Price: $5.99
ISBN: 978-0-440-24269-7 (0-440-24269-X)

Combining scholarly authority with a new awareness of today’s communication demands, Roget’s 21st Century Thesaurus is the simple, reliable way to find the perfect word for your needs. It features an easy-to-use dictionary format plus a revolutionary Concept Index that arranges words by idea, thus enhancing the user’s process of association... Read more >

Several Short Sentences About Writing

Written by Verlyn Klinkenborg

Format: Trade Paperback, 224 pages
Publisher: Vintage
On Sale: April 9, 2013
Price: $15.00
ISBN: 978-0-307-27941-5 (0-307-27941-3)

An indispensable and distinctive book that will help anyone who wants to write, write better, or have a clearer understanding of what it means for them to be writing, from widely admired writer and teacher Verlyn Klinkenborg.

Klinkenborg believes that most of our received wisdom about how writing works is not only... Read more >

Several Short Sentences About Writing

Written by Verlyn Klinkenborg

Format: Hardcover, 224 pages
Publisher: Knopf
On Sale: August 7, 2012
Price: $22.00
ISBN: 978-0-307-26634-7 (0-307-26634-6)

Most of what you think you know about writing is useless. It’s the harmful debris of your education—a mixture of half-truths, myths, and false assumptions that prevents you from writing well. Drawing on years of experience as a writer and teacher of writing, Verlyn Klinkenborg offers an approach to writing that... Read more >

Bird by Bird
Some Instructions on Writing and Life
Written by Anne Lamott

Format: Trade Paperback, 272 pages
Publisher: Anchor
On Sale: September 1, 1995
Price: $15.95
ISBN: 978-0-385-48001-7 (0-385-48001-6)

An honest and humorous step-by-step guide on how to write and how to manage the writer's life. From "Getting Started," with "Short Assignments," through "Shitty First Drafts," "Character," "Plot," "Dialogue." All the way from "False Starts" to "How Do You Know When You're Done?" She discusses writer's Block, writing Groups, and... Read more >

The Bantam Roget's Thesaurus

Written by Sidney L. Landau

Format: Paperback, 816 pages
Publisher: Bantam
On Sale: July 1, 1990
Price: $5.99
ISBN: 978-0-553-28769-1 (0-553-28769-9)

Now it's easier than ever to find just the right word - to make your writing assignment or speech sparkle, or to add new degrees of precision to your vocabulary. Here's an alphabetical listing of synonyms and antonyms, as easy to use as a dictionary, that gets words from the "tip... Read more >

The Art of the Personal Essay
An Anthology from the Classical Era to the Present
Written by Phillip Lopate

Format: Trade Paperback, 832 pages
Publisher: Anchor
On Sale: January 15, 1997
Price: $21.00
ISBN: 978-0-385-42339-7 (0-385-42339-X)

Distinguished from the formal essay by its friendly, conversational tone, its drive toward candor and confession, and its often quirky, first-person voice, the personal essay is perhaps the ideal literary form for beginning writers to explore their personal style and voice. The Art of the Personal Essay is the first anthology... Read more >

Word Spy
The Word Lover's Guide to Modern Culture
Written by Paul McFedries

Format: Trade Paperback, 432 pages
Publisher: Broadway
On Sale: February 17, 2004
Price: $23.00
ISBN: 978-0-7679-1466-6 (0-7679-1466-X)

"...impressively wide-ranging, featuring neologisms drawn from English newspapers and magazines around the world as well as from fiction, nonfiction, and popular music." —Library Journal

Language wears many hats, but its most important job is to help us name or describe what's in the world. Words define us, our actions, even our existence.... Read more >

The Smithsonian Book of Books

Written by Michael Olmert

Format: Hardcover, 320 pages
Publisher: Smithsonian Books
On Sale: September 17, 2003
Price: $49.95
ISBN: 978-0-89599-030-3 (0-89599-030-X)

Through more than 300 glorious illustrations from library collections around the globe, you’ll discover a wealth of book lore in these pages and gain a new appreciation for the role of books in human society, from our earliest attempts at writing and recording information to the newest electronic books; from sumptuous... Read more >

Beat Writers at Work

Written by Paris Review
Edited by George Plimpton
Introduction by Richard Moody

Format: Trade Paperback, 368 pages
Publisher: Modern Library
On Sale: February 16, 1999
Price: $19.00
ISBN: 978-0-375-75215-5 (0-375-75215-3)

Edited by George Plimpton, and with an introduction by Rick Moody, this collection of interviews with the Beat Writers grants writers of prose, poetry, and literary critics an in-depth look into one of the most famous literary tribes of the century. The Beats, with their mix of talent, bravado, and insight... Read more >

The TV Writer's Workbook
A Creative Approach To Television Scripts
Written by Ellen Sandler

Format: Trade Paperback, 304 pages
Publisher: Delta
On Sale: March 27, 2007
Price: $16.00
ISBN: 978-0-385-34050-2 (0-385-34050-8)

Why is TV writing different from any other kind of writing? How will writing a spec script open doors? What do I have to do to get a job writing for TV? Writing for television is a business. And, like any business, there are proven strategies for success. In this unique... Read more >