The Art of Spelling: The Madness and the Method

The national bestseller from Parade's "Ask Marilyn" columnist―the definitive book for anyone who cares about spelling.

Like The Elements of Style and On Writing Well, The Art of Spelling has emerged as a writing manual for the ages, the backlist volume that will tell us everything we will ever want to know about spelling. Begun as a spelling survey in the "Ask Marilyn" column of Parade magazine, The Art of Spelling dispels the myth that good spelling is simply a measure of intelligence or education. With her trademark no-nonsense wit, vos Savant shows where good (and bad) spelling originates, provides personality portraits of all kinds of spellers, and offers the most effective methods of spelling improvement known. Also included are lively chapters on the turbulent history of English spelling and the pitfalls of computer spell-checkers and other writing tools. The Art of Spelling will appeal to scholars, students, and language lovers of all ages.