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Book Synopsis

“Delightful.” —Mary Norris, The New Yorker

A page-turning, existential romp through the life and times of the world’s most polarizing punctuation mark

The semicolon. Stephen King, Hemingway, Vonnegut, and Orwell detest it. Herman Melville, Henry James, and Rebecca Solnit love it. But why? When is it effective? Have we been misusing it? Should we even care?

In Semicolon, Cecelia Watson charts the rise and fall of this infamous punctuation mark, which for years was the trendiest one in the world of letters. But in the nineteenth century, as grammar books became all the rage, the rules of how we use language became both stricter and more confusing, with the semicolon a prime victim. Taking us on a breezy journey through a range of examples—from Milton’s manuscripts to Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letters from Birmingham Jail” to R

Semicolon

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    RRP £16.99 – you save £1.70 (10%)

    Order before 4pm today for delivery by Fri 11 Sep 2026.

    A Paperback / softback by Cecelia Watson

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      Publisher: Harper Collins
      Imprint: Collins
      Publication Date: 10/05/2022
      ISBN13: 9780062853066, 978-0062853066
      ISBN10: 0062853066
      Also in:
      Creative writing Language learning: writing skills Usage and grammar guides

      Description

      Book Synopsis

      “Delightful.” —Mary Norris, The New Yorker

      A page-turning, existential romp through the life and times of the world’s most polarizing punctuation mark

      The semicolon. Stephen King, Hemingway, Vonnegut, and Orwell detest it. Herman Melville, Henry James, and Rebecca Solnit love it. But why? When is it effective? Have we been misusing it? Should we even care?

      In Semicolon, Cecelia Watson charts the rise and fall of this infamous punctuation mark, which for years was the trendiest one in the world of letters. But in the nineteenth century, as grammar books became all the rage, the rules of how we use language became both stricter and more confusing, with the semicolon a prime victim. Taking us on a breezy journey through a range of examples—from Milton’s manuscripts to Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letters from Birmingham Jail” to R

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