Clean, Well-Lighted Sentences - by Janis Bell (Paperback)

Number of Pages: 151
Genre: Language + Art + Disciplines
Sub-Genre: Composition + Creative Writing
Format: Paperback
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
Age Range: Adult
Book theme: General
Author: Janis Bell
Language: English

About the Book

This is a focused, respectful, entertaining guide to getting sentences into good shape. Bell describes grammar and usage problems in ways that make immediate sense and explains precisely what punctuation marks will and won't do.

Book Synopsis

Clean, Well-Lighted Sentences is a small, engaging book that sits at your desk and gives golden advice. It knows precisely what your questions are, answers them clearly, makes sure you understand, and stops. What an unusual find: a grammar and punctuation guide that speaks only about issues that trouble--nothing more. Perfectly suited to anyone who has to write, from high-school and college students to senior-level executives.

Review Quotes

I am not a fan of grammar and usage books that try to be too cute...[Bell's] book is not dry or boring, but [she] doesn't waste a reader's time with her own cleverness. Her explanations are straightforward and practical. (She writes 'clean, well-lighted sentences.')--Pam Nelson "News & Observer"

Janis Bell is the warm, smart English teacher you wish you'd had, and [this] is the grammar book you've been waiting for.--Samantha Berry "Marin Magazine"

Ms. Bell and her book will bring plenty of smiles to your face as you read and learn...Clean, Well-Lighted Sentences is a perfect book for people who need to write in the course of their occupation or avocation and want to be better understood. Very few of us can remember all of these rules and we have need for just such a book. Thank you, Janis Bell.--Dennis Bianchi, San Francisco Police Officers Association, POA Journal?

This gem provides answers to everyday questions facing writers rather than an exhausting list of rules we seldom remember or need.--Mike Nobles "Oklahoma Observer"

What a gem this book is! Clean, Well-Lighted Sentences can be your handbook (open to the page you need--everything's easy to find), your tutor (open it at random every day, or create your own program of grammar points to learn or review), and probably your last-minute savior when a paper is due tomorrow. I'm keeping my copy close at hand.--Les Gottesman, chair, Department of English and Communications, Golden Gate University

This book has made me a better writer and communicator and is a must-read for college students, future teachers and others who must continue to rely on written forms of communication.--Mark Clark, Professor of Education, University of Wisconsin, Eau Claire

This will sit on my shelf alongside the dictionary and will undoubtedly develop worn pages from frequent use.--Melanie Sperling, Associate Professor of Education, University of California, Riverside

You will find reading Janis Bell is a pleasure...This is a book that gives you an immense training ground without being dry or mechanically overloaded as such books too often are.--Michael Krasny, host of Forum on KQED-FM, San Francisco, and professor of English, San Francisco State University