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kiranmacarena's review against another edition
3.0
A good source of writing style explanation and grammer. It is a time capsule of the writing style. However, the notion that these are set rules go against the nature of creativity and anything else ruins the process, ruins it for me.
davenash's review against another edition
3.0
I was assigned this book in my Freshman writing course. I though it was over rated then. It did not make me a better writer. I reread the book on my own. I think more highly of it now, but, rereading it did not make me a better writer.
I like to think of Elements of Style as the common denominator of all well written English.
Elements sites Faulkner and Hemingway and then Whitman and Frost in the same examples because, despite differences in style, these writers follow the basic rules, principles and concepts of Elements.
The exception to Elements are authors who write in a heavy dialect like Zora Neal Hurston, Their Eyes were Watching God, and Richard Shelby, Requiem for a Dream. I can't think of other good writers who don't follow the spirit of Elements.
Elements illustrates the difference between voice and narration.
Elements maintains a consistent voice. What it lacks is a narrative quality. It's not memorable; there is no story.
Elements serves the reader best as a check after writing instead of a guide on how to write.
I disagree with Elements that the paragraph is the basic building block of writing.
The sentence is the basic building block of writing.
The key to good writing is stringing pleasing sentences together.
The best advice I've read on writing comes from Several Short Sentences About Writing: write each sentence out as its own line, this will force you to consider each sentence and will not hide a weak sentence in the flow of a paragraph. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13155290-several-short-sentences-about-writing
I half-followed that advice in this review.
I like to think of Elements of Style as the common denominator of all well written English.
Elements sites Faulkner and Hemingway and then Whitman and Frost in the same examples because, despite differences in style, these writers follow the basic rules, principles and concepts of Elements.
The exception to Elements are authors who write in a heavy dialect like Zora Neal Hurston, Their Eyes were Watching God, and Richard Shelby, Requiem for a Dream. I can't think of other good writers who don't follow the spirit of Elements.
Elements illustrates the difference between voice and narration.
Elements maintains a consistent voice. What it lacks is a narrative quality. It's not memorable; there is no story.
Elements serves the reader best as a check after writing instead of a guide on how to write.
I disagree with Elements that the paragraph is the basic building block of writing.
The sentence is the basic building block of writing.
The key to good writing is stringing pleasing sentences together.
The best advice I've read on writing comes from Several Short Sentences About Writing: write each sentence out as its own line, this will force you to consider each sentence and will not hide a weak sentence in the flow of a paragraph. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13155290-several-short-sentences-about-writing
I half-followed that advice in this review.
elv0723's review against another edition
funny
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
5.0
this was fantastic. it outlined many aspects of writing that i‘ve felt in my bones but havent been able to communicate, and others that felt like a flash of light in the dark. i will definitely be rereading this and annotating this, and i feel as though the advice here is golden for writers looking to streamline and strengthen their craft. it is, of course, outdated in sections but surprisingly White and Strunk do not get swept up into the “muddy backwaters” of craft and impart unflinching wisdom. AND its witty!
reaganwaggoner's review against another edition
4.0
Is this a book I would read just because? Nope. Never. Is it a book I am glad to have read? Certainly. That summarizes my entire opinion of this guide.
hgarciasaxophone's review against another edition
5.0
This is the first time I read the whole book through. I’ve scrolled through it and used parts of it.
It’s nice to see rules written so succinctly and see more examples of how to make writing more clear. I try and teach students some of these concepts so I’ll definitely borrow some of the examples in this book for the future.
It will stay on my desk as I proofread! Can’t wait.
It’s nice to see rules written so succinctly and see more examples of how to make writing more clear. I try and teach students some of these concepts so I’ll definitely borrow some of the examples in this book for the future.
It will stay on my desk as I proofread! Can’t wait.