Geoffrey Nunberg is a linguist often featured on NPR’s “Fresh Air”. I’ve always found his comments on the language usages and origins fascinating, so when I heard about his current collection, Going Nucular: Language, Politics, and Culture in Controversial Times, I’ve decided to get both.

This book is a collection of his commentaries on the show (and some other columns for others, I think) from 1996 to 2001. It started slow, but some sections (“Word Histories” and “Politics of the English Language” for me) were very interesting.

The best part about the format for me is that each article is short. It’s something you can carry along with you and read whenever you have some time on your hand without trying to remember where you left off.

I first heard about this book on NPR (as usual). Although I thought the joke was a bit weak, I liked the concept of the book. The book was not like a reference book on punctuation although it describes several usage rules for some punctuation marks; it was more like a collection of essays on several punctuation marks that Ms. Truss felt like talking about.

It was easy to go through (and the book wasn’t that long), and although I could have really learned everything about punctuation mark usages, I really didn’t care that much. I was more into the narratives. And I did learn a few new things: I never realized that there was a missing apostrophe in Two Weeks Notice.

I recommend it to anyone mildly anal about a few things. :p

Is this like a New York Fourth of July firework extravaganza? Is this the blockbuster dinner and the movie? Is this a bully showing off his bulked up muscles and flexing biceps?

[updated] Anyway, the thing is… If Saddam Hussein is caught/removed/killed, there is a very good chance that GWB will get re-elected. *Sigh*