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William Strunk Jr.
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The Elements of Style Kindle Edition

by William Strunk (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 3,048 ratings
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The original edition of the concise classic, with essential advice for aspiring writers like “omit needless words.”

With simple principles and helpful tips on usage and composition, as well as lists of common errors to avoid, The Elements of Style was first published during World War I by Cornell University professor William Strunk Jr. Originally intended for Cornell students, it would become widely renowned as a memorable short guide for those who want to write clear, correct, and effective prose. A staple in countless classrooms and a touchstone for generations, it is still relevant and useful a century later.
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  1. Print length
    42 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publisher
    Open Road Media
  5. Publication date
    May 5, 2020
  6. File size
    1973 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Not Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  10. See all details
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Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B087TMZYLH
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Open Road Media (May 5, 2020)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ May 5, 2020
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 1973 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 42 pages
  • Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ B0B39TSR71
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 3,048 ratings

About the authors

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  1. William Strunk Jr.

    William Strunk Jr.

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    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    William Strunk Jr. (1 July 1869 – 26 September 1946), was a professor of English at Cornell University and author of the The Elements of Style (1918). After revision and enlargement by his former student E. B. White, it became a highly influential guide to English usage during the late 20th century, commonly called Strunk & White.

    Bio from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

    See more on the author's page
  2. Frank McCourt

    Frank McCourt

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    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Frank McCourt (1930-2009) was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Irish immigrant parents, grew up in Limerick, Ireland, and returned to America in 1949. For thirty years he taught in New York City high schools. His first book, "Angela's Ashes," won the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Critics Circle Award and the L.A. Times Book Award. In 2006, he won the prestigious Ellis Island Family Heritage Award for Exemplary Service in the Field of the Arts and the United Federation of Teachers John Dewey Award for Excellence in Education.

    ***************

    Frank McCourt (1930-2009) nació en Brooklyn, Nueva York, de padres inmigrantes irlandeses, creció en Limerick, Irlanda, y regresó a Estados Unidos en 1949. Durante treinta años enseñó en escuelas secundarias de la ciudad de Nueva York. Su primer libro, "Las cenizas de Angela", ganó el Premio Pulitzer, el Premio del Círculo Nacional de Críticos de Libros y el Premio L.A. Times Book. En 2006, ganó el prestigioso Premio Ellis Island Family Heritage por el Servicio ejemplar en el campo de las artes y el Premio de la Unión de Maestros John Dewey por la excelencia en la educación.

    See more on the author's page
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Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
4.4 out of 5
3,048 global ratings
I find this book to be so useful. One of my professor recommend this to me
4 Stars
I find this book to be so useful. One of my professor recommend this to me
I find this book to be so useful. One of my professor recommend this to me, now it's the most important book in my collection of books.
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Top reviews from the United States

Gail
5.0 out of 5 stars Helpful
Reviewed in the United States on March 9, 2024
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A short book. Great resource for writers.
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Brock
5.0 out of 5 stars Classic must have if you are doing serious work.
Reviewed in the United States on April 1, 2024
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It's a lot thinner than I ever imagined. I mentioned it to a guy I often talk with in the poker room we frequent. He has a copy too. He used it for his doctoral thesis and some professional papers, one of which was published.

He said, "We're probably the only two geeks in here who know about that book."
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Arthur Schupbach
4.0 out of 5 stars A classic book on writing
Reviewed in the United States on November 17, 2015
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This is truly a strange book. Some of the advice is outdated or overly specific, reflecting the author's beliefs more than embodying sound writing principals. But, a great deal of the advice is practical, and forces you to look at sentences in a different, more constructive way. It gives a writer the tools to avoid typical pratfalls and weak writing. More than that, though, it has a certain indescribable essence. It shares this quality with the Bible. It's odd, quirky, and dogmatic, and yet writers great and small will come away inspired and enriched, with plenty of useful writing techniques. For good or for bad, its impact on the writing world is undeniable. I highly advise any would-be writer to give it a read, and see where they stand on it.
2 people found this helpful
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Andrew plunkett
5.0 out of 5 stars Never Out of Style
Reviewed in the United States on February 24, 2024
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Classic text. Essential for writers and editors.
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Jon
3.0 out of 5 stars A Good Desk Reference if/when it might be needed...
Reviewed in the United States on May 18, 2017
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If you paid attention in (and remember) high school English composition, don't pay more than a buck for this. But I should qualify that I'm a senior citizen with two bright kids who went through school in the late 1980s, and (I dare say) they weren't taught nearly as well as I was back in the '60s and early '70s. So take this review with a grain of salt.

I'm writing this review for the free Kindle version with tan and dark red cover (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005IT0V8O/ref=cm_cr_ryp_prd_ttl_sol_0). This Kindle version has clickable linkage, the Table of Contents is simple and well constructed, and the book is loaded with examples, so it's good to have as a reference for those times when one gets stuck on a cumbersome sentence or an overused word or expression, for suggestions on resolving active/passive voice, and so forth. Beyond that, my best advice for anyone who's already well-versed in grammar and composition is this, from the book's Introductory section:

"... once past the essentials, students profit most by individual instructions based on the problems of their own work...".

In other words, don't expect this book to work miracles. It won't write your book, essay or user guide for you. But as my heading says, I do recommend "Elements" as a desk tool for getting past any nagging nuances/bad habits one may have as a writer, or for attacking specific issues as they arise.
16 people found this helpful
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John Williamson
5.0 out of 5 stars Strunk & White's 50th Anniversary Edition: It's the real thing...
Reviewed in the United States on September 12, 2012
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I received  The Elements of Style: 50th Anniversary Edition  from a very close friend a few years back, and she was someone who understood my love for this book that goes back to my college days in the 1970s. Someone once asked me how I was able to hold a 3.9 average in college back in the post-Vietnam era when as a veteran I was in school and working full time. My answer then is as it is now: "Strunk and White."

But if my friend reads this, I hope that she will accept my apology that I rarely open the cover of this book, yet it's one of my most treasured. It's the accepted 4th edition, and now a collectable in this hardbound version. These days I use a well worn paperback edition,  The Elements of Style, Fourth Edition , which is still accessed at least a few times a week. I just heep this one on a special bookshelf with my most treasured books, and still glance at it when using the paperback.

There are plenty of reviews, both pro and con, posted here on both of the above editions, and I am not as erudite as some of the other reviewers, nor am I an authority. As far as these editions go, Time Magazine listed Strunk & White's 'The Elements of Style' as "one of the 100 best and most influential books written in English since 1923" in their August 30, 2011 issue. But my concern is that there are many editions of "The Elements of Style" listed here on Amazon, both in paper and Kindle editions, yet few of them are what the reader may assume are the real ones.

For example, this  THE ELEMENTS OF STYLE - The Original Edition (Annotated)  may not be the edition that you're looking for. It's one of a number of versions of the original title "The Elements of Style" written by Cornell University English professor William Strunk, Jr., who wrote it 1918. But this is not the version that is also known as "Strunk & White." The product description is incorrect.

There are other Kindle reissues of the 1918 edition, most notably  THE ELEMENTS OF STYLE (UPDATED 2011 EDITION) The All-Time Bestselling Book on Writing English Newly Edited (Special 2011 Edition) The Elements of Style OVER 10 MILLION COPIES SOLD! [Revised ], which notes that it is newly revised and edited by Chris Hong, who is listed in the electronic flyleaf as a former editor at Harvard University, and bears a © 2011 The Elements of Style Press notation. This particular edition does have a slightly better layout on the Kindle, and the table of contents is well hyperlinked, but no mention is made of original author William Strunk, Jr., except for his name on the flyleaf.

Among the other Kindle editions are  The Elements of Style (Original Edition) , with the quill on it's cover is basic, and it costs under a dollar. But if you're going for basic, the  The Elements of Style  edition with its generic cover is a no-cost freebie. And there are other Kindle editions if you search.

The problem with these 1918 editions is that the writing style is dated. Original author Strunk had died in 1946, and in 1959, the publishers commissioned writer and author E. B. White, well known for his  Charlotte's Web , that classic for children, to revise the 41-year-old text. This was was fitting as Strunk had been one of White's professors at Cornell. White's rework of the book was extremely well received, and further editions of the work followed in 1972, 1979, and 1999. White's expansion and modernization of Strunk's original became informally known as Strunk & White. As to whether it's considered a valid part of a writer's bookshelf, more than ten million copies of the three editions of Strunk & White have been sold.

The history of this writing manual can be found in Mark Garvey's  Stylized: A Slightly Obsessive History of Strunk & White's The Elements of Style , which was published in 2009, an excellent book in its own right.

So if you're looking for the real Strunk & White,  The Elements of Style (4th Edition) , by William Strunk, Jr. and E. B. White, is one you want, and it's only available in paper editions, except for the rare  The Elements of Style: 50th Anniversary Edition , which is now a collectable. Otherwise, you may enjoy one of the Kindle editions listed here, but think of them more as an interesting background than as contemporary writing style references.

9/11/2012
25 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Danny
5.0 out of 5 stars Excelente para polir escrita e referência
Reviewed in Brazil on June 29, 2022
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Comprei esse livro por causa da forte indicação que o Stephen King fez no livro dele "Sobre a escrita".
Ele é direto ao ponto (amo), conciso, claro e com dicas práticas que podem ajudar muito a escrever melhor e com mais confiança. Já estou lendo pela segunda vez e sei que de vez em quando voltarei para usá-lo como referência em futuros projetos em que eu sinta que precise de um "up".
5 people found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
3.0 out of 5 stars Niekompletne wydanie
Reviewed in Poland on February 14, 2023
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Wydanie niekompletne
Cześć oryginalnej pozycji
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aniket
5.0 out of 5 stars Masterpiece
Reviewed in India on January 16, 2023
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The best book i have ever read, that too at incredibly low price. Where in this world you will get to read something as invaluable at this much price. Great reading experience.

The book is written in quite simple and lucid style. A very concise book encompassing various tips and tricks to master written english. A must read for amateur as well as avid writers.
6 people found this helpful
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Jayden Robinson
5.0 out of 5 stars Great for writers!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 15, 2022
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It's a great book with great insights into the English language. Concise, intelligent, and simplified.
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Ivonne Garzon
5.0 out of 5 stars Un joya
Reviewed in Mexico on August 21, 2020
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Este clásico es una joya, dejé mi copia en un storage en USA y fue un alivio conseguirlo en Amazon Mexico. Lo recomiendo enormemente a estudiantes y/o profesionales quienes deban escribir en inglés. Hace toda la diferencia del mundo y sus lectores les agradecerán su nuevo estilo de escritura.
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