Book Review: Spunk & Bite
Last week, we told you that Strunk and White’s Elements of Style was among the most respected grammar and composition guides. This week, we’re reviewing Spunk & Bite, by Arthur Plotnik, which takes the nearly hundred year old composition manual and chucks it out the window. Plotnik takes a firm stance on Strunk and White’s revered style manual: it’s pretty good for writing papers. Creative writers, however, need a better style manual than one which begs them to be boring. Cue Spunk & Bite. This style guide delivers what it advertises: a kick in the pants toward bold, contemporary style.
Plotnik heavily lobbies his writer audience to bend most of Strunk and White’s rules to the breaking point. He explores powerful and juicy descriptors, openings and closings, and writing for audiences of different generations. If Strunk and White is a must own, then Spunk & Bite is a necessary accompaniment. And it makes for enjoyable, exciting reading. You won’t be able to finish a chapter in one sitting; the urge to write will creep up on you at every turn of the page. Plotnik’s quotations give published examples of stylish prose, and much unlike Strunk and White, Plotnik encourages the unlimited possibilities of language. This will be the best ten bucks you’ve ever spent.
This book is rated: 5 of 5 stars.
Get your hands on it:
- 1st edition
- Or from your local bookseller
- Check out the website
