Figures of Speech: 60 Ways To Turn A Phrase

I used this book as a project for a graduate-level final in a rhetorical linguistics course. Quinn's book is a short and quick read aimed primarily at students of English/Comp/Rhetoric/Linguistics at the high school and undergrad levels, but even for me at the graduate level, it was insightful and informative. My final was to find a book and adapt it for teaching a freshman writing or literature course, and to convince my cohort to purchase it for their professional libraries. It was a hit. I love how funny it is, and how, without taking itself too seriously, it seriously teaches you to become a better, more clever, and more effective writer or speaker. You can read it in a sitting, and adapt it as a work book for students. I recommend this book to anyone teaching in the realm of English.

The poor print quality is disappointing because the written content is good.

I'm torn here. Prof. Quinn's book deserves 5 stars and more - it's witty, informative, and an all-around easy read. However, this edition is typeset abysmally, with smeared, uneven ink, huge margins, poor-quality paper; this looks like the output of one of those soulless print-on-demand services. Do yourself a favor and buy the first edition, if you can find it, or just get the ebook: at least then you can tweak its appearance for a better read.

Professor Quinn's slim volume is perhaps the best treatment of the subject of rhetorical devices that I have ever read. I say "best," not because it is the most extensive, nor because it is the most detailed coverage of the subject. I say "best" because I feel it is the most *useful* coverage I have ever encountered.In concise fashion, Professor Quinn takes the reader through many of the most common figures of speech, tells us the formal names, and provides numerous illustrative examples.It is true that simply knowing the name given to a particular turn of phrase will not guarantee that one can effectively employ it in one's writing. Nevertheless knowing theforms and having names to identify them makes it easier to see them in use in the writing of others. By thus making them memorable, they also become a more ready part of one's writing toolkit.The engaging and entertaining style which Quinn uses throughout the book makes even the most daunting technical terms readily accessible. His well-chosen examples are also entertaining and informative, and most are quite memorable. I can't be certain that merely reading this book will improve every reader's writing, but I believe that most folks will benefit from reading it.

great