The Pun Also Rises: How the Humble Pun Revolutionized Language, Changed History, and Made Wordplay More Than Some Antics
The pun is commonly dismissed as the lowest form of wit, and punsters are often unpopular for their obsessive wordplay. But such attitudes are relatively recent developments. In The Pun Also Rises, John Pollack-a former World Pun Champion and presidential speechwriter for Bill Clinton-explains why such wordplay is significant: It both revolutionized language and played a pivotal role in making the modern world possible. Skillfully weaving together stories and evidence from history, brain science, pop culture, literature, anthropology, and humor, The Pun Also Rises is an authoritative yet playful exploration of a practice that is common, in one form or another, to virtually every language on earth.



At once entertaining and educational, this engaging book answers fundamental questions: Just what is a pun, and why do people make them? How did punning impact the development of human language, and how did that drive creativity and progress? And why, after centuries of decline, does the pun still matter?
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The Pun Also Rises: How the Humble Pun Revolutionized Language, Changed History, and Made Wordplay More Than Some Antics
The pun is commonly dismissed as the lowest form of wit, and punsters are often unpopular for their obsessive wordplay. But such attitudes are relatively recent developments. In The Pun Also Rises, John Pollack-a former World Pun Champion and presidential speechwriter for Bill Clinton-explains why such wordplay is significant: It both revolutionized language and played a pivotal role in making the modern world possible. Skillfully weaving together stories and evidence from history, brain science, pop culture, literature, anthropology, and humor, The Pun Also Rises is an authoritative yet playful exploration of a practice that is common, in one form or another, to virtually every language on earth.



At once entertaining and educational, this engaging book answers fundamental questions: Just what is a pun, and why do people make them? How did punning impact the development of human language, and how did that drive creativity and progress? And why, after centuries of decline, does the pun still matter?
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The Pun Also Rises: How the Humble Pun Revolutionized Language, Changed History, and Made Wordplay More Than Some Antics

The Pun Also Rises: How the Humble Pun Revolutionized Language, Changed History, and Made Wordplay More Than Some Antics

by John Pollack

Narrated by Pete Larkin

Unabridged — 4 hours, 58 minutes

The Pun Also Rises: How the Humble Pun Revolutionized Language, Changed History, and Made Wordplay More Than Some Antics

The Pun Also Rises: How the Humble Pun Revolutionized Language, Changed History, and Made Wordplay More Than Some Antics

by John Pollack

Narrated by Pete Larkin

Unabridged — 4 hours, 58 minutes

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Overview

The pun is commonly dismissed as the lowest form of wit, and punsters are often unpopular for their obsessive wordplay. But such attitudes are relatively recent developments. In The Pun Also Rises, John Pollack-a former World Pun Champion and presidential speechwriter for Bill Clinton-explains why such wordplay is significant: It both revolutionized language and played a pivotal role in making the modern world possible. Skillfully weaving together stories and evidence from history, brain science, pop culture, literature, anthropology, and humor, The Pun Also Rises is an authoritative yet playful exploration of a practice that is common, in one form or another, to virtually every language on earth.



At once entertaining and educational, this engaging book answers fundamental questions: Just what is a pun, and why do people make them? How did punning impact the development of human language, and how did that drive creativity and progress? And why, after centuries of decline, does the pun still matter?

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

"A compelling exegesis on what puns are and why they matter." — The Los Angeles Times

"A fun, cogent argument in favor of a dubious, often-damned art." — Kirkus Reviews

"He tells us, with a clarity unusual for the subject, how the mind works..." — P.J. O'Rourke, The New York Times Book Review

"The best books on language are the ones that encourage us to reexamine what we think we know, and "The Pun Also Rises" does exactly that." — Boston Globe

"Whether you are practicing punster, interested in language or just hungry to learn something on the beach this summer as you lie on the sand-which-is there (see what happens when you talk to this guy?), Pollack's book is fun and informative." — Detroit Free Press

|Los Angeles Times

A compelling exegesis on what puns are and why they matter.”

author of How Language Works David Crystal

Anyone with an interest in language is going to find this book fascinating.

Boston Globe

The best books on language are the ones that encourage us to reexamine what we think we know, and The Pun Also Rises does exactly that.”

P.J. O'Rourke

"He tells us, with a clarity unusual for the subject, how the mind works..."

The Los Angeles Times

"A compelling exegesis on what puns are and why they matter."

Detroit Free Press

"Whether you are practicing punster, interested in language or just hungry to learn something on the beach this summer as you lie on the sand-which-is there (see what happens when you talk to this guy?), Pollack's book is fun and informative."

SEPTEMBER 2011 - AudioFile

John Pollack, a World Pun Championship winner and former speechwriter for President Clinton, plays with words in a most delightful and ingenious way. This is a real treat in audio since narrator Pete Larkin seems to be having as much fun recounting Pollack’s abundance of groan-producing puns, newspaper headlines, and other clever language-based witticisms as listeners will. Pollack first defines puns and then relates their origins and their significance to the evolution of language. He categorizes puns, analyzes “knock-knock” jokes and riddles, and tells a few outrageous “shaggy dog” stories, all the while quoting from master punsters. From anatomy to neurology, from literature to law, it seems puns know no discipline, and Larkin makes the listening punderful. (Sorry. This book will have you doing it, too.) S.J.H. © AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine

Product Details

BN ID: 2940171180676
Publisher: Tantor Audio
Publication date: 08/01/2011
Edition description: Unabridged
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