If you love the English language, or want to learn more about this aspect of it, grab a copy of Pollack’s book and dive in.The pun is commonly dismissed as the lowest form of wit, and punsters are often unpopular for their obsessive wordplay. The wink, wink, nudge, nudge of language used effectively is a beautiful thing. Neither do puns.īut, puns make life more enjoyable. Insects survive cataclysm but they don’t execute the rebuilding. That’s like saying insects are the reason humans accomplish anything. Just because they have survived doesn’t mean they made history happen. Although it’s only 150 pages long, the middle third was slow and plodding.Īnd I’m not sure I buy Pollack’s theory that puns drove the course of human history. The Pun Also Rises suffers from the dreaded mid-book slump. Pollack is wordy, since he pushes puns into every topic. And after learning everything about lexicography in last year’s selection, we all thought this would be an interesting addition to our knowledge base.ĭespite a few flaws, I liked this book.
Another member of my postal book club suggested it.
I like learning about language, although the book wasn’t on the top of my list by any stretch. Every variation in the punning world is explained, from visual to homophonic and homographic. But he also tells stories of history’s unknown punsters, focusing especially on times the pun was ascendant. He slides puns into every paragraph, whether he’s talking about brain chemistry or England in the Middle Ages.
You must appreciate puns to get the most out of Pollack’s writing. The book is just riddled with puns! It cries out for groans of appreciation. The rest of the book ranged from snoozy to informative and mildly entertaining. This was the most intense part of his book, The Pun Also Rises: How the Humble Pun Revolutionized Language, Changed History, and Made Wordplay More than Some Antics. John Pollack prefaces his exploration of puns with his experience at the world pun championship.
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