Marilyn vos Savant

The Art of Spelling

A lively, comprehensive look at what our spelling reveals about intelligence and personality--from Parade's "Ask Marilyn" columnist, read by over 80 million people.

* Is there any hope for dreadful spellers? * How might your spelling illuminate aspects of your personality?
* What does your spelling say about your intelligence?
Answers to these questions—and many more—can be found in Marilyn vos Savant's delightfully written The Art of Spelling. This book is the result of the "Ask Marilyn" spelling survey, which drew more than 43,000 responses and investigated whether good spelling was a measure of native intelligence, education, personality traits, or desire. With her trademark no-nonsense wit, vos Savant describes the psychological evidence for where good (and bad) spelling originates, provides personality portraits of all kinds of spellers (a superb speller is more likely to keep a tidy house), and offers the most effective methods of spelling improvement known. Vos Savant vividly recounts the turbulent history of English spelling, provides a timely warning against the pitfalls of spell-checkers and other writing tools, and gives a glimpse of a positive future for spelling standards in education. The Art of Spelling will appeal to scholars, students, and language lovers of all ages.