As regular blog readers certainly know by now, my first book, Literally, the Best Language Book Ever, will be published soon–on May 6, 2008. In fact, I have exclusive coverage of the press release related to the book’s release. I hope that it doesn’t stay exclusive for long since a press release is supposed to generate interest! Anyway, here it is, with the formatting removed:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Contact: Catherine Milne 212.366.2149catherine.milne@us.penguingroup.com

LITERALLY, THE BEST LANGUAGE BOOK EVER Annoying Words and Abused Phrases You Should Never Use Again

by Paul Yeager

Penguin Group (USA) created a sensation over punctuation with the release of Eats, Shoots & Leaves by Lynne Truss (Gotham), and now Perigee, an imprint of Penguin, tackles trite, trendy, inane, outdated, and grammatically incorrect words, phrases, and expressions with LITERALLY, THE BEST LANGUAGE BOOK EVER: Annoying Words and Abused Phrases You Should Never Use Again by Paul Yeager (Perigee Trade Paperback Original; May 6, 2008; $13.95). An astute commentary on today’s pop-culture style of speaking, Yeager’s guide goes well beyond grammar and punctuation to show why certain words or phrases should be “taken to the language dump to never be heard from again.”

Language lovers who find themselves frequently perplexed by illogical phrases (“centers around,” “It goes without saying, but…”), riled by redundancy (“brief summary,” “irregardless,” “mutual agreement”), and tired of nouns being used as verbs (“google it,” “scrapbooking”) will find their champion in Yeager, who attacks illogical expressions and misappropriated meanings with a linguistic scalpel. By turns annoyingly precise and happily contrarian, LITERALLY, THE BEST LANGUAGE BOOK EVER is a witty guide that can transform even the least literate into the epitome of eloquence.

Paul Yeager is managing editor for Accuweather.com and a freelance writer for local and regional magazines on topics ranging from humor and restaurant reviews to health and history. As a child, Yeager was annoyed when reading, writing, and arithmetic were referred to as the “Three Rs,” and he hasn’t changed much over the years. Not one television show, newspaper article, or appliance instruction booklet slips by without him editing or analyzing the effectiveness of its language.

LITERALLY, THE BEST LANGUAGE BOOK EVER

by Paul Yeager

Perigee Trade Paperback Original; May 6, 2008; $13.95ISBN-13: 978-0-399-53423-2 Visit us on the web at http://www.penguin.com

Penguin Group (USA) is the U.S. affiliate of the internationally renowned Penguin Group. Penguin Group (USA) is one of the leading U.S. adult and children’s trade book publishers, owning a wide range of imprints and trademarks including Berkley Books, Dutton, Frederick Warne, G. P. Putnam’s Sons, Grosset & Dunlap, New American Library, Penguin, Philomel, Plume, Puffin Books, Riverhead Books and Viking, among others. The Penguin Group is part of Pearson, the international media company with market leading businesses in education, business information and consumer publishing. For more information, visit http://www.pearson.com.

Paul’s book–Literally, the Best Language Book Ever; Sherry’s Grammar List