EAN: 9780393349726

SHADY CHARACTERS - THE SECRET LIFE OF PUNCTUATI...

A charming and indispensable tour of two thousand years of the written word  Shady Characters
weaves a fascinating trail across the parallel histories of language and typography.  Whether
investigating the asterisk (*) and dagger (+)-which alternately illuminated and skewered
heretical verses of the early Bible-or the at sign (@)  which languished in obscurity for
centuries until rescued by the Internet  Keith Houston draws on myriad sources to chart the
life and times of these enigmatic squiggles  both exotic (¶) and everyday (&).   From the
Library of Alexandria to the halls of Bell Labs  figures as diverse as Charlemagne  Vladimir
Nabokov  and George W. Bush cross paths with marks as obscure as the interrobang (?) and as
divisive as the dash (-). Ancient Roman graffiti  Venetian trading shorthand  Cold War double
agents  and Madison Avenue round out an ever more diverse set of episodes  characters  and
artifacts.   Richly illustrated  ranging across time  typographies  and countries  Shady
Characters will delight and entertain all who cherish the unpredictable and surprising in the
writing life.

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