Episode · How I Write · 2025-06-04
David Perell & Steven Pinker: books mentioned on How I Write
Steven Pinker: Harvard Professor Explains The Rules of Writing | How I Write
I’m here at Harvard in the office of Steven Pinker. He’s written nine books and spent his life studying language, cognition, and writing.
Steven Pinker recommended Crazy English by Richard Lederer and Anguished English by Richard Lederer, and discussed The Elements of Style by William Strunk Jr..
Books mentioned, in the order they came up
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Crazy English
Crazy English by Richard Lederer is a well-known exploration of the bizarre, contradictory, and humorous aspects of the English language.
Recommended“Letterer has written a number of delightful books like Crazy English and Anguished English.”
Where to get it
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Anguished English
Anguished English by Richard Lederer is a humorous and entertaining collection that explores the hilarious blunders, fractured syntax, and amusing oddities of the English language.
Recommended“Letterer has written a number of delightful books like Crazy English and Anguished English.”
Where to get it
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The Elements of Style
The Elements of Style by William Strunk Jr.
Discussed“it was reiterated centuries later in the famous style manual the elements of style by white where professor in lectures at Cornell that EB White recalled and then turned into a book would say that the first rule of writing is omit needless words.”
Where to get it
Other mentions in this episode (1) — ad reads, self-promotion and passing references, never counted
“And likewise, I have a quote from Thomas Edison in Enlightenment Now on how the electricity will liberate women.”