Vex, Hex, Smash, Smooch: Let Verbs Power Your Writing

Hale's prose is brisk & engaging. Her advice is forthright, solid, & inspiring. Her two books belong on every aspiring writer's bookshelf.I want to say that I was surprised at the thin, almost cheap, quality of the book itself, as though Norton, not appreciating their author, was cutting corners in a shortsighted, chintzy manner.

There's no question that Constance Hale, author of two other books on style, understands good writing and clearly explains the mechanics of it in entertaining ways. I say this as someone with an M.A. in Linguistics and a published book. After reading "Vex, Hex, Smash, Smooch," I feel like Hale took me and my flabby verbs to the gym and put all of us through a tough regimen that beefed us up. (Yes, that final "up" is okay because it's a phrasal verb, not a prepositional verb.) In case the reader needs it, Hale explicitly gives permission in the introduction to jump around and read the book in chunks. She begins with a history of English verbs, moves through a study of tenses, phrases and sentence structure and concludes with a hefty appendix section that clarifies pesky and confusing verbs (lay, lain, lain vs. lie, lay, lain and wreak/reek/wreck). In the process, she packs in plenty of examples from an array of strong writers and speakers--Shakespeare and Elizabeth Barett Browning to Cormac McCarthy and George W. Bush. "Vex, Hex, Smash, Smooch" is a good read and a terrific resource for people who are serious about writing well.

This is an excellent reference book, telling you all you can possibly want to know about verbs. It's not the sort of book you can sit down and read, so my review is based on browsing a few chapters. One was particularly illuminating for me--that of melody in writing. It was an "aha" moment when I finally realized why the book I had cut and cut and cut because it was too long no longer pleased me. I had cut all the music from my prose! So I have learned something valuable about editing--the hard way. If you're going to cut, do it to entire segments. Don't just go through cutting all those "unnecessary' words and phrases!

I've been following Connie Hale since I was lucky enough to take one of her seminars years ago at a conference. Soon as I got home, I gobbled up her book, Sin & Syntax, which has become my go-to source whenever I need a little inspiration to punch up my writing. Now Hale strikes again with another entertaining and edifying guide. This is not one of those language primers you dip into to look up that rule you can't remember (though there's plenty of good stuff on rules -- like when to consider using double negatives). It's a love story about language that reads beautifully start to finish.Buy this book. Read it. Then buy some more to give to others who'd appreciate learning how to add more oomph to their writing.

This is not a boring text book. I actually enjoy reading this. Constance Hale enlightens the reader/writer on more than verbs and encourages a better understanding of language with every page.This is an absolute necessity for every writer to own, to consume, to wallow in, to use to their advantage. This is one resource I will read over and over again.

I loved her first book, Sin and Syntax. It was and is a great grammar resource, and this new grammar book I've continued to use. I think that is the mark of a well written, well thought out writing book. I like the fact I can bounce back and forth searching for help.

It needs examples of how the right verb can improve writing. It was more like a reference defining lesser known verbs. Boring.

Was hoping for a list of verbs with definitions, perhaps broken down by category. This is not that book. To which I'm sure any counter would contain: "get a thesaurus." She did recommend dictionaries (and what fun it is to read those), but a book with verb categories, definitions and synonyms would really serve any writer well (maybe too well). But just like legal research, nothing is to come easy. This in no way reflects on the quality of the book or writer's abilities and aptitudes for the subject. She's great, but this book is simply not what I sought. If anyone reading this knows of the book(s) I seek, I'm all ears.

This is a brilliantly encouraging book for writers ~ or indeed anyone who enjoys the English language. It shows us how to bring our work to life by using lively active verbs, rather than dull alternatives. I would really recommend it.

Not quite what I expected. Not bad but probably more appreciated by word nerds overall.

I wasn't really sure what to expect from this book and toyed for months on end with buying it. Having finally submitted to my linguistic curiosity, I can safely say that this book is a woderful gem for anybody with a love of the English language. I immensely enjoy reading it.