William Irvine undertakes a wide-ranging investigation of insults, their history, the role they play in social relationships, and the science behind them, examining not just memorable zingers, such as Elizabeth Bowen's description of Aldous Huxley as "The stupid person's idea of a clever person," but subtle insults as well, such as when someone insults us by reporting the insulting things others have said about us: "I never read bad reviews about...

What is snark? You recognize it when you see it-a tone of teasing, snide, undermining abuse, nasty and knowing, that is spreading like pinkeye through the media and threatening to take over how Americans converse with each other and what they can count on as true. Snark attempts to steal someone's mojo, erase her cool, annihilate her effectiveness. In this sharp and witty polemic, New Yorker critic and bestselling author David Denby takes on the snarkers,...

"The author of Reading the OED presents an eye-opening look at language "mistakes" and how they came to be accepted as correct-or not. English is a glorious mess of a language, cobbled together from a wide variety of sources and syntaxes, and changing over time with popular usage. Many of the words and usages we embrace as standard and correct today were at first considered slang, impolite, or just plain wrong. Whether you consider yourself a stickler,...

"This is one in a series of Spanish slang and idiom guides focusing on the everyday language used throughout the Spanish-speaking world.

A look at the life of an aging insult comic named Jack Burke.

A couple is invited to the home of a professor and his sharp-tongued wife, and are treated to verbal battles by their hosts.--

A monster and a witch grow bored with their marriage when they run out of ways to be mean to each other, until they transform themselves into various interesting creatures.

"We have all encountered angry people and each of us has, at times, felt angry. But today, anger seems to have become a more pervasive and sometimes violent presence in our lives...Kevin Fauteux presents proven strategies and practical techniques to defuse angry and potentially violent people. 'Defusing Angry People' teaches readers the ways to manage combustible situations such as calming a verbally abusive person, not being intimidated by a bully,...