Slightly Off the Mark: reading

I'm interrupting my normal mid-week photo post to give you my normal mid-year e-book giveaway from Smashwords:

Cool--my book is right in the ad! It took me an hour to figure out how to do that--even though Smashwords actually sent me the template to use. This is why I write: I'm helpless at anything else.

While we have plans to add more of our books to that platform (we have twelve now, which in my opinion is also cool), it's been kind of an insane year and we're way behind. But for now it's a great chance to get the Coming Attractions ebook for free, right here:

https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/ozma914

Which is cool. I think I mentioned that. (I'm sitting in the air conditioning right now nursing an allergic reaction, so it literally is cool.)

The sale is over soon, so get your copy now! Okay, it goes on until July 31st, but if you wait you might forget, and that would make me sad. What's Coming Attractions about, you say? Well, it's a romantic comedy:

At a dark drive-in movie theater, Maddie McKinley returns from the concession stand, gets into the wrong van, and is tackled by the father of the kids inside. Logan Chandler is embarrassed about roughing her up, while also intrigued by the beautiful woman from Boston, who came to the movies alone in an expensive dress. But he’s the local businessman leading a battle to save the drive-in from developers—and she’s the attorney sent to make sure it’s torn down.

This young lady demonstrates that it's perfect summer reading.

Maybe you also want to read other sale books. After Coming Attractions, mind you. No problem, because the Smashword summer sale has more free and reduced price books than there are stars in the sky, and I counted, just to be sure:

https://www.smashwords.com/shelves/promos

Compare that with 9,096 stars. Boy, were my eyes tired.

Naturally, you can still find our various books in other places:

· Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0058CL6OO

· Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/search?attributes.contributorId=13727646

· Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4898846.Mark_R_Hunter

· Blog: https://markrhunter.blogspot.com/

· Website: http://www.markrhunter.com/

· Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ozma914/

· Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MarkRHunter914

· Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markrhunter/

· Twitter: https://twitter.com/MarkRHunter

· Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MarkRHunter

· Substack: https://substack.com/@markrhunter

· Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/ozma914

· Audible: https://www.audible.com/search?searchAuthor=Mark+R.+Hunter&ref_pageloadid=4C1TS2KZGoOjloaJ&pf

Remember: Free books cost less than a cup of coffee, although coffee table books can be very expensive.

The branch of humor called punning has roots planted much further back in history than wood normally be guessed. John Pollack peels back the leaves of history to ...

That's enough. It's a book about puns, okay?

John Pollack has the credentials: He was an actual world pun champion, and also a political speechwriter, so he knows silly when he sees it. I'm talking about the political thing--it turns out puns were sometimes taken much more seriously than we take them these days.

Pollack traces puns back to the very formation of language itself, showing us examples from the earliest writing, and how they were used to assist communication, and later as a way to avoid censorship and undermine the status quo. Along the way, wordplay led to fatal duels, academic arguments, and a whole lot of groans and forehead slapping.

Pollack's writing can sometimes be a bit dense, as he tackles entomology--no, wait, etymology. My aunt used to study entomology. Anyway, he dives into history, politics, language, and all the ways puns have been used and misused throughout history. Despite a heavy dose of--wait for it--puns, it's not always a bedtime read, unless you suffer from insomnia.

Of course, if you don't like puns you might want to stay away.

https://www.amazon.com/Pun-Also-Rises-Revolutionized-Language/dp/1592406750

“That’s what they call a sanity clause.” “You can’t fool me, there ain’t no Sanity Claus.”

But for those of us who have even a passing interest in how language has evolved over the centuries and how it affected everything else, it's a fascinating read. Check it out. I mean, if you're in the library--otherwise, buy it.

Take a look at our books; and if you’re a particular fan of wordplay, try The Notorious Ian Grant or Hoosier Hysterical: How the West Became the Midwest Without Moving at All.