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I hope I don't make any mistakes here Yikes! Here I am, an amateurish writer, trying to review a book about punctuation. It goes without saying that I hope I don't make any errors of my own, lest potential readers blame the author. I must fight the urge to use an example of every punctuation mark available, thus demonstrating my own brilliance. There were several things that drew me to Eats, Shoots & Leaves. Sitting atop the top-ten list was one, and I was casually interested in what it was about. Was it about wilderness survival, with the mention of herb-like plants? Perhaps it was about mass murderers, walking into school cafeterias, calmly taking lunch, and then opening fire. The answer is found on the back cover. But no, it was about punctuation, and for that reason I bought it. Lynne Truss has, in fact, written a book that I rather needed at that time (and still do). First, I needed to know about commas. I have a good grasp of periods (full stops to British readers). I can use a hyphen passably well. I can ignore colons and semicolons, though I probably shouldn't. But commas are common. I happen to live in Germany where, as a native English speaker, I sometimes get language questions. In German, you see, there are extensive comma rules, and their placement is absolutely fixed. Funny, the Germans expect us to do the same. So one can imagine my shock and horror to read here that some English comma rules are not fixed or certain. Oh well. The refresher was still useful, and hopefully my usage has improved anyway. I've caught myself using semicolons on at least a few occasions since finishing the book, so I guess it was good for something. Honestly, the usefulness is not in doubt. Truss does cover all the standard rules for punctuation. But that is not, I think, why the book made it to number one here on Amazon. That mystery is easily explained by reference to Truss's style and humor. Or is it Truss' style and humor? No matter; the style is there and it works. For those readers who already have a reasonably good grasp of punctuation and care enough to read the book, there are plenty of humorous one-liners of the "Eat here and get gas" sort. This is actually so common in the early chapters that the humor fades as we get near the end. How many laugh-out-loud examples can one find with improper use of hyphens anyway? For the history inclined reader, there is mention of the histories of the various marks. Truss is serious about this stuff, and she seems to rate as her personal heroes those innovators of writing and printing who helped along the development of the language. That she is passionate about punctuation is also not in doubt. Frankly, that theme became a bit tiresome by the time I was done reading, but to each her own. Overall, though, it's now clear to me why this book sold so well - a combination of its helpfulness, style, and humor. Like I've tried to do, Truss includes countless examples in her text. The style is almost conversational; it is not a handbook that describes an infinite variety of language choices in a clamped down format. So should you find yourself in foreign lands attempting to explain grammar, or just find yourself wanting to know how to write well, here is a fine book to pick up and enjoy.