On the Mark
A History of Punctuation from Ancient Egypt to the Emoticon
$65.28
- Hardcover
320 pages
- Release Date
25 June 2026
Summary
Why does this sentence start with a capital letter? Why is this one broken up - and why does it end in a question mark? Does anyone really know what semicolons are for; why are italics italicised, and why do words have spaces between them?
Punctuation turns written words into meaningful language, inflecting them with nuance and tone: it can be the difference between a nice surprise! And a nasty ending…
Florence Hazrat’s ground-breaking history of punctuation stretches from the…
Book Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781800819566 |
|---|---|
| ISBN-10: | 1800819560 |
| Author: | Florence Hazrat |
| Publisher: | Profile Books Ltd |
| Imprint: | Profile Books Ltd |
| Format: | Hardcover |
| Number of Pages: | 320 |
| Release Date: | 25 June 2026 |
| Weight: | 0g |
| Dimensions: | 234mm x 153mm |
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What They're Saying
Critics Review
So. Good. So. Sharp. So. Clear. You. Need. This. Book. Period – Lucy Mangan, author of BOOKISHOn the Mark is dizzying, compendious and illuminating - a timely and rewarding quest through the past, present and future of punctuation – Keith Houston, author of SHADY CHARACTERSPRAISE FOR ‘AN ADMIRABLE POINT’ * - *An enjoyably mischievous book * TLS *A short book, but it carries a punch’ * Spectator *
About The Author
Florence Hazrat
Dr. Florence Hazrat is a researcher and writer, and a world expert on the history and culture of punctuation.
A BBC New Generation Thinker, Dr. Hazrat has appeared on Radio 4’s Word of Mouth and writes the Substack Mind the Gap.
Her first book, An Admirable Point, a cultural history of the exclamation mark, was published by Profile in 2022.
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