Town Hall Seattle Arts & Culture Series

Do you have a strong opinion about things like the Oxford comma, splitting infinitives, or whether to use punctuation in a text message? Well, you’re not alone. When Ellen Jovin set up her first Grammar Table outside her Manhattan apartment building and invited people to ask her questions, it took only around thirty seconds for the first visitor to arrive. Dozens more followed with their own grammatical inquiries and Grammar Table became an instant hit. Word of its success spread — attracting the attention of outlets like the New York Times, NPR, and CBS National News. Jovin decided to take it on the road, traveling across the United States to answer questions from people from all walks of life: writers, lawyers, editors, businesspeople, students, bickering couples, and anyone else who uses words. These experiences led to her latest work, Rebel With a Clause: Tales and Tips from a Roving Grammarian. Jovin, a self-proclaimed “grammar nerd” is no stranger to writing, having penned three other books that help pe