Uncover the Mysteries of English Spelling During Gabe Henry Virtual Author Talk

TOMS RIVER – Have you ever wondered why the English spelling of words is sometimes just weird? Come on a surprisingly hilarious journey through the history of the English language during a virtual author talk with Gabe Henry at 2 p.m. Wednesday, Sep. 17.

Henry will discuss his newest book Enough is Enuf: Our Failed Attempts to Make English Eezier to Spell. Anyone who has the misfortune to write in English will, every now and then, struggle with its spelling.

In the comic annals of linguistic history, legions of rebel wordsmiths have died on the hill of spelling reform, risking their reputations to simplify English spelling. This book is about them: Mark Twain, Eliza Burnz, Noah Webster, Upton Sinclair, Emma Dearborn, Theodore Roosevelt, Benjamin Franklin, and countless others. Henry goes back to medieval England, from the birth of standup comedy to contemporary pop music and to the digital age of swift online exchanges.

Gabe Henry is the author of three books, including the poetry anthology Eating Salad Drunk, a humor collaboration with Jerry Seinfeld, Bob Odenkirk, Mike Birbiglia, Margaret Cho, and other titans of comedy. Henry’s work has been published in TIME, New York Magazine, The New Yorker, The Weekly Humorist, US News & World Report, and more. He has spent more than a decade exploring the strange and forgotten history of simplified spelling, which, by his own admission, has only made him a worse speller. He lives and works in New York.

Ocean County Library cardholders can borrow Enough is Enuf in various formats for free. Visit tinyurl.com/EnoughOCL to request a copy.

Registration is required for this free program. To register, visit tinyurl.com/HenryOCL, or call or visit your local Ocean County Library branch.

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