I’ve decided I’m going to read Eats, Shoots & Leaves out loud to my class this semester. It’s a slim volume on punctuation, and it’s laugh-out-loud funny. My plan is to read it for 5-10 minutes at the beginning of class most nights, to give everyone a chance to settle down–and for fun, of course. I had a professor in college who read us Kurt Vonnegut’s Cat’s Cradle in a semester, taking up large chunks of class to do so. I loved it (though I remember often having a hard time following at 8 a.m.), so as an homage to Dr. Stewart, I present Eats, Shoots & Leaves.

Tonight, however, I won’t be reading anything aloud except for homework and a prompt for the diagnostic essay. I’ll pass out the syllabus and most likely spend the rest of the time doing crossword puzzles while the students write. Then I’ll have to madly read all the essays before Thursday in addition to preparing for class. Let the madness begin.