Judith Martin

Miss Manners

Judith Martin's "Miss Manners" newspaper column - distributed thrice-weekly by *United Feature Syndicate* and carried in more than 200 newspapers in the US and abroad - has chronicled the continuous rise and fall of American manners since 1978. Readers send "Miss Manners" not only their table and party questions, but those involving the more complicated aspects of life - romance, work, family relationships, child-rearing, death - as well as philosophical and moral dilemmas. In her columns and her books, Martin explains the etiquette element present in nearly every aspect of life. "Judith Martin is The National Bureau of Standards," states columnist George Will. *The New York Times* declares her work "an impassioned plea for a return to civilized behavior." *The Los Angeles Times *deems her "an authentic visionary" and her writing "a kind of study in cultural anthropology, even if she dresses up her field notes with artful parody and self-deprecating humor." Writer Christopher Buckley calls her "an authentic comic genius." Martin writes an additional "Miss Manners" column for the Microsoft Network, and is also a contributing editor at *Family Circle Magazine* and a columnist at *Child Magazine*. She is a frequent lecturer and guest on national television and radio shows. As a reporter, feature writer and critic, she spent 25 years at *The Washington Post*, where she was one of the original members of the Style and Weekend sections. In addition to her most recent book, *Miss Manners' Guide to Excruciatingly Correct Behavior (Freshly Updated) (W.W. Norton & Co., April 2005)*, Martin has written 10 other Miss Manners books and two novels. Martin is a graduate of Wellesley College and has been awarded honorary degrees.