English grammar books

[aviv chadash]

I often find myself thinking 'is it bias or biased?' or 'affect or effect' (and do I use "..." or '...' for a thought!), and I love reading the usage notes in the OED. Does anyone know of any good books concerning english grammar (using the word grammar loosely, I think, but you know what I mean). I found 'Common Errors in English Usage' by Paul Brians. I was looking for something thats not too textbooky, nor too technical, one that you can just open at any section. On a similar subject, does anyone know of any books that help with deducing spelling from the etymology of words, or just on the etymology of words in particular. I found 'Word Origins...And How We Know Them: Etymology for Everyone' by Anatoly Liberman, and 'Damp Squid: The English Language Laid Bare' by Jeremy Butterfield; for this one something that is read continuously from start to finsh, as oppose to something where you can jump to any section is preferable. Wondering if anyone has read these and what they thought, other suggestions welcome!

Many thanks!

[smilerbabeuk]

There are two books by Bill Bryson that cover this area Mother Tongue and Troublesome Words. The latter is designed for journalists etc, but is easily readable.

[Kylie]

I love buying language and grammar books.

 

You could try Eats, Shoots and Leaves by Lynne Truss, which is a very funny book. I have loads of others but they're all at home so I'll have to check and get back to you.

[~Andrea~]

Eats Shoots and Leaves is great. I also have Mind the Gaffe - by Penguin, which is pretty good too.

[aviv chadash]

There are two books by Bill Bryson that cover this area Mother Tongue and Troublesome Words. The latter is designed for journalists etc, but is easily readable.

 

thank you Smilerbabe.

 

I love buying language and grammar books.

 

You could try Eats, Shoots and Leaves by Lynne Truss, which is a very funny book. I have loads of others but they're all at home so I'll have to check and get back to you.

 

Thanks Kylie.

 

Eats Shoots and Leaves is great. I also have Mind the Gaffe - by Penguin, which is pretty good too.

 

Thanks Andrea. That's two recommendations for Eats, Shoots and Leaves. Which isn't available through amazon any more (other than the marketplace), but Mind the Gaffe is.

 

The recommendations are all much appreciated. thank you!

[suresh]

When you chAnge something, you Affect it,

which may rEsult in, or Effect, something else.

For example, if you dress-up for a night on the town,

you are Affecting your look,

which, hopefully, has the Effect of causing everyone

to smile at your style and je ne sais quoi!

 

My bugaboo is with people who use “it’s” as “it has” or “it was” which is grammatically incorrect.

 

My biggest problem is with “I” and “me”.

Isn’t it “I” before “me”, but not after “c”?

What an “I-sore”!

Edited September 16, 2010 by Chrissy
Commercial Links removed - as per Forum rules.

[Michelle]

Are you actually going to recommend a book?

[SueK]

Eats shoots and leaves is excellent and I gave a copy to my daughter when she was at Uni. I have a very good one on my desk here at work which I refer to as much as the dictionary, it's called Brush up your Grammar my Michael Cullup and it's quite old now but indispensable. I was sent some great aid books when I signed up to a Proof Reading Course - not sure if they are for general publication though.

Edited September 16, 2010 by SueK

[aviv chadash]

When you chAnge something, you Affect it,

which may rEsult in, or Effect, something else.

For example, if you dress-up for a night on the town,

you are Affecting your look,

which, hopefully, has the Effect of causing everyone

to smile at your style and je ne sais quoi!

 

My bugaboo is with people who use “it’s” as “it has” or “it was” which is grammatically incorrect.

 

My biggest problem is with “I” and “me”.

Isn’t it “I” before “me”, but not after “c”?

What an “I-sore”!

 

Thanks for the advice!

 

 

Are you actually going to recommend a book?

 

 

Eats shoots and leaves is excellent and I gave a copy to my daughter when she was at Uni. I have a very good one on my desk here at work which I refer to as much as the dictionary, it's called Brush up your Grammar my Michael Cullup and it's quite old now but indispensable. I was sent some great aid books when I signed up to a Proof Reading Course - not sure if they are for general publication though.

 

Thanks Sue. I will get one sone hopefully, as soon as I have some money... Probably the last one you named - Brush up your Grammar - as it's a nice price of £4.99.