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The Birds and Bees of Words: A Guide to the Most Common Errors in Usage, Spelling, and Grammar

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In our forgetfulness that English grammar and usage has evolved, Mary Embree makes a very common sense point when she says, "What matters, is that our meaning is clear." The Birds and the Bees of Words is an excellent reminder for those writers among us who cling to the old rules of grammar fearing ending a sentence with a preposition or dangling participle. No one can appreciate this more, than a writer whose main concern is to present their work as a pleasurable read. Most engaging, if not downright fascinating, is Embree's chapter on New Words and Phrases. Did you know the newest Eleventh edition of the Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary contains 10,000 new words and more than 100,000 new meanings? For instance, papaphobia, meaning fear of the Pope, or retrosexual, meaning a heterosexual male who does not spend a lot of time on his appearance and lifestyle, he uses tools and can fix things, he has old-fashioned graces such as opening doors for women, the opposite of metrosexual. This chapter alone is worth keeping Embree's book on my desk as a reference. I feel hip now.

The crafting of legible, literate sentences is a learned skill. A skill that separates the amateur from the profession, the incoherent from the competent. "The Birds And Bees Of Words: A Guide To The Most Common Errors In Usage, Spelling, And Grammar" by Mary Embree (a freelance editor, successful author of six books, and founder of the Small Publishers Artists and Writers Network) was specifically written to provide aspiring authors and practicing writers to communicate clearly and correctly through the use of the written word. A thoroughly 'user friendly' instructional guide to 21st Century American English, "The Birds And Bees Of Words" covers frequently misused words, the parts of speech, word roots, common grammar mix-ups (and how to correct them), often misspelled words, as well as brand new words and phrases. The perfect antidote to a flawed or substandard public school English Department or classroom curriculum, "The Birds And Bees Of Words" is especially recommended for school and community reference collections, as well as anyone wanting to write professionally or personally with an authority and accuracy unmarred by blunders of spelling or grammar or usage.