Grammatically Correct (Hardcover)

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Key Phrases: terminal punctuation mark, parenthesized element, involved accountants, New York, Basic Sentence Structure, Either Zeke (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

For those who value correct grammar, Anne Stilman has written the definitive guide. She holds you to her high grammatical standards, and clearly explains how to follow the rules. There are chapters on "Spelling," "Punctuation," "Grammar," and "Style," and Stilman patiently elucidates the rules of colons, brackets, and plural formations, while gracefully tackling the common misuses of "lie" versus "lay." Her illustrative examples bring the stickiest lessons home. Quoting from Woody Allen, Vikram Seth, Mark Twain, and other likable authors, issues of pronoun choice, parallelism, and ellipses come clear. Although Stilman cuts no slack on errors, she concedes that grammar evolves. While she suggests that you avoid splitting infinitives, she also believes you shouldn't introduce excessive awkwardness merely to conform to a rule that was dogmatically decreed years ago for no particular reasons of clarity or merit.

Product Description

Now in a friendly, accessible format, Writer's Digest's bestselling grammar guide! With Grammatically Correct, readers will be able to solve their grammar dilemmas quickly. This revised edition is:

* Value priced in a handy format, letting readers get the best and most crucial grammar instruction easily and affordably

* Clearly organized, with added appendices and glossaries for quick reference, making it easy to navigate

* Packed with time-tested instruction for all types of writers, with the same appeal, authority, and sound advice as the original

Comprehensive in its coverage of punctuation, spelling, structure, style, usage, and grammar, Grammatically Correct provides the foundations of grammar in the ultimate easy-to-use format. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: Writers Digest Books; 1 edition (September 15, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0898797764
• ISBN-13: 978-0898797763
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #25,538 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

130 of 132 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Practical & Enjoyable, July 16, 2001

By	kyara - See all my reviews

I bought this book based on customer reviews after browsing through grammar books on amazon.com. It has certainly more than met my expectations. There are few grammar books that you can pick up and can't put down. Anne Stilman in "Grammatically Correct" has forged a new style in presenting information that is both enjoyable to read and provides the necessary rules. This book literally breezes through the basics of spelling, punctuation, grammar and style that meets most of the needs of both writers and editors, yet at the same time holds itself up to the highest standards. The book itself is printed on high quality paper, and has a well-thought out layout and lots of examples, often using passages from well-known past and contemporary writers to illustrate a point. What a departure from all the other grammar or style books I've read!

88 of 92 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars if you're serious about writing, April 3, 2003

By	Rebecca Brown "rebeccasreads" (Clallam Bay, WA United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Some books never go out of style, rarely become dated & endure as useful, understandable & applicable, GRAMMATICALLY CORRECT is one of those.

My copy is flagged at the problems I just don't seem able to remember, underlined where I consistently err. It has taken on a well-worn look as I refer to it repeatedly while I edit, making sure that what I've written is as polished as I can make it.

All those English classes we took at school become forgotten as we daily use our language & become so familiar with it that we don't realize how idiosyncratic is our style, how we perpetuate grammatical glitches, consistently misspell, & pepper our prose with breathless punctuation.

GRAMMATICALLY CORRECT is eminently user-friendly & definitely one of the best books I've found on what good writing looks like & how to attain it. (Ampersand (&) notwithstanding-that's my idiosyncratic stand!)

96 of 106 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars misleading title, March 5, 2006

By	T. Wang "techguy" (San Jose, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Despite what the book title "Grammatically Correct", this book is mostly about punctuation usages. Grammar is limited to a thin, single chapter. There are not sufficient materials on grammar to alert you on incorrect usages, let alone correct them.

I would recommend "Painless Grammar" over this title.