English Grammar For Dummies by Geraldine Woods

Product Details

Synopsis

A few years ago, a magazine sponsored a contest for the comment most likely to end a conversation. The winning entry? "I teach English grammar." Just throw that line out at a party; everyone around you will clam up or start saying "whom."

Why does grammar make everyone so nervous? Probably because English teachers, for decades – no, for centuries – have been making a big deal out of grammar in classrooms, diagramming sentences and drilling the parts of speech, clauses, and verbals into students until they beg for mercy. Happily, you don't have to learn all those technical terms of English grammar – and you certainly don't have to diagram sentences – in order to speak and write correct English.

So rest assured – English Grammar For Dummies will probably never make your English teacher's top-ten list of must-read books, because you won't have to diagram a single sentence. What you will discover are fun and easy strategies that can help you when you're faced with such grammatical dilemmas as the choice between "I" and "me," "had gone" and "went," and "who" and "whom." With English Grammar For Dummies, you won't have to memorize a long list of meaningless rules (well, maybe a couple in the punctuation chapter!), because when you understand the reason for a particular word choice, you'll pick the correct word automatically.

English Grammar For Dummies covers many other topics as well, such as the following:

• Verbs, adjectives, and adverbs – oh my!
• Preposition propositions and pronoun pronouncements
• Punctuation: The lowdown on periods, commas, colons, and allthose other squiggly marks
• Possession: It's nine-tenths of grammatical law
• Avoiding those double negative vibes
• How to spice up really boring sentences (like this one)
• Top Ten lists on improving your proofreading skills and ways to learn better grammar

Just think how improving your speaking and writing skills will help you in everyday situations, such as writing a paper for school, giving a presentation to your company's big wigs, or communicating effectively with your family. You will not only gain the confidence in knowing you're speaking or writing well, but you'll also make a good impression on those around you!

Biography

Geraldine Woods has taught grammar at a well-regarded private school for over 16 years. Early in her teaching career she worked in a high school with a mostly remedial population, a situation that prompted her to decide what was truly essential for a basic level of correct English. She has authored over 40 books including, The Horace Mann Grammar Workbook and Teachers' Manual for English Literature and Equal Justice: A Biography of Sandra Day O'Connor. She has also published books in children's literature, biographies and various other topics.