Be in no doubt: the beer was drunk but the man drank the beer. A master English stylist shows how its done. Simon Heffers incisive and amusingly despairing emails to colleagues at the the Daily Telegraph about grammatical mistakes and stylistic slips have found their way on to the internet and have attracted a growing band of ardent fans over recent years. Now he makes an impassioned case for an end to the sloppiness that has become a hallmark of everyday speech and writing, and shows how accuracy and clarity are within the grasp of anyone who is prepared to take the time to master a few simple rules. If you wince when you see different than in print, or are offended by people who think that infer and imply mean the same thing, then this book will provide reassurance that you are not alone. If you have a suspicion that it is wrong to say the car collided with the tree but are not quite sure why, then it will set you straight. And if you believe that precise and elegant English really does matter, then it will prove required reading.
Arvustused
An impassioned case for correct English, full of practical advice * Country Life * Every one of us who gasps at the use of English in the papers each morning or harrumphs on turning on the radio will find much to applaud * The Spectator * I have spent several productive hours reading Strictly English -- Jeffrey Archer * Daily Telegraph * His evidently strong feelings about his subject, fluently expressed, make this book lively and engrossing * Times Literary Supplement * The Holy Grail of grammar ... It is a delight to read and learn from this book * Field * Heffer's polemic in favour of grammatical precision is an important and persuasive one * Choice * Anyone who writes for a living, or who wants to write well, could benefit from a few hours spent with Heffer's amusing and clearly organised book * Literary Review *
Muu info
The Telegraph's master English stylist shows how it's done
| Acknowledgements |
|
xi | |
| Preliminary notes |
|
xiii | |
| Prologue |
|
xv | |
|
|
|
|
1 The building blocks of English |
|
|
3 | (16) |
|
2 From clauses to paragraphs |
|
|
19 | (9) |
|
3 Spelling and punctuation |
|
|
28 | (17) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
45 | (91) |
|
|
|
136 | (40) |
|
|
|
176 | (33) |
|
|
|
209 | (12) |
|
|
|
|
8 The essence of good style |
|
|
221 | (54) |
|
|
|
275 | (12) |
| Appendix I The right address |
|
287 | (9) |
| Appendix II Editorial matters |
|
296 | (6) |
| Glossary |
|
302 | (5) |
| Bibliography |
|
307 | (3) |
| Index |
|
310 | |
In a career of more than 25 years in Fleet Street Simon Heffer has written columns for and held senior positions on the Daily Mail, The Daily Telegraph and The Spectator. It was while associate editor of The Daily Telegraph that his emails to staff lamenting their lapses in English became an internet cult, and led to the writing of this book. He read English at Cambridge and holds a PhD from that university in history. His previous books include: Moral Desperado: A Life of Thomas Carlyle, Like the Roman: The Life of Enoch Powell, Nor Shall My Sword: The Reinvention of England and Vaughan Williams.
