New Latin Grammar

Bennett's New Latin Grammar is a great book for basic reference. It goes beyond a listing of endings and forms: get grammar reference cards of you need that. But on the other hand it does not go into so much detail that you forgot why you were looking in the book in the first place. It gives just enough information for general reference purposes. This books is best for the 3rd and 4th year high-school Latin student or undergraduate who needs a reference grammar. Each grammar point gets its own section, and Bennett covers the high points in less than a page for each item. The front section is devoted to the various forms, but the section on syntax is worth the cover price alone. If at all possible, get one of the old (1961) printings of this book. The type is clearer and the binding is sturdier. But if you can't find a used copy, buy this one. Disclaimer: I have contracted with this book's publisher, but I assure you, I thought this book was great before I ever got my first dollar from the publisher. I would write the exact same review for it no matter whom I work for. I have in the past and will in the future reccomend it to anyone who asks for a quick reference grammar.

I'm surprised that this book is available in paperbook. I still have our hardcover edition from 1961. This book has simple charts covering EVERYTHING you need to look up to understand Latin. Bennett is the Best!

This grammar has been around since the early 1900's( all the best latin grammars are of this time period or earlier) and it is as good today as when it was first issued. It is the best short latin grammar available. It will not show you all the nuances of the language, like Gildersleeve's or Greenough's , but it will give you the absolute basics that you need to know to learn this complex language. The explanations are concise and to the point; and the part on syntax is also nicely done. My only complaint is that this book only comes in a paperback edition. I wish the book was available in hardcover or clothbound. Reference works of this quality should always be available in such an edition.

Charles Bennett's New Latin Grammar enjoys a new incarnation in paperback. The text follows a traditional format for Latin reference grammars: phonology, morphology, syntax and prosody. Coverage is descriptive, not historical, clearly designed to answer basic questions about forms and syntax for the student who needs more than an introductory learner's text but less than a 500 page tome, detailing every possible exception. My own experience in using the book with intermediate students in school ( AP Vergil ) would suggest that there is some resistance to moving from beginners' texts, which are self-contained, to the use of a reference grammar because of the time needed to locate items in indices or tables of contents. Bennett's New Latin Grammar meets this problem of the time-pressed learner by its concision, only 250 pages of text, with a good general index to topics. Concision with accuracy is the key strength of this grammar, as Bennett himself stated in the Preface to First Edition: "The object of this book is to present the essential facts of Latin grammar in a direct and simple manner, and within the smallest compass consistent with scholarly standards." This goal has been met and should be helpful in developing the habit of reference grammar use among students who have completed formal grammar lessons but who, on their own, still need to dig out unusual forms or to address less common syntactical structures. Bennett's Grammar will help less experienced Latin students climb the ladder to becoming their own best teachers in matters of syntax.