Under the Grammar Hammer; The 25 Most Important Grammar Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

What do you want in a grammar book, anyway? Under the Grammar Hammer provides clear, concise, and even witty examples of the 25 most common grammar mistakes. Designed for college students and adults seeking practical guidance on grammar rules, this thin and affordable books is almost ideal for intermediate and advanced ESL classes. Forget buying thick, expensive, and often incomprehensible grammar tomes like the Azar series. This book provides vivid examples, short descriptions, and realistic rules that work in the vast, vast majority of writing situations. Grammar purists will frown , but working adults and English students will appreciate the substance and style. As a university writing instructor and ESL teacher, I have used it for many lessons and recommended the book to dozens of students. This fine grammar guide deserves some shelf space on far more English teachers' bookcases!

Mr. Cazort was apparently never one for rules. This is evident in his approach to grammar [and other things, it seems]. Though dry in spots, he unleashes his wetness in some of the later chapters. This book is for beginners and professionals alike when you want to know if it sounds "write." Never "hard core," often "old corps," this is sound advice from a real master of the genre.

The humor, cartoons, and folksy style of this book make it easy to read and study. Highly useful for helping teachers to learn the grammar they most need in order to help students learn to edit for these twenty "most important" grammar mistakes, the book is great for student use, too. It includes a reassuring chapter titled "You Know More Grammar than You Know You Know, and You Need to Learn Less than you Think." The last chapter recommends "America Lighten Up."

If you are confounded by "fickle fragments, subterranean subjects, pliant pronouns, or homonyms from Hell," Douglas Cazort offers help for those who transgress against the conventions of formal English. In UNDER THE GRAMMAR HAMMER, Cazort examines the 25 most significant grammatical errors committed by violators he identifies as "educated Americans." This concise reference book provides quick remedies for lessening the blows from hammers wielded by defenders of the correct word. Replete with colorful anecdotes and cogent explanations, UNDER THE GRAMMAR HAMMER provides strategies for resolving a dangling modifer or avoiding sexist language. The author's friendly yet authoritative approach to explaining the principles of English dispels the notion that grammar sometimes can be a four-letter word. Cazort accomplishes another purpose when discussing popular rules of thumb; he liberates readers from the idea that the English language is the sole property of English teachers or authorities on usage. He contends that the language belongs to all who speak and write English, and says he hopes his book helps people feel more secure in their ownership of language, especially when they are in the presence of English teachers. An English instructor and counselor at Linn-Benton Community College in Albany, Oregon, Cazort completed the first edition of his book on the quincentenary of the publication of the first modern European language grammar. In 1492, when the Bishop of Avila presented Queen Isabella of Spain a copy of the premier grammar, he remarked, "Your majesty, language is the perfect instrument of empire." Five hundred years and a new edition later, readers will discover Cazort's UNDER THE GRAMMAR HAMMER to be an attractive alternative to imperialistic rule books.(This review is reprinted from the spring 1998 issue of VANDERBILT MAGAZINE, the alumni magazine of Vanderbilt University, with permission of the reviewer.)

"Under the Grammer Hammer" was a darn good book. It was very usefull, and kept my attention from page to page. The book is an excellent guide to improving your grammer skills, and many people would find this book a usefull tool for high school.