Word Power Made Easy

I have finished reading Word Power in two weeks (non stop) instead of the three week recommended by the book. It was like being carried on a seemingly never ending and exhausting ride through the vagaries of the English Language. Mr Lewis must have gone through a daunting and comprehensive research to avail his readers of this encyclopedic coverage of the content, including the number of ubiquitous quizzes to ensure retention and enlightenment with his choice of deflating upper class prissy sense of humour. The copy I purchased was printed in 1949 and contains 457 pages is well worth the reasonable price it is sold at and I am reading it AGAIN at a slower pace this time to concretise its nuances. The book belongs on my desk instead of being locked away in a bbk case. The only deficiency noticeable is the absence of a word index for fast access when trying to find a word. Five stars !

I'm skeptical of books like this. My view on expanding vocabulary is to simply read a lot and if you see a word you don't understand, then look it up. Magically, you now know what that word means. But this book surprised me, though I didn't initially realize it until much, much later, well after finishing the book and all the numerous exercises. It's mainly because of the content of the book. Though the book centers around about a hundred words (all sectioned off by a specific category), it's through these words and their etymology that we are able to further expand our vocabulary. It teaches first how to recognize the prefix and the suffixes within these words, so that should we come across these same prefixes or suffixes later, we'll know the roots and how to identify the meaning of these words without pulling out a dictionary. This is where it surprised me. It took maybe months, but eventually I realized the power of this book when I saw a word I had never seen before while reading and was able to identify it without even stopping. Another great part about this book is that it's never overwhelming. Each section uses ten words, and from there multiplies into many more using etymology until starting once again with ten more new words, but only after thoroughly testing you and what you've already learned. When I first began reading this book, I read a chapter a week and studied the words, the prefixes, and the suffixes related to each word and did the tests until I was satisfied that I knew them and then moved on to the next section. In doing this, I was able to expand my vocab by at least the one-hundred base words outlined in this book (later, I realized, my vocabulary grew by thousands of words). This book also has a few review sections to go back on earlier chapters to help refresh you before moving on to more advanced words. To go along with that, it has "Brief Intermissions" that speaks of the constant changes in the English language, and how to avoid becoming a stuffy wordsmith after reading this book. These sections stress open-mindedness when speaking and writing. Finally, it has a few sections that aid in spelling problems, and how to avoid misspelling commonly misspelled words. Though these sections don't help in what the book is meant for, they are fun diversions nonetheless. Overall, this book is a great learning experience that continues to teach well after you turn to the back cover. I'd recommend this to anyone seeking to speak intelligently and to write better. In fact, I'd recommend two, as you'll be marking up the first one in order to complete the quizzes.

This book is not only very effective for building a strong vocabulary, but it also teaches the reader the etymology of words, their usages, and how a person can determine the meaning/usage of a new word just by examining the word itself. This book was given to me by my ninth grade English teacher many, many years ago. I wore the copy he gave me out and had to buy a new one. It has been an invaluable tool for me not only when I write but in conversation as well. Norman Lewis will teach you how to know if you are using corrects words in your sentences, how to pronounce and spell words correctly, and how to speak with grammatical accuracy. This is a book that you will refer to for many years to come. Furthermore, it is a book that is actually a fun tool from which to learn. To give you an idea of the contents in the book, it consists of a section that tests your current vocabulary to see where you are right now, another section deals with building a vocabulary database, there is a section that deals with how to talk about personality types, actions, Doctors, various practitioners, science and scientists, liars and lying, actions, and various speech habits, etc. Each section is vital to your overall vocabulary strength (even though this does not seem to be the case). Every chapter/section has exercises that force you to put into practice what you have been learning (this is a must). Thus, overall this is a very effective vocabulary builder (as the front cover totes).

I was introduced to this book through a college course. Only a month or two after using this tool, people I worked with commented on the growth of my vocabulary. It was as if by magic. It didn't hurt at all. If you struggle with pronunciation, spelling, and usage, this book could be just the magic you need.