Woe Is I

Patricia T. O'Conner, a former New York Times Book Review editor, has written for numerous magazines and newspapers. She is also the author of the books Words Fail Me: What Every Writer Should Know About Writing and You Send Me: Getting It Right When You Write Online.

Patricia T. O'Conner, former editor of The New York Times Book Review, untangles the knottiest grammar tangles in this expanded and updated edition of Woe Is I with the same insight and humor that has charmed and enlightened readers of previous editions for years. O'Conner offers down-to-earth explanations and plain-English solutions to the language mysteries that befuddle all of us in Woe Is I, with fresh insights into the rights, wrongs, and maybes of English grammar and usage.

O'Conner explains how the usage of a variety of words has evolved in this fourth edition. For example, for an unknown somebody, the once-rejected "they," "them," and "their" are now acceptable. And, according to O'Conner, the battle between "who" and "whom" is almost over (hint: it wasn't won by "whom"). Then there's the use of "taller than me" instead of the ramrod-stiff "taller than I" in simple comparisons. "May" and "might," "use to" and "used to," abbreviations with and without periods, and the evolving definition of "unique" are all explained by O'Conner here. As a result, the book is an engaging, up-to-date, and jargon-free answer to every reader's questions about grammar, style, and usage in the twenty-first century.

Author: Patricia T. O'Conner

Link to buy: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0525533052

Ratings: 4.6 out of 5 stars (from 334 reviews)

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