Bestselling author Bryson's latest book is really his first: this guide
to usage, spelling and grammar was first published in 1983 when Bryson
(In a Sunburned Country, etc.) was an unknown copyeditor at the London
Times, and has now been revised and updated for use in the U.S.
Alphabetically arranged entries include commonly misspelled and misused
words. He also includes common problems with grammar, as well as an
appendix on punctuation. Bryson often cites the 1983 edition of H.W.
Fowler's A Dictionary of Modern English Usage as an authority, though he also makes a handful of references to recent texts, such as the Encarta
World English Dictionary and Atlantic Monthly columnist Barbara
Wallraff's “Word Court.” Despite the revisions, the book often betrays
its origins as a British text, as in citing words in common usage
throughout the U.K. and British Commonwealth, but rarely used by American writers, such as Taoiseach, the Prime Minister of Ireland or City of London vs. city of London. In addition, Bryson avoids taking on computer lingo, such as distinguishing between the Internet and the
World Wide Web. Despite these shortcomings, Bryson's erudition is evident and refreshing. His passage on split infinitives, for example,
asserts that it is “a rhetorical fault a question of style and not a grammatical one.” Readers looking for the author's trademark humor will
not find it here. Instead they will find a straightforward, concise,
utilitarian guide, albeit one listing Bryson's “suggestions,
observations, and even treasured prejudices” on newspaper writing
primarily in Britain, circa 1983.
