The Elements of Style

Don't buy this kindle version, it's full of formatting errors. A shame to see a grammar book trashed like this. I had to ask for a refund. Look somewhere else.

First published in 1920, this definitive text on English grammar and composition answers most style questions in approximately 100 pages. There have been countless other efforts since this one, often with hundreds more pages, but none do it better. It answers the basic questions any writer occasionally encounters-comma usage, clauses, paragraphs and construction. Despite the fact it's been nearly 100 years since this book was written, it's never been rendered obsolete. It doesn't matter if your field is business or creative writing, the rules of structure still apply. The English language is imprecise and difficult to master but without understanding the elements of it then properly constructing anything from an email to a thesis or novel will not occur. In these days of emojis and alphabetical shortcuts, we are losing the battle of writing proper sentences but this book, if studied, will remind us of how important the written word is and how to make it understandable. A must read for anyone interested in writing well.

I've read two different editions of this book - I borrowed the 6th? 7th? edition (the one with the blue cover that is expanded) and I own the 3rd edition (which is not expanded). Let me tell you, this slim book packs a powerful punch. I've always struggled with being concise in my writing, and this book is THE book to help you maximize your writing. It should be required in high schools everywhere.Back when I worked for a newspaper, one of my editors was trying to get a review of mine on a particular page, which meant he needed to edit a little bit out ... he came back and told me - I couldn't edit your review. Every word was essential. - YES. Thank you, Strunk & White.

I am sixty-six years old. It seems as though I have always had a version of this book on my desk at work, and in various bookshelves in my home. I recently threw out my office version because it was simply falling apart. (And, frankly, I had not had to refer to it in a few years.)Today, I am working on a fairly complex document with another lawyer in the office. She's editing my work and I am editing hers. She made a "correction" to which E.B. White would surely have objected. I had no Elements of Style here at my office to prove this to her.Hello, Kindle version! Thank goodness for it! (I'm now ordering another paperback copy for my office too.)

I love the elements of style. There are several versions. I started with a book about the elements of style and how it came about. Now I have three different versions of the elements to include a copy of the original. It is relevant, easy to use, and has re-improved my writing which had gotten lazy over the years. It is also helping me to leave behind work- place lingo and shortcuts and return to proper grammar. If you want to improve your writing and alter your writing style this guide is the one to have.

In the whole, this guide could be rather handy. It presents information straight forward and direct, as it wants the reader to do, and has some practical guidelines to follow. However, there is a line that throws the entire thing into question, when it states in a note about spelling that a word is only spelled correctly if everyone agrees it does.These rules follow the same guidelines. Simple, direct sentences are only right these days because enough people agree upon it. When the style changes, so will the usefulness of this book.Just a thought

I appreciated this reading experience. As a whistleblower attorney, author and CEO of a national office that confronts workplace bullying, I always appreciate any credible efforts to help people communicate better. Hopefully, potential conflict can be avoided as people enhance their communication skills.In my own book, I observe how atrocious I found a lot of the writing I reviewed as the Program Manager for the Anti-Harassment Unit within a federal agency. Many employees within the government could really benefit from this work!

Nearly one hundred years old, this book was originally written by William Strunk, who was E.B White's former professor. E. B. White later wrote the last part of this mini-manual. As you may recall, White was the author of the classic, Stuart Little. To study this book is to learn from the masters. When I was homeschooling my oldest son during his early high school years, this was the only writing book that we used. The only other instruction I gave him was to correct the mistakes on the novels he was writing at the time. When it was time for him to take the SAT test, he received the highest possible score on the writing section, and he hadn't even completed the essay because he ran out of time. If a parent or teacher is knowledgeable enough about writing, this is really the only writing book a student will ever need. Whenever anyone asks me for a recommendation for a writing book, this is the one to which I refer them.

You're probably thinking this is a really cheap edition of The Elements Of Style. The reason is that it's almost impossible to use as either a textbook of reference. Buy a different edition.Each chapter consists of an instruction for an element of language, followed by two or more examples. The editor has chosen to format both the instructions and the examples in the same font, with the same indentation. You'll soon find it very difficult to read, even more so if you want to use it as a reference book while you write or edit.This edition omits the name of the editor or the publisher, perhaps in shame at the insult they've done to an excellent work. I would return my copy if possible.

This is a concise and helpful book designed to eliminate clumsy and incorrect usage of English.To give a few examples:'Less than ten' is incorrect, whilst 'fewer than ten' is correct.'This man, who is my friend,' is better written 'This man, my friend,''I should like tea' is usually correct, 'I would like tea' is usually not.'Worthwhile' is best avoided altogether - not exactly incorrect but poor style.And so it goes on.I found this book moderately useful, although it does seem to concentrate on American English rather than UK English. Some of the advice doesn't apply on this side of the Atlantic. For example, we tend not to use `most' as an abbreviation of `almost' so we're not going to make the mistake of saying `most everyone' as many Americans do.Some reviewers commented that the kindle version was hard to read, but I didn't have any problems with it. I think it must have been reformatted as a result of some early negative reviews.On the whole this is a great book for anyone who's got into sloppy writing habits (like me). Stephen King recommends it in his book `On Writing' - and recommendations don't get much stronger than that. It's probably fair to summarise the message of the book by saying `express yourself in as few words as possible and be as precise as possible'.

This Kindle edition must have been prepared by a piece of utterly useless OCR software - the text is so garbled that the book is impossible to use. Here, for example, is the second sentence of the INTRODUCTORY [sic], which is typical of the whole book: It goals to lighten the task of teacher and student by using concentrating interest (in Chapters II and III) on some necessities, the guidelines of utilization and principles of composition maximum typically violated.William Strunck Jr. The Elements of style . Kindle Edition.

This is a review of Elements of Style, by William Strunk, published by Filquarian press. This publisher specialises in public domain classics. You can find this edition in its entirety on the internet; search on `wiiliam strunk public domain'.The public domain edition was published in 1918, and is half the length of recent editions. It predates recent language, predates political correctness, and arguably predates the shorter modern form of `plain English'.Buyers should be aware that they are not getting the modern Strunk and White edition (especially when Amazon have pooled reviews for modern editions with the 1918 version!).At a mere 60 pages, the 1918 Strunk edition is the most concise English language style guide. This is a major advantage when compared with more recent, more wordy style guides.

Reading about grammar is about as fun as it sounds, but it's still really useful to have the rules (conventions?) of writing clearly stated and easy to follow. If you're serious about improving your writing, this is essential reading.