The Elements of Style

One of the all-time 'how-to' classics. If you write anything, from notes to novels, this book will help you and improve the way you write. It's easy to follow and provides examples along with the rules to provide context. I use it every time I write, and I've been a journalist, poet, fiction writer and essayist for thirty years. Stephen King uses it too and recommendations don't come much higher than that. It emphasises clarity, though not at the expense of style, has an excellent guide to correct punctuation and should be on any writer's bookshelf.

I wield this book furiously at anyone who dares to disagree with my prolific use of the Oxford comma or punctuation-light lists. This was a required textbook on my BA Creative Writing and I still have it sat next to me on my desk at work nearly ten years later. Strunk and White is a handy quick reference guide for good grammar, style, and layout. Despite being a relatively old book the rules in it are timeless, and the writing style of the book itself is uncluttered and easy to follow. Every rule in the book is supported by examples to ease your understanding, making them much easier to apply to your own writing style.

This little book has the essence of good writing between its covers. Not exactly a quick read because it is essentiallly a little text book. I thought I had a reasonably good command of the English Language - yet this book has shown me a few rules I had previously not know or had forgotten. I would recommend it to all writers who wish to make their work more readable and in some areas help to cut down any ambiguities.

This "little book" was recommended to me by my lecturer and I have to say it's compact size is very handy for me to carry around. The book itself is amazing for those who struggle to write academically in the correct tense and provides examples on avoiding simple errors.

I bought this to brush up on some essential grammer after having it recommended by Stephen King in his book "On Writing". Naturally, it is a work of non-fiction (and about grammar no less!) So you won't find yourself on the edge of your seat or anything as you read it. But you will find it softly engaging and interesting and find yourself pulled into the mindset of those people who take grammar a good deal more seriously than most of us. Particularly helpful is the fact that each recommendation comes with examples, so that you can see in practice what he is actually talking about, and that each part is not overly long, so you don't feel the need to reach for the metaphorical gun to put yourself out of your misery! If you set aside the contents, introduction and appendix then this book is only 85 pages long, which I actually saw as a good thing. No doubt there are books on grammar that can quite happily be used as tables in their own right, but I wonder how many normal people actually read them? It's a bit like Stephen Hawking's "Brief History of Time" in that owning a copy of such tomes doesn't automatically mean you have read them! This one I have read. I honestly don't know if it improved my grammar much (oh ok I do...It didn't! I think you would need to make more than a casual study of this to really improve much). But the door is at least slightly ajar to seeing the light and perhaps, some day, also marveling at the difference between a conjunctive pronoun and a restrictive adverb (something which I have personally never heard of, but which I feel happy to allow some Grammar God to now lay claim too). Overall, a book that is well worth your time.

This is a priceless little book that I have had for years. I lent it to someone who lost it so I instantly replaced it as it is a reference book I cannot live without. If you are a writer of anything at all then this little gem should be on your shelf. I guarantee that whatever you are looking for regarding good English and grammar, you will find it here. Cannot recommend highly enough. Yes, it's American, but please get past that. It was first published in 1907 and has been updated several times since then. Grammar is grammar wherever you live!

Since studying at university and graduating, I have kept this book in arms reach on my work desk since! I’m not the best with grammar, and it’s so reassuring to be able to just quickly check something over if your unsure, particularly when writing papers or minutes in a professional capacity. It’s also really small and light, so could be kept in a handbag at all times! I think anyone studying in the English language should have a copy of this, from as young as possible, so they have the confidence to use grammar correctly, and to be able to define their writing style.

Does whatit says on the cover

It's written beautifully

Un libretto di poche decine di pagine pieno di ottimi consigli per scrivere bene, cioè con efficacia, stile e correttezza. Da tenere come testo di consultazione assieme agli altri bei libri sulla scrittura efficace: "On Writing" di S. King, "Writing Tools" di R.P.Clark, "Scrivere bene" di W. Zinsser. E' disponibile anche la traduzione italiana, ma l'originale rimane insuperabile.

Great reading. Very helpful!

The best book on the practical use of the English language. Essential for all university students and for anybody who wishes to speak and write English using correct grammar.

This classic style manuscript is only a few dollars but is worth its weight in gold. Why is that? Because it teaches you how to use words to form proper sentences. The result is writing that communicates a clear, robust and precise message. Good writing never leaves the reader bewildered. Instead, good writing arouses and holds the reader’s attention; it calls up mental pictures whose size exceeds the writing itself. Accordingly, Elements of Style equips the writer with greater technical skill and is overflowing with best practices. It also benefits your reader, who will no longer flounder in the sea of ambiguity. After reading this book, I now realize how bankrupt modern writing is; this includes my own writing. Elements has five parts: (I) Elementary Rules of Usage (II) Elementary Principles of Compositions (III) A Few Matters of Form (IV) Misused Words and Expressions (V) An Approach to Style. Parts I-IV deal with the science of writing. Part V deals with the art of writing. It is in parts I and II that you will find the famous “22 Rules.” These commandments provide timeless lessons such as (#16) “Use definite, specific, concrete language” and (#17) “Omit needless words.” Under each heading, the author gives a few examples of sentences that can be improved by application of the rule along with a one-page summary. As a bonus, the author has a style of writing that is sharp and witty. This creates a read that is both informative and entertaining. Overall, this small book can be finished quickly, but you will likely return to mine nuggets of literary wisdom many times. For any writer, this book is the type that you buy and keep in a permanent spot in your library.