Few people can write on the English language with the authority of Bryan
A. Garner. The author of The Chicago Manual of Style's popular
"Grammar and Usage" chapter, Garner explains the vagaries of English
with absolute precision and utmost clarity. With The Chicago Guide to
Grammar, Usage, and Punctuation, he has written the definitive guide
for writers who want their prose to be both memorable and correct.
Throughout the book Garner describes standard literary English--the
forms that mark writers and speakers as educated users of the language.
He also offers historical context for understanding the development of
these forms. The section on grammar explains how the canonical parts of
speech came to be identified, while the section on syntax covers the
nuances of sentence patterns as well as both traditional sentence
diagramming and transformational grammar. The usage section provides an
unprecedented trove of empirical evidence in the form of Google Ngrams,
diagrams that illustrate the changing prevalence of specific terms over
decades and even centuries of English literature. Garner also treats
punctuation and word formation, and concludes the book with an
exhaustive glossary of grammatical terms and a bibliography of suggested
further reading and references.
The Chicago Guide to Grammar, Usage, and Punctuation is a magisterial
work, the culmination of Garner's lifelong study of the English
language. The result is a landmark resource that will offer clear
guidelines to students, writers, and editors alike.
