"Woe is I" is one of the better-known books that attempts to make grammar easy to understand and unintimidating. O'Conner succeeds by using witty examples to show common problems and how to fix them. She uses a wide variety of humor, but probably the most fun type is the sentences she makes up about famous people and characters. For example, when writing about the pronunciation of "nuclear," she writes a sentence attributed to Homer (of "The Simpsons" fame). The recognition of her allusions add a nice dimension to the humor in the book.

That said, there are still some dry sections in the book. Little witticisms can only briefly enliven a list of commonly confused words. If you enjoy books on language, you'll probably enjoy reading this (and disagreeing at times with O'Conner's proclamations). I don't think it will necessarily help the "grammarphobe" as much as O'Conner would like. ( )

http://bookchronicle.wordpress.com/20... ( )

Finally! A GOOD book about grammar that's easy to understand and actually fun to read. I'm an editior by profession and a writer by love, but I could never force my way through Struck and White's "Elements of Style"--has to be one of the most boring books ever written! But "Woe is I" is a fantastic look at the quirkiness of the English language and her examples will have you laughing--which, I'm discovering, is useful for remembering them later. I keep this on my shelf at work. A nice go-to reference. Recommended for writers, editors, and other lovers of English. ( )

For some strange reason, I get a kick out of grammar books, especially funny ones. As the genre goes (and who'd have thought there'd be such a huge selection?), this one is average. The problem I have with it is this: if you know grammar, there's nothing new in here and there's nothing funny to make up for the repetition of information. If you don't already have a firm grasp (or so-so grasp) of grammar, it's a great starting book. It has good examples, short snippets, tells you the official terms for parts of grammar, and it's not full of itself (Strunk and White, anyone?). There were handfuls of examples that I photocopied and gave to my students to read (juniors in college-they should know better), but otherwise, this book plays second fiddle to Grammar Snobs are Great Big Meanies. ( )

The author who helps us with "pronoun anxiety" and throws "plurals to the swine" gives us a helpful read. The chapter headings are triple pun-ctuations of Joy-- a "comma sutra" [133]. ( )