The Transitive Vampire

I'm generally reliable as a proofreader for fixing common mistakes in grammar, spelling, punctuation: good enough for home and work. I've long known that true copyediting would take another level of expertise, though, and occasionally pick up a book to make a few steps forward in that respect. Typically, this casual approach doesn't help much: I still get tangled on the finer points of that versus which, for example -- a perennial bugbear of mine. Having read Gordon's Transitive Vampire, I still can't recall the more obscure branches or leaves on the grammar tree. No single book is likely to replace the need for simply buckling down and committing rules to memory. Should I want to look something up, though, Gordon's survey is simple and show more offers unusual imagery. I'll keep it near my desk alongside Strunk & White.

When clarity is paramount, I can get behind such guidance as, Equal in grammatical horror to the sentence fragment is the comma splice [111] and Avoid what are called "squinting modifiers". [129]. And yet, many a poet and Tin Pan Alley rhymester will rue the possibilities foreclosed, should either rule be followed blindly. Clarity and concision are not the only worthy uses of language.

The clip art is fun, the examples amusing. Neither builds to a narrative or even an outline of one, but Gordon relies on a few common themes to suggest a certain milieu: suggestive appetites, supernatural happenings, and the ennui of the aristocracy. It's all very Edward Gorey. show less

Gothic-themed grammar guide, read in preparation for a copy test I had to take. The sample sentences in this book are certainly more diverting than the ones you were likely to have studied in school (for the five minutes the teacher bothered with grammar, if your schooling was anything like mine). For example, demonstrating subject-verb agreement, Gordon gives us: "Gawking out of the corner of his eye *was* a *man* who adored stevedores. Beneath the honeysuckle *were* the *caresses* he had longed for being given to another man." Fun! However, I'm not sure how this book or any other I have read has really helped me with my grammar. Now, this very well may be a problem of *mine*, but for someone who has (I like to think) a fairly good show more grasp of the English language, I have never been able to get much use out of this type of book. They either seem to say things that are incredibly obvious ("I can't hardly stand spinach" = a bad sentence), needlessly confusing ("this is known as a past present participle hatchback gerund—with or without a twist"), or just plain bullheaded WRONG ("no sentence fragments! EVER! And don't start sentences with 'and' or 'but'! ...Ooops."). Do I have trouble actually getting anything from grammar guides because in America the bare bones of proper grammar are actually taught so long *after* the language has actually been learned? I feel like I've picked up most of everything I know by *doing*, by actually writing and reading; it's all incredibly instinctive. I don't think this makes me any less of a writer; in fact, writers are almost *supposed* to do crazy shit that their editors can later correct. (Of course, in my little fantasy here, my editor is Max Perkins.) However, as someone who kind of needs to make a living editing other people for a while, the fact that I don't actually *know* the rules (I'm just instinctively aware of them) makes me very, very nervous. Which I guess makes "The Transitive Vampire" an appropriate (if not especially reassuring) guide; its subtitle is "A Handbook of Grammar for the Innocent, the Eager, and the Doomed." Yup, that's me! *whimpers* show less

This grammar guide's quirky gimmick is that the example sentences are all dark and supernatural-themed, Victorian-flavored, vaguely erotic, or just plain weird. (E.g., "To nuzzle flagpoles is her secret desire," "If I die first, will you tuck me into my casket?" and "The werewolf had a toothache.") This is at least more interesting than the standard "John gave the ball to Mary" stuff, but it didn't necessarily work all that well for me. If anything, it's kind of distracting, and it doesn't make up for the fact that the grammar lessons themselves are very dry and focused more on providing names for all the possible parts of a sentence than on teaching you how to use them well. Plus, unsurprisingly, there are points upon which it gets show more overly pedantic. There are definitely better, and livelier, grammar guides out there. Still, it'll be worth hanging on to in case I need to quickly look up the difference between a participle and a gerund, or if I ever meet a Goth in need of grammar lessons. show less

A clever, witty, and enjoyable (!) book about grammar, syntax, and the written word. It is full of useful examples and descriptions of grammatical constructs. This book is more enjoyable and easier to use than Strunk and White in my opinion, while also providing the same information. Anyone who wants to improve their writing ability and reading skills would benefit from reading this book.

The Transitive Vampire: A handbook of grammar for the innocent, the eager and the doomed looked as if it would appeal to me. It was immediately obvious that the writer of the book has a sense of humor. I was eager to read a book about a serious topic that had been written in a less-than-serious manner.

The book is filled with example sentences. The example sentences are filled with nonsensical scenarios. "She was kicked by the soft shoe of destiny, and she landed in Wales." That sentence is to exemplify the proper use of an independent clause.

Here is a sentence that is given as an example for correcting the use of sentence fragments: "Sometimes bras and panties would cry out to her to touch them as she navigated her way through the show more boutique."

Here is one of my favorite examples, also illustrating the avoidance of sentence fragments: "Tripping over the ripped linoleum, she was floored."

While the sentence examples are quite clever and witty I have to say that I was left with more questions than answers. The author gives examples that are incorrect and then makes appropriate corrections. I found myself wanting greater detail in her explanations of clauses and such. I read the book with a cursory interest but I did not come away from it smarter than before I read it. Pity, that.

I also expected something quite different from the book and am very dismayed that I found it not to be as I had suspected it would be. Upon picking it up and glancing through it I thought the example sentences were, themselves, going to tell their own creative story. I am sorry to say that wasn't the case. My expectations were not met by this book. show less

This is a great book! Although it us a pretty thorough text about grammar, it is dressed in so much hilarity and freshness that it is pleasurable to read. I was surprised by the fact that it was published in 1984, as there is nothing about it that feels dated. I appreciate the pictures that are dispersed throughout the book as well; they are very enjoyably creepy. I recommend this book for middle school students all the way up to adulthood. For those who struggle with learning grammar, the light humor should make it more bearable for you

This is a keeper. I love this book and I'll never sell it. The illustrations are reminiscent of Edward Gorey, whom I adore. What a find! The day I found this book was a very good day!