Date:    Thu, 19 Mar 1998 09:52:17 -1000
<br>From:    Norman Roberts  nroberts[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]HAWAII.EDU 
<br>Subject: Re: seeking textbook advice
<br>
<br> Mark, the very best thing I know is the little Strunk and White _Elements
<br> of Style_, now in its 15th+ edition -- 16th, maybe. It is invaluable in
<br> situations like your correspondent described. It's short, simple, easy to
<br> use, not fussy. No theory, just practical advice.
<br> 
<br> Second best: The _Texas Style Manual_ (approximate title), a tiny book,
<br> used often by law reviews. Similar to above, a little fussier.
<br> 
<br> If others know of other resources, I would like to know about them.
<br> 
<br> Bethany
<br>
<br>For many years I used Joseph C. Blumenthal.  English 3200: A Programmed
<br>Course in Grammar and Usage.  New York:  Harcourt Brace, 1994.  It's
<br>essentially "school" grammar, and some of my students did not like
<br>programmed instruction, but anybody who ever worked through the program
<br>could not help but learn grammar and usage.  This book was pioneered in the
<br>early sixties, was "desexed" in the eighties, and given "writing
<br>applications" in the fourth edition (1994).  The grammar and usage which
<br>the program teaches is mostly the stuff that those of us who are legally
<br>old learned in elementary school but which today is only to be found in
<br>graduate linguistics courses for the gifted and talented. It's ideal for
<br>self-study and much, much cheaper than the computerized "programs" that
<br>teach English fundamentals.
<br>
<br>There are smaller versions entitled English 2400 and English 2600, but the
<br>program is essentially the same.  The numbers refer to the number of frames
<br>[Bit of instruction] in the books.  The same books come in both "school"
<br>and "college" editions, but the program is identical in each.
<br>
<br>Many of my colleagues didn't like English 3200 because it didn't leave them
<br>anything to do.  However I found that it freed me to teach writing.
<br>