No comments about Gujarati Alphabet Book (Gujarati Edition).

5 comments about Oxford Fowler's Modern English Usage Dictionary.

1. It is somewhat amazing that this book, first published in 1926, is still in print. The language has changed quite a bit since then; thousands of words have been added, hundreds have gone obsolete, and hundreds more have had their meanings shaded; and of course many of Fowler's pronouncements are now merely echoes of battles long lost or won. Not only that, but two newer editions of A Dictionary of Modern English Usage have been published, the excellent second edition edited by Sir Ernest Gowers in 1965 (now ironically out of print while the original finds yet another printing), and the not so entirely well-received (but underrated in my opinion) third edition, edited and revised by R.W. Burchfield in 1996.

   How to account for this phenomenon? Part of it is because Fowler's reputation only grew after his death as several generations of writers sang his praises and adhered to, or sometimes fussed about, his many dicta on usage questions both great and small. And as the years went by, and as the pages of his masterpiece gave way to wine stains and silverfish or the few remaining copies disappeared from libraries, he himself became a legend. Not everything he wrote is considered correct today, nor was it then. And sometimes the succinct yet magisterial little essays he wrote were followed by other little essays that were all but impenetrable, obtuse and somewhat overbearing. No matter. The good greatly outweighed the occasional misjudgment, and the education he afforded us remains.

   Another part of the story is that there is something very properly English and wonderfully nostalgic about the man himself. He was a bit of a character who lied about his age and joined the army when he was 56-years-old to fight the Germans in the Great War (only to faint on the parade grounds), a man who earlier gave up a teaching career because he did not feel it was his responsibility to prepare a student for the seminary. More than anything, though, the fact that this book is still in demand is a testament to the high regard and affection felt by the literate public toward Fowler himself.

   What Fowler knew and preached was that before we could presume to be literary artists or journalists or even authors of readable letters we must of necessity, if we are to be effective, be craftsmen. Central to his purpose was the belief that the right word in its proper place and context constituted the backbone and much of the muscle and sinew of forthright and effective writing. That belief along with Fowler's celebrated passion for the concise and the correct, and his intolerance of ignorance and humbug, coupled with his sometimes incomparable expression, long ago won him the undying respect and admiration of careful writers of the English language the world over.

   But this is something of a problem. Since Fowler last set pen to page some seventy-one years ago (he died in 1933), the English language has changed and grown enormously. What was correct and effective then, as well as what was ineffective, offensively brash or downright ugly has in some cases become acceptable and even felicitous. So, like it or not, Fowler had to be updated, and of course there was no shortage of lexicographers, linguists, grammarians, journalists and others looking to do the job. Furthermore, the "Great Divide" between American English and British English needed to be explained, recorded, and codified. Some of the people who have joined in this enterprise over the years have been H. L. Mencken, Jens Jespersen, Margaret Nicholson, Dwight MacDonald, Bergen and Cornelia Evans, and more recently, Bryan A. Garner and R.W. Burchfield, and many others. I think all of them, if they looked over their shoulder would see upon the wall an especially sober portrait of Fowler passing silent judgment upon their protracted labors. Certainly on their desks would be this book.

   So I recommend that you buy that very impressive book by Garner (Garner's Modern American Usage), especially if you are an American, or splurge for a copy of that underrated third edition edited by Burchfield, and that you consult them as well as this venerable authority. As you use the books you may compare and contrast and get a nice feel for where the language has been and where it is headed.




2. If you want to learn to write, start with 'The Elements of Style' - concise, clear, good advice, short and cheap. But if you want to learn about using English, from a wise opinionated teacher at once wry and passionate, start here.
   
   Other reviewers have said what needs to be said, but I'll summarise: it's out of date; it's written in an old-fashioned curmudgeonly prescriptive style; you can learn more about using English from this than from five other books of similar intent.
   
   Don't - please don't - even think of adhering dogmatically to Fowler's dictums. I think he'd turn over in his grave if you did. What you say and write is your responsibility; agree with him or disagree, but know why and everyone subject to your words will be better off.
   
   Oh, and the third edition is worth getting too, but is not readily comparable to this. It's a different style, and not as easy to use, I find. However, it's obviously far more current. In any event, since you can buy this edition for little more than postage, I'm aware of no better value deal on Amazon.



3. The content of this book is quite interesting, including all kinds of history of the usage of various words. However, it's very difficult to read, because the print is very blurry. It looks like it was photocopied from an older photocopy. They really need to redo the original.



4. This is a wonderful book, and will still be a wonderful book a hundred years from now. By then the English language obviously will have changed even more than it has since the book was written, so the details of the guidance Fowler gives will be less reliable. But the wit and sensibility of the book will still live on and make it a treasure for people who love words, in sort of the same way that Johnson's dictionary is still great reading now. (This can't be said for Burchfield's revision, or Garner's usage book, or most other books on language, which all are tied to their times.) Not the most practically useful language book to own anymore, but still one of the best anyway.



5. although the product was as promised, the delivery took several weeks. considering other vendors have shipped within the week - for the same $3.99 shipping charge - I don't feel the service is up to par.

No comments about Learn GujaratI in 30 Days through English (Learn the National Language).

1 comments about Colloquial Gujarati (Colloquial Series).

1. This book/CD is good for learning VERY proper but "old" Gujarati. Many of the words are out of date (but that is to be expected by the publishing date). This would be excellent paired with a tutor who can give you the more current words and point out which words are no longer in use.

2 comments about Learn Gujarati in a Month: Easy Method of Learning Gujarati Through English without a Teacher.

1. NAMASTE! I wish there were more like it! I attempting to learn Gujarati through books... this is not "ideal." However, this book has helped. I have purchased everything on Amazon I could find on the language and this book and the software are pretty much what gets used the most.
   -Joe



2. You could not learn Gujarati in a year with this book. It does not teach conversational Gujarati but instead teaches how to read Gujarati script. Even my girlfriend, a native Gujarati speaker, laughed at this book. Very disappointing.

No comments about The Leopard's Drum, Gujarati/English-Language Edition: An Asante Tale from West Africa (Dual Language).

1 comments about Learn Gujarati Through English in 30 Days.

1. The book is pretty much useless unless you can already read the Gujarati alphabet (or want to learn it).
   
   I just wanted to learn how to speak a bit of the language, understand what people in my family are saying and learn how to say something vaguely understandable back.
   
   I didn't stand a chance with this book given all it does is show you a word or phrase in English and it's equivalent in the Gujarati alphabet - leaving me unable to even begin to know how to say it, let alone know if I was pronouncing it correctly. Needless to say I'm about as fluent in Gujarati now as I was before I bought the book...

2 comments about Gujarati Dictionary and Phrasebook: English-Gujarati / Gujarati-English (Hippocrene Dictionary & Phrasebooks).

1. There is no pronunciation section in this book. I had to figure out the pronunciation by looking at the order of letters in the Gujarati-English section of the dictionary, which is arranged not according to the English alphabet, but according to the Gujarati alphabet, even though it is romanized. This romanization is quite strange. In some cases, h means aspiration, but in other cases it means a dental sound. U with grave accent is not a vowel, but a retroflex aspirated t. Capital O with circumflex accent is not a vowel, but a retroflex aspirated d.
   The grammar section is a little bit better than the romanization, but also inadequate. No mention is made of the oblique case, the nominative is treated as if it is the only case in the language. There is no section on pronouns. Several pronouns are finally mentioned in the section General Words and Phrases, but with no indication that Gujarati distinguishes between exclusive and inclusive 'we'. There is some inconsistency in the transcription, in the grammar section 'boy' is chhokro, in the dictionary it is chhokaro. And there are other examples. This inconsistency is not explained.
   At least the cultural section of the phrasebook seems good, quite detailed.



2. This is, without question, the worse book I have ever purchased. The pronunciation system utilized is awful! Simple words, those words one would expect would be represented in any dictionary, can't be found. What a disappointment.

2 comments about Universal English-Gujarati Dictionary.

1. I teach ESL and I bought this dictionary for my 2 students, and they seem quite pleased. I don't speak the language, so I can't review its quality. :)



2. I was disappointed with this dictionary. The print quality is very bad and for the price I expected more.

No comments about Learn Tamil in a Month: An Easy Method of Learning Tamil Through English without a Teacher.