Linguistics Books

A must have for technical writing, this handbook is a resource that should be at hand for anyone writing for or about research.

AS a professor and editor of Research; this style guide has detailed information for the serious paper writer; and provides examples that show how to format difficult passages. Used extensively at the Community College level.

You must have this book! It is not just for research papers, as the title of the book suggests. Its a necessity for those who wish improve their writing overall.

I am from a French speaking country and was used to an academic style of writing different from the American method. The Modern Language Association is very helpful to international students in the sense that it helps to achieve a successful writing of research papers in most American colleges and universities. It is an efficient guide to a writing style which is simple and clear in order to satisfy readers. Other important insights from the MLA are the way it helps to avoid plagiarism and to use electronic resources in an academic research paper. The last is most appreciated because of the amount of information one can get from internet.

I was very impressed by the fast service and perfect quality of my Amazon purchase! It came days sooner than I expected and arrived in perfect condition!

I was directed to use "A Writer's Reference" beginning with the second addition. When I could choose texts for my classes, I voluntarily chose this very text, which I use for pre-freshman composition, freshman critical thinking/composition, literature/advanced composition, and critical thinking/advanced composition. The sixth edition is better than ever. Furthermore, it is the one book I tell my students to never sell back as I firmly believe it will take care of students' writing needs through their bachelors and beyond.
Lin Fraser, Sacramento City College

This book and the disc that come with it are an excellent resource for the high school and college student. The book covers several documenting (source citation) methods (MLA, APA and CMS) for writing essays and papers. This book has all the basics from writing a thesis to grammer. There is also a website that provides more help and practice problems. It comes with tabbed sections to make content very easy to locate quickly. Excellent, excellent book!

Book did arrive on time and in good condition. I was very satisfied and will deal with this sellar again.

this is a must have in todays fast paced world of education and doing it right the first time.

I regularly use this book in my work and have bought several copies for others -- it's easy to use (will lay flat due to spiral binding), well-organized and an easy read.

The book arrived in a timely manner, and was in good shape. We got exactly what was stated in your description.

Every year, I have more papers that must be in Turabian style. This is a must have for those who are upper level in college or in graduate school.

Turabian 7th ed. is all I expected. the only bad would be is a an update now that I have just purchase this one. The info in these is always timely for the achievement of the best papers can write as they stand above.

This manual is very user-friendly. It's a must for anyone writing papers in the respected fields in which it is intended. It is worth every penny.

I'm a history minor in college and am starting to get into those history classes that ask for a lot of papers. The teachers said that we would be using the Chicago style to cite our work. A few of the students in the classes along with myself had never heard of the style before so one of the teachers mentioned this book. It helped me so much! It explains what to do and gives examples right away for you to work with when citing work. The only difficulty I had was using the table of contents, but it doesn't take long to work out that issue. Otherwise great book. If you do anything that involves writing when it comes to history, you should have this book!

i have not yet received my book and i purchased it more than a week ago. i need it for a class. its very disappointing

I ordered my book on the 28th of May. It is the 28th of June and I still have not received my book. I have sent the seller numerous emails. They say that they will send it out but they have not done so yet. My class is already half over. I would not recommend buying anyhting from seller "Tagmir".

I appreciated the thought and careful attention to detail that was put in this CD suite. Our students took quite well to the techniques and made progress quickly.

I'm an extremely mad that I have not received my book yet. I ordered
that book on January 8, 2007 and I have almost had to drop my class
because I have not received the book. This is absolutely ridiculous and
I want a some sort of refund. This book has caused many problems and I
payed over $50 to recieve it two weeks ago. I WANT SO DISCOUNT AND I WANT MY BOOK!

i really liked the books. it was a new package as promised and also delivered on time.
thank you.

I have used this text when tutoring individual students at the undergraduate and graduate level. I have also used it extensively in my management development classses featuring writing. It is superb,clearly written with almost brazen simplicity. It is the special gift that I give to students and trainees to keep for a lifetime.


Dr. Word Merchant, Ph.D.

Just what I ordered, speedy delivery. When I found I'd mis-ordered, the credit for my return was handled without demur. Excellent merchant.

This is a great handbook to have anywhere you need to write. For the price everyone should have one.

The Elements of Style is a short, timeless and foundational book on writing style and grammar. It is exceptionally well written and an essential writers desk reference. The authors stripped away all the fluff and kept the best of the best to help anyone write more clearly and concisely.

The Re-Discovery of Common Sense: A Guide to: The Lost Art of Critical Thinking

We traditionally give this as part of a high school graduation present and have received many notes of thanks over the years.

I am excited to use the MLA tools in this pocket guide for writing my college papers. There is so much in this little book, and was worth ever cent of my purchase. There are lots of little things that students forget like noun/verb agreement, and possession. It is very helpful, and every student should have this!

its an excently book to have handy. its very helpful for every class thats consists of writting.

The pocket size portfolio I received was in great condition and came in a timely manner.

this book is great because it's compact and has all the info you could ask for involving documentation,grammar,etc.worth the price!

Ordered this for my sister, not for me. She needed it for a class. It came pretty fast.

Several comments leave an impression to at least one not academically qualified to have wandered into a symposium for MBA/PhD credentialed professionals.

Give classicists their due in literary art forms, this common reader also enjoys contemporaries, such as David Guterson's introspective The Other,
circa 2008.

I don't care How Fiction Works, as long as a story works for me, written then or now.

The retro cover says it all. Farrar, Straus knew that it had the next big thing and that the next big thing consisted of a return to the best of the past. The book is receiving a great deal of attention, confirming their prescience.

How Fiction Works is a study of something that is very old-fashioned these days: craft. It is an examination of key elements of fiction and how they are most fully utilized by skilled writers. The vast majority of the writers examined here are canonical ones--another old-fashioned touch. The book is also cognizant of the nuances of narrative history and (a more modern touch) draws on popular culture for key insights. In short, this is a delightful, perceptive "book" book. First and foremost, it is an exceptional read. It is opinionated (though not abusive or flippant) and is a nice example of something that many modern students may never have seen before--judicial criticism. Frye famously argued that judicial criticism is passé, now that we realize that literary "quality" is like the stock market. Particular authors' "stock" rises and falls, depending on generational interests, so we should not concern ourselves with evaluative judgments. That is all very nice, except for the fact that reviewers, referees, acquisition editors and agents are forced to make evaluative judgments and in a world in which 800,000 books are published annually, readers seek help and advice from putative experts.

The book takes part of its inspiration from E. M. Forster's Aspects of the Novel, an interesting little book that has enjoyed some influence. How Fiction Works goes well beyond Forster (sometimes on issues which Forster is associated with specifically, e.g., the distinction between `flat' and `round' characters). This is a book for both critics and practitioners. It wears its erudition lightly, in the English mode, but its thoughts are often weighty and its insights acute (e.g. the notion that the French are suspicious of realism because of the function of the preterite in their language).

The book is a must read for teachers and students of narrative, both for the importance of its arguments and for its function as an exemplar of what once functioned as "criticism" and might so function once again.

I am one of those people who think if they buy and read enough writing self-help books, perhaps one day I will evolve to a level of confidence that I can begin putting my thoughts in coherent form on paper. For that reason I bought HOW FICTION WORKS. Perhaps this tome would be able to reveal the secret hidden from me. Had I been a PhD in literature, I might have had success. And I suppose there are those out there who will benefit from Wood's approach. I am not one of them. For me, HOW FICTION WORKS is a pedantic treatment of writing completely beyond my grasp. Wood writes, "Mindful of the common reader, I have tried to reduce what Joyce calls `the true scholastic stink' to bearable levels." He failed. Wood begins with a misguided assumption that the wide audience will share his background and familiarity with hard-to-reach literature from not only James Joyce, but Tolstoy, Humbert, Svevo, Wooster, Sebald, Dostoevsy, frequently referenced, Flaubert, and a hundred others. On occasion, he incorporates passages from important works by these giants to make a point, but more often than not he assumes you know Wooster's character Mr. Umtyfrump and how he reacted to so and so.

Without adequately describing his frame of reference, Wood assumes a knowledge base from his readers I doubt exists in all but a few percent. He jumps into esoteric literary terminology such as omniscient narration, direct speeh, free indirect speech, free indirect style, free indirect narration ... the list goes on.

I have two Bachelor's Degrees, two Master's Degrees, and some 45 years of being a "constant reader." But even I do not rise to the level of Wood's "common reader." I find high literature impenetrable. Judging by what sells well, I assume I am more common than not. So if you are an aspiring writer and Look to Stephen King or John Grisham as icons, then I don't think HOW FICTION WORKS is for you. On the other hand, if you want to better understand how Flaubert changed the fiction novel and wish to compare and contrast that to Christopher Isherwood, Cervantes, and/or Dickens, then you might enjoy it.

If you write, let's hope you do massive amounts of reading good literature. If you are a reader of substance, James Woods' book will edify your intellectual and emotional connection to what you have already learned, albiet subconsciously. All the devices are there, the silliness, the overworked metaphors, the sly styles, the magic. He is obviously a fan of Flaubert at whose feet Woods lays much credit for today's (good) writing. In fact, it's nearly an homage. So many great books are referenced, referred to, excerpted -- it makes you want to go back and re-read them all in order to see the work with a clearer vision. What we enjoyed as plain old storytelling, Woods shows us is hardly random and not without great intellectual and artistic effort. Woods compares great writers (old and new) to each other showing us flaws and greatness in each of them.

Highly recommended for readers and writers.

I was delighted that James Wood didn't take a condescending attitude about his subject. He doesn't say this is how it should be, but this is how it is and here is why. At first I didn't understand what the hell he was talking about, but somewhere during the second essay I adjusted to his style, became acclimated if you will, and I ended up getting a lot out of it. His examination of language in fiction was my favorite part.

I recommend this for anyone who appreciates an analytical approach to writing technique. This is not a how-to, however. Rather, it is more of a commentary.

I used "They Say/I Say" with my composition students in the Spring semester of 2008. Frankly, I had some reservations because the department required a fairly expensive handbook, and this would be an add-on. On the plus side, it was brief enough to go over thoroughly and was not too expensive. I thought it would be useful if students read it.

As usual, I made assignments in the book, and we discussed each chapter. I was surprised by student reactions when I surveyed students informally at the end of the semester. My students were very enthusiastic. Most said that they read it and referred back to it while they were writing. There were no negative comments, and most students felt that it was worth reading and had made their writing better. A few said that it made them more confident academic writers because it helped them to express their opinions beyond just agreeing or disagreeing with an author. Most astonishing, most said that they weren't planning to sell it at buy back because they found it so helpful.

It's unusual to find students enthusiastic about a composition text book. I plan to use it again next semester.

This book was required for one of my college courses, so I didn't expect much from it. But, I was surprised by how much I have learned from it. I have learned how to use quotes in my papers appropriately and how to introduce those quotes. I have also learned how to clearly state both sides of an argument and how to put in my opinion. There are also useful templates throughout the whole book. I definitely recommend this book to anyone writing any kind of paper for school. I usually sell my books back to the school, but I will definitely be keeping this one!

If you are new to grad school or writing; this is a good book for you. If you have been in grad school for a while, then it is a waste of time.

This book is valuable for writers who are not yet experienced with writing extensive research papers or entering ongoing debates that demand a summarization of previous arguments. Though much of this book is filled with writing templates which may or may not help writers of nonfiction, they are a good starting point to open up discussions on important issues. Learn how to summarize what someone else has said, or how to give an unbiased overview of past arguments. I'd say this book is essential for high school level writers, or even young college students, but not for creative writers whatsoever.

This nifty little book is a great tool for teaching composition to students who struggle with writing. The explanations and sentence templates clarify the structure of academic argument essays, and give students a foothold in writing. The compact size is a plus. I've recommended it to other teachers in my "Teaching Writing to Students with Learning Disabilities/ADHD" courses and workshops.

This was quite helpful while taking a journalism course. It takes a few minutes to understand the layout of the book to lookup things, but once you get it, it's easy.

I think this book helped raise me a letter grade in my course. Anyone taking a journalism course with a strict professor or planning on entering journalism should get a copy. My textbook had a reference in it, but it was quite small. With the low cost of this book, you can't go wrong.

If you're taking the course without an intent to go into journalism, check to see if you can use copies from the department first.

I have used the AP Stylebook for over 5 years. The entries are easy to find and easy to understand. Entries are brief and to the point. Are the seasons capitalized? How about north, south, east and west? Where do you place adverbs - before or after the verb, or someplace else? It's Web site - two words and the first one is capitalized. Internet is capitalized because it's a proper noun.

This book has the definitive answers. I don't work for a newspaper anymore, but, as a freelance writer, I miss this book more and more everyday. I must get my own. You will never be sorry that you bought this book. It will help you no matter what kind of writing you do.

I have YET to receive my book, its been weeks. I am very unhappy with amazon for the second time in a row.

The issue with this book is not that it is not relevant or useful. To the contrary, it is much too relevant to be left on the shelf. It needs to be published and indexed in an electronic format that can be quickly searched and accessed by writers under deadline.

The stylebook can be read front-to-back as a condensed general knowledge tome.

Makes a great gift, especially for people stumped by the basics of professional writing.

I got exactly what I wanted--an up-to-date version of a standard to replace the one I have had for years. I particularly appreciated the section on media law--many changes have taken place in the past few years, as the media landscape has changed. Journalists or writers will find knowledge in this area to be especially helpful.

The Bedford Handbook
I was satisfied with my order, and was delivered as it said

i ordered it and got it in a very good condition and in time. customer service is awesome. my blessings. keep up the good work.

this book is good for when you're writing essays and you can't remember a certain format or something and you can flip through the book real quick for examples of essays, outlines and thesis statements, although I wish i had the cd version of it so i can always have it with me instead of toting around the book. they could have made the format of the book better.

for instance i remember seeing a book called "A Writers reference" both are MLA format and one came from my community college and just the way its put together is better over all than this one.

Diana Hacker has an English comp book for any possible usage, she grinds them out every few years. My college requires me to use this book as a handbook. That is unfortunate.

Of course, this book provides a basic explanation of English composition, grammar, documentation, and document design and critical reading. However, the attempt in this case is to present something that is lighter than Rules for Writers, a full scale manual that is sufficient to use as the only text for a college composition course or as a full writers reference, and her Writers Reference, which is a good handy handbook that is inadequate as a full course book, but is great as a rule book to be used by students taking a course using another text.

Usuing this book, I have had to create supplements from web material for issues that I expect to be covered fully in a college handbook such as the requirements of formal writing.

To be sure there are interesting illustrations and graphics and like her other books, the text is intimately linked with the enormous online network that Hacker and her publishers have created. It is not an awful book to use, but I would prefer Rules for Writers, Jane E. Aaron's Litte Brown Handbook, or Writer's reference.

The Bedford Handbook is an excellent guide for anyone enrolled in a college English course. The book gives details on correct grammar usage, as well as descriptions of different essay styles. The book is very helpful to me with my English class.