Product Description

In the spirit of the bestselling Eats, Shoots & Leaves, this is an informative and highly amusing little book about bad English, full of examples of the incorrect grammar and usage that often pervades modern radio broadcasts, newspaper articles, classroom discussions and political speeches.

As the author explains, he does not take issue with the so-called "educated or uneducated" uses of the English language. Between You and I is more concerned with the particular form of English debasement we now have, which might be called the "half-educated" uses of language.

Readers may be surprised to find that much of what they thought was "bad" English is in fact perfectly good, and that what they have learned to think of as "good" English is sometimes ignorant, dishonest or just plain stupid.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #342896 in Books
• Published on: 2005-03-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 160 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9781402203312
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

From Publishers Weekly
Is it possible to "diagnose with a disease" (as in "She was diagnosed with cancer") or, for that matter, to receive a "free gift"? No on both counts, says Cochrane, another Brit with a sincere regard for the English language and a strong desire to correct those who mangle it. This brief, anecdotal, A-Z reference of common grammatical crimes covers mispronunciations, misuses, clichés and more. Though Cochrane welcomes the evolution of the English language, admitting change is inevitable, he argues that the preservation of the historical significance and origins of language is necessary in the formal and written word. Cochrane places blame for its consistent misuse on all individuals claiming to be educated. "Almost invariably the examples come from people who ought to know better...journalists on the 'quality' newspapers, politicians, public figures of all kinds, and, sadly, many teachers," he writes. Besides serving as a handy desktop reference, Cochrane's book, with its detailed descriptions and discrete wit, is sure to leave any reader, and even the most confident writers, with a greater appreciation of the English language.
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Review
"'The perfect guide for those who are interested in salvaging the standards of English... an enjoyable and informative read' Good Book Guide; 'Witty and provocative' Sunday Herald; 'A cool, disdainfully precise A-Z of linguistic misuse' Terence Blacker, Independent; 'A deeply-felt defence of proper English usage' Robert McCrum, Observer; 'An excellent Christmas gift' Writers' Forum"

About the Author
James Cochrane was educated at Cambridge University, UK. He has worked in publishing since joining Penguin Books UK as an editor in 1961. His previous books include Stipple, Wink and Gusset and the Chambers Dictionary Game Dictionary.

Customer Reviews

The Art of Misusing Words
I have to admit I enjoy reading slim volumes like this that focus on language, whether it's the misuse of commonly used words or untranslatable words from another culture or when to insert commas. In the spirit of Lynne Truss's "Eats, Shoots and Leaves" and Christopher Moore's "In Other Words", James Cochrane covers roughly two hundred words, phrases, and expressions that are frequently misused, mispronounced, or misspelled. In many cases, Cochrane, an editor at Penguin Books, gives real-world examples from people who really should know better: writers, journalists, broadcasters, and other public figures. Throughout, his style is light and readable. As usual with these types of books, he can come across as pedantic and prescriptive, but on the whole he gets the right tone to ingratiate the reader.

Cochrane arranges the book alphabetically, with a couple of paragraphs describing each entry and the common error attached to it. I received the most value from the sections highlighting frequently confused words. Cochrane tells the reader how to choose the correct term from pairs such as comprised and composed, discrete and discreet, flout and flaunt, who and whom, and even some you probably thought you understood like envy and jealousy. Other sections of value focus on his mission to stamp out the redundancy in expressions like free gift, ongoing situation, and at this moment in time. Another area of concern for the author is the misuse of plurals. He points out that bacterium is the singular form of bacteria, criterion of criteria, stratum of strata, phenomenon of phenomena and a new one for me, graffito for graffiti. There are some random jewels to be mined here, for example, the mistaken use of alibi to mean any excuse, rather than a plea that when the crime was committed the suspect was somewhere else; or the misuse of "epicenter" to mean simply a center, rather than the technical sense of the point on the Earth's surface immediately above the origin of an earthquake; or stating the oft-turned phrase of "a panacea for all ills" is a redundancy since a panacea is already a universal cure. Many more await the reader, and if you're like me, your paranoia will increase with what will come out of your mouth as a result. A genuinely entertaining read if not in the same league as the gold standard on such breeches, Stunk and White's "Elements of Style".

Easy read, fun, but not rigorous
This book was easy to read and quite fun. It has lots of sayings that make you say, "Ah-ha" when you realize something you hear all the time is wrong, or at least questionable. Some of the entries have some good research and background. I think everyone would like this book because there is enough variety that every person will find some phrases they also think are barbaric and others they'll disagree with the author about (oops, ended my sentence with a preposition, I think...). So lots of debate topics available and it will make you think.

However, the book is a bit shallow; some of the reasoning and "background" on some of the phrases seems suspect; it is certainly not a rigorously researched book and by no means complete or authoritative. It reads as if it was written by someone who knows English well, has some pet peeves, and is probably right about a lot of things, but didn't put a whole lot of effort into research for the book. I found _Eats, Shoots, and Leaves_ to be even better than this book. Wittier, if nothing else. Still, this book is fun and very quick read. Worth it if you don't pay full price and definitely worth it if you can get your friends to read it so you can argue with them! :-).

for word geeks and wannabe word geeks
Step aside, Lynne Truss, James Cochrane has taken center stage. Going beyond the ignorant scree of Truss, Cochrane provides clear rationales for correct word usage. One bemoans his "Losr Causes," but learns much about communication in this tiny book. The USA edition employs American spelling, which is appreciated. The only flaw is that good information gets buried, because there is no index.