Play Misty for Me

I don't mean to frighten anyone with the 1970's Clint Eastwood movie reference, particulary as it was the forerunner of Fatal Attraction, but my eyes are getting misty.

I just ran into a former student who has informed me that Strunk and White's The Elements of Style is her favorite grammar book. (Because we are talking about grammar, those who have read the blog know that I haven't figured out how to use an underline in my posts and therefore resort to italics instead.) My joy is twofold. First, in order to have a favorite grammar book, one must like more than one. Second, she chose the right book.

Gosh, it makes me want to proofread my previous posts. I might even fix that sentence I started with a conjunction. Anyway, here's part of a handout I give my students as they prepare to write their college essays:

"Read Strunk and White’s The Elements of Style for answers to all of your grammar and style questions. Staple it to your uniform. Sleep with it under your pillow. It’s under one hundred pages long, paperback, less than ten bucks and one of the best investments you can make. .."

I feel all warm and fuzzy inside knowing that yet another crusader is venturing forth to omit needless words and prefer "thus" to "thusly."