Literally, the Best Language Book Ever: Annoying Words and Abused Phrases You Should Never Use Again

by Paul Yeager

Book Overview

By turns gleefully precise and happily contrarian, this is a highly opinionated guide to better communication. In Literally, the Best Language Book Ever , author Paul Yeager attacks with a linguistic scalpel the illogical expressions and misappropriated meanings that are so commonplace and annoying. Identifying hundreds of common language miscues, Yeager provides an astute look at the world of words and how we abuse them every day. For the grammar...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0399534237
• ISBN13: 9780399534232
• Release Date: May 2008
• Publisher: Tarcherperigee
• Length: 208 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.7" x 7.3"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

Cool!

This book is cool! Yup, I'm guilty as hell in abusing the English language; but Mr. Yeager at least makes me think twice when speaking or writing. Don't take the book too seriously. As Yeager notes he too is guilty of misuse. What he is saying is we should all simply make more of an effort to choose a better word rather than take the easy way out. I'm in the communications business and the one phrase we seem to use often is "no one here is communicating". "Literally The Best Language Book Ever" should be on everyone's desk.

Funny and Smart

I saw the table of contents for this book on [...] (the author's site), which was quite helpful because it gave me a better idea of what to expect. The author's writing style is clever and to the point, sometimes irreverent, and insightful and easy to read. I was surprised to see a reviewer say that it's great for students and catch-phrase-prone people but that there's not much more here than a "smug bit of fun" for those of us who already know more. I think this book is for anyone who's interested in the English language, wants to improve skills, or wants to commiserate about the sorry state of our cliché-stuffed conversations. How many times do we hear people say `me and my brother went to the store' instead of the grammatically correct `my brother and I went' or hear our boss say the sneaky "why don't you go ahead and..." rather than make a direct request or hear someone use "literally" when giving a figurative example. If making conscious word choices is being a grammar or language snob, then you may gleefully count me in. This is not a book on how to diagram sentences or construct a paragraph. This is a book that targets specific grammar and language errors and humorously explains why they're either wrong or, when they're not technically wrong, why they're inappropriate or overused. I have added it to my collection of language favorites!

A Reading Specialist and English Teacher With 31 Years of Experience

Mr. Yeager has written a stunning language book that combines the method that people use, or misuse, in the English language, together with a light comedic tone. I am a Reading Specialist, and an English teacher at a Community College. My students lack the basic grammar and communication skills that Mr. Yeager refers to in his book. These specific skills are imperative in being a successful writer, as well as having the ability to speak in an articulate manner. This author has a splendid way of explaining how unneccessary and how preposterous it sounds when we write, or when we speak using cliches,or as the author points out,"The need for melodrama in our language," by using an excessive amount of adjectives and/or verbs to embellish what began as a simple thought that we wanted to share with someone else. The comedic tone throughout this book, makes reading it an entertaining and effortless experience. I heard myself chuckling as I was reading because I am guilty of using the "annoying words and abused phrases" that the author suggests "should never" be used again. This is definitely one of the finest language books that I have read in a very long time!!

Literally, The Best Language Book Ever

I bought this book after hearing the author go off on a funny rant about the word "issue" during a radio interview. When exactly DID "issue" stop meaning "topic" and become yet another synonym for "problem"? It was this Andy-Rooney-with-a-sense-of-humor approach to language that sold me on "Literally, the Best Language Book Ever: Annoying Words and Abused Phrases You Should Never Use Again." The book covers hundreds of communication missteps, but deals with each one in an easily digested 1-3 paragraphs. The tone is lighthearted, but the importance of clear communication is never trivialized. It's probably the easiest and most enjoyable book about language that I've read.

Face it, we are all guilty. We are human and can not be right 110% of the time.

When I first saw the book advertised, I made a list of the phrases and comments I thought would be covered. While not a comprehensive listing, the author really hit a home run with the breadth of comments. Some of the offending statement do make commentary more colorful but typically, they add words without understanding whether their usage is really critical to the meaning. In a way, this is using the extreme form of euphemisms and, by virtue of doing so, obscuring the meaning of the statement being made. The book does not seem intended to be deeply thought provoking and, while I did not agree with everything, I did find myself strongly agreeing with quite a few of his observations. It can be read quickly in one sitting or can be used to provide shorter, entertaining breaks in your day. Many of these phrases are just an example of our need to be constantly talking -- constantly making noise in an attempt to turn the right phrase to make us appear glib and entertaining. I enjoyed the author taking apart language as it is commonly used. Was that literally or figuratively taking apart? Read it and decide which is correct.