The co-op bookstore for avid readers
Book Cover for: Sleeping Dogs Don't Lay: Practical Advice for the Grammatically Challenged*and That's No Lie, Richard Lederer

Sleeping Dogs Don't Lay: Practical Advice for the Grammatically Challenged*and That's No Lie

Richard Lederer

For years Richard Lederer has entertained fans of the English language with his keen insights, commonsense advice, and witty patter. Now Lederer and Richard Dowis take readers on another journey through our most "wiggy" of languages. How many times have we all heard the word "viable" used in company meetings? The authors show us how "viable" was at one time extracted from medical books, where it is actually defined as "capable of living," and placed into our consumer marketplace. Then there is confusion between "lay" and "lie," which the authors clear up once and for all. These and dozens of delightful examples make this book pure pleasure for language buffs, writers, and teachers.

Book Details

  • Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
  • Publish Date: Apr 11st, 2001
  • Pages: 224
  • Language: English
  • Edition: undefined - undefined
  • Dimensions: 8.40in - 5.50in - 0.80in - 0.60lb
  • EAN: 9780312263942
  • Categories: Grammar & PunctuationLinguistics - EtymologyLinguistics - Semantics

About the Author

Lederer, Richard: -

Richard Lederer is the author of a shelf of books on language and grammar, including, most recently, The Bride of Anguished English. He cohosts weekly radio program on NPR in San Diego, and speaks throughout the country. He lives in San Diego, California.

Dowis, Richard: -

Richard Dowis is president for the Society of the Preservation of English Language and Literature. He is author of The Lost Art of the Great Speech and, with Richard Lederer, the coauthor of The Write Way. He lives in Waleska, Georgia.

McLean, Jim: - Jim McLean is a freelance artist / illustrator based in Chicago, Illinois. He is a graduate of Southern Illinois University with a BA in Fine Art, and he studied advertising art and design at American Academy of Art in Chicago.

More books by Richard Lederer

Book Cover for: Anguished English: An Anthology of Accidental Assaults on the English Language [Standard Large Print 16 Pt Edition], Richard Lederer
Book Cover for: American History for Everyone: The Fascinating Story of Our Great Nation, Richard Lederer
Book Cover for: Anguished English: An Anthology of Accidental Assualts Upon Our Language, Richard Lederer
Book Cover for: The Play of Words, Richard Lederer
Book Cover for: The Bride of Anguished English: A Bonanza of Bloopers, Blunders, Botches, and Boo-Boos, Richard Lederer
Book Cover for: Crazy English, Richard Lederer
Book Cover for: A Treasury for Cat Lovers: Wit and Wisdom, Information and Inspiration about, Richard Lederer
Book Cover for: Richard Lederer's Ultimate Book of Literary Trivia, Richard Lederer
Book Cover for: Word Wizard: Super Bloopers, Rich Reflections, and Other Acts of Word Magic, Richard Lederer
Book Cover for: Richard Lederer's Classic Literary Trivia: From Mythology, Shakespeare, and the Bible [Standard Large Print 16 Pt Edition], Richard Lederer
Book Cover for: More Anguished English: An Expose of Embarrassing Excruciating, and Egregious Errors in English, Richard Lederer
Book Cover for: A Treasury for Dog Lovers: Wit and Wisdom, Information and Inspiration about, Richard Lederer
Book Cover for: Pun and Games: Jokes, Riddles, Daffynitions, Tairy Fales, Rhymes, and More Word Play for Kids, Richard Lederer
Book Cover for: A Pleasury of Word and Phrase Origins, Richard Lederer
Book Cover for: So That's What It Means!: Illuminating Stories about Word Histories and Mysteries, Richard Lederer
Book Cover for: Lederer's Language & Laughter, Richard Lederer

Praise for this book

"It's a fun read, and you'll learn something." --Gary Kaufman, Salon

"Lederer's many fans won't be disappointed...mixing humor with rigor, he and coauthor Dowis have created a grammar guide for those who like their split infinitives with a side of laughter." --Library Journal

"[An] offbeat, enlightening guide to proper English usage." --Publishers Weekly