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4.5
What I like about this book:For anyone learning English as a Second Language, or anyone who has to teach it, this book is indispensable. It covers issues of usage, not grammar (eg: When is the present perfect tense used, not how to form it.) It is designed for international students etc. as can be seen in the entries on 'false friends' like 'sympathetic' with reference to other European languages. I love the way Swan deals with language as it is actually used (he weighs in on the who/whom debate by giving details on what people do say, rather than what they ought. Other good features include a list of swear-words with a rating to help give an indication of their strength. As a native English speaker, I too have found this book very useful (it is slowly teaching me the monstrous spelling rule and irregularities of the English language).What I dislike about this book:Can't fault it. Perhaps the SMS abbreviations are quite dated even a couple of years on. But documenting in print youth abbreviations in Email/SMS etc. are a problem with no solution.Where to from here:'Practical' 'English' Usage'. It does everything it says on the box, and does it well. If that is what you need, this is the book you need.
