Rating: 
Summary: Required Reading for All of Us
Review: "Our children need to 'score' better in math and science." Whenever I hear this plaintive mantra so common in both Canada and the U.S.A. nowadays, I want to retort with a primal scream: LET THEM BECOME LITERATE FIRST! This excellent reference book belongs in every student's backpack, in every home, in every office. (In a perfect world, every English teacher would be required to memorize it.)
Rating: 
Summary: If you are challenged by grammar, start here.
Review: I'm sure my review will contain grammatical errors - alas, I did not learn as much as I could have from this book. But that is my fault, not the fault of the book, for I have always found grammar to be nearly incomprehensable. In my quest to improve my grammar, I have read a number of books, and none have been as useful and well-written as Sleeping Dogs Don't Lay. Sleeping Dogs contains something for everyone: Several chapters are devoted to basic grammatical mechanics, such as the I/me conundrum, alumnus/alumni, etc. One chapter goes through popular misspelled words ("irregardless") and misused words ("head honcho", "graduate college") and explains, in a paragraph each, why the usage is wrong and what the proper usage was. The book goes through about 12 grammatical myths, such as the popular "never end a sentence with a preposition". There are two chapters on punctuation. And throughout the book, there are actual examples of really bad grammar which the authors found in newspapers, news magazines, professional papers, and best of all - comic strips. If grammar is not your forte ("fort"), this is a great book for you.
Rating:
Summary: I was eager, not anxious to read this book.
Review: It was my misfortune to grow up in an educational era that lacked foucs on grammar. My papers were always returned with more red corrections than black type; however, no explaination was given to prevent further (not farther) error.Sleeping Dogs Don't Lay was the first step in my grammatical journey. It was fun, and easy to follow. I recommend it to anyone who wants to polish up on their grammar usage, or who just wants a basic grammar foundation to work from.
Rating:
Summary: A higly entertaining and helpful read
Review: The authors' descriptions of common pitfalls and their advice on how to avoid making oft-repeated errors are extremely helpful, and the good humor and high spirits make the much-needed lessons all the more memorable. I highly recommend this book for anyone who wishes to treat the language with the knowledge and respect it deserves.
Rating: 
Summary: entertainingly innacurate
Review: The book is entertaining, and as long as you already know the correct use of the English language, you might enjoy the read. The author presents us with a self assured "I am right, and PLBPLBLB on those who may disagree..." type of attitude, which would be OK if only the author was correct. But the book is full of errors and opinions, along with correct and accurate information. So, if you can sort it out yourself, you're all set. Otherwise, I'd find some more qualified authors work to base my education on.
Rating:
Summary: Entertaining Language Guide
Review: This book contains many useful and entertaining snippets of English language usage (none of which are used in this review). The topics range from busting language myths to clearing up common word misuses. Personally, I found the Ten Minute Writing Lesson to be the most helpful chapter (again, none of the tips are employed here).
Overall, it is an entertaining way to beef-up your writting.
Rating: 
Summary: Entertaining and practical approach, but marred by error.
Review: This book has an entertaining approach and is very readable. However I was very distressed at the authors' errors, really inexcusable given the intent of the book. For example, (pg9) in the sentence, "Let him who is without sin cast the first stone," the author states that "Who is without sin" is a restrictive clause describing "who." Since when can a clause modify part of itself? The clause modifies the word "him." And on the next page, the author states that the gerund "playing" is the object of the verb phrase "disapproved of." When, may I ask, did "of" turn into a verb? In the example sentence,"The conductor disapproved of the tuba player's chewing betel nut during the concert," the gerund "chewing" is actually the object of the preposition "of." And the author should know better. On pg 80, in a section on proper word choice, "exhort" is misspelled as "exort." On page 195 he confuses a compound predicate with a dependent clause. Pointing out such errors may be nit-picking, but in a book about grammar, the grammar jolly well better be correct.
Rating:
Summary: Not just for the grammatically challenged
Review: This is an instructional book with a sense of humor. Rather than be lulled to sleep with rules, this book wittily explains some of the finer points of writing. Tips abound in this volume of insight into the world of grammar. A fair part of this book is focused on commonly confused words. Knowing the difference in the words will help any writer overcome the false confidence that spell-check and grammar-check give. This book is not just about grammar. The authors included a section on improving spelling and a section on improving writing in general. Each is explained well and has examples. Another feature of this book worth mentioning is the quizzes given. The answers are in the back, which allows the readers to test their knowledge. Although the wording is easy to follow, beginners may not get the most out of this book unless they are already familiar with the parts of speech. As a reference for those wanting to upgrade their writing, this fits the bill. I would recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Not just for the grammatically challenged
Review: This is an instructional book with a sense of humor. Rather than be lulled to sleep with rules, this book wittily explains some of the finer points of writing. Tips abound in this volume of insight into the world of grammar. A fair part of this book is focused on commonly confused words. Knowing the difference in the words will help any writer overcome the false confidence that spell-check and grammar-check give. This book is not just about grammar. The authors included a section on improving spelling and a section on improving writing in general. Each is explained well and has examples. Another feature of this book worth mentioning is the quizzes given. The answers are in the back, which allows the readers to test their knowledge. Although the wording is easy to follow, beginners may not get the most out of this book unless they are already familiar with the parts of speech. As a reference for those wanting to upgrade their writing, this fits the bill. I would recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: strange book
Review: This is not really a book about grammar; for example, if you misuse the word "literally" or "penultimate" because who don't know what it means, well, bob's your uncle, but you are not struggling with grammar. The book has a lot of examples like these, but doesn't address many of the really difficult grammatical mistakes that I make and that I hear. I am extremely surprised, for example, that the author does not mention the use of "Fred and I" when "Fred and me" should be used, in for example "Jane played golf with Fred and me". Strangely, the author does mention the use of "myself" in place of "me" (thus, "Jane played golf with Fred and myself") but seems to think people say "myself" because they feel it pretentious to say "me". I believe they say "myself" because they are not sure if "me" or "I" is correct. Maybe it's just I, but me hear people say "with Fred and I" all the time now, and it's driving I crazy, believe you myself.
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