The Oxford Dictionary for Writers and Editors Book

For those familiar with the first edition of 1981, this second edition will come as something of a shock. No longer is the book the size to slip into a pocket, or perch on that rare space on your desk. The pages are now three times bigger, but what has been lost in convenience has been balanced by greater coverage and easier use, so that someone wanting to check the spelling of blameable now gets an entry reading "blameable not blamable (US)", rather than an instruction to "see -able". The Oxford University Press way, given here, is not the only way of doing things. Other publishers have other preferences, particularly for such things as spellings in -ise or -ize, but what this book will give you is a guide to a set of rules on when to hyphenate or combine words (use "blacklist" for the noun, not "black list" as recommended in the first edition); on doubtful or variable spellings ("gettable" not "getable"); the punctuation of abbreviations; dates and spellings of proper names, and all those other little things that are so difficult to be consistent about when writing. It is also an invaluable guide to words that are often confused such as biannual "twice every year, every six months" and biennial "every two years". This edition also keeps its charm for the browser, and is full of surprising, editor-confusing terms such as Aelia Laelia "an insoluble riddle" and pickelhaube "a German spiked infantry helmet". --Julia CresswellRead More