For years, high school English teacher Sue Sommer self-published a photocopied edition of The Bugaboo Review for her students. Filled with common pitfalls of the English language, the confusing words and grammar issues that people continually stumble over, The Bugaboo Review is legendary among her students at California’s Novato High School. Parents and their friends request copies, and former students relate how they consistently turn to this valued reference after they graduate.
With the help of cartoon characters Bug and Boo, Sommer presents ideas and hints in this convenient reference. Offering special sections on issues she considers the worst offenders and sidebars on the most commonly misspelled or misused words, Sommer gives students and the grammar-curious the tools they need, without confusing jargon. Colorful examples and artful mnemonics encourage readers to learn, for example, that possessive nouns have apostrophes but possessive pronouns do not. They’ll master how to remember pronoun agreement, how to pronounce commonly mispronounced words, and the differences between similar words. The Bugaboo Review will become a cherished reference for those new to English, those who love grammar, and those who simply “know that they don’t know.”
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