HAVE YOU EATEN GRANDMA? Or, the Life-Saving Importance of Correct Punctuation, Grammar, and Good English

No one but Gyles Brandreth could write and narrate such an entertaining guide to the idiosyncrasies of the English language. The focus is on British and American English, especially clarifying differences that are sometimes quite amusing. Brandreth's sparkling style is more conversational than scholarly. Hearing his diverse accents as he demonstrates the origins of various words is impressive and frequently helps with uncertain pronunciations. The audiobook includes discussions of punctuation, spelling, grammar, and vocabulary. Brandreth is up-to-the-minute with vocabulary and facetiously enumerates recent words that he dislikes such as "24/7" and "back in the day." Most enjoyable is his demonstration of Cockney rhyming slang, while his clear explanations of complex grammar rules are very helpful. The inclusive book is greatly enhanced by the audio format. S.G.B. © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine [Published: SEPTEMBER 2019]