Write It Right!

February 2012
Written By: 
Julie Flanagan

New book pokes fun at grammatical blunders

 

 

 

As a writer and editor (and just a neurotic person in general), I am overjoyed to find that I am not alone in my exasperation with people who still haven’t grasped how to use an apostrophe correctly or that your and you’re are different words. During my senior year of college, I nearly had daily panic attacks at a sign in my apartment’s parking garage warning me not to follow other cars “to” closely. I am not alone.

When Charleston resident Sharon Eliza Nichols started the Facebook group I Judge You When You Use Poor Grammar, she had no idea it would blossom into a community with more than 430,000 members who submitted around 8,000 photos of misspelled or ungrammatical signs. This is the material that eventually filled Nichols’ first book, I Judge You When You Use Poor Grammar. The collection was so successful, Nichols released a second volume, More Badder Grammar!, in November 2011 (St. Martin’s Griffin, $9.99).

Aside from fighting the good fight to save good grammar, Nichols’ new book is hilarious. I was literally laughing out loud, not only at the ridiculousness of the photo submissions, but at her witty comments accompanying each one. Breaking her book into categories such as “Skooled” and “In Other News,” Nichols doesn’t let any grammar violators off the hook.

One of my favorite submissions comes from the “Business as Usual” section and is a photo of a sign at a certain well-known drugstore. The sign lets customers know that “We can text you when your prescription’s are ready!!” “Please don’t. You clearly have other things to worry about,” Nichols muses in her caption. Another gem is from the “Questionable Intentions” section and claims “It’s hard to be humble when your perfect.” Oh, the irony.

Anyone who appreciates the nuances of English and has a good sense of humor will enjoy Nichols’ book. In a culture where to, too and two all become 2, it’s reassuring to see that people are still standing up for the use of correct grammar. And to those who don’t see the importance of preserving proper language, I’ll look on the bright side. You keep giving us grammarphiles some great material to laugh about.