Language columnist Barbara Wallraff, who we interview in this week's "Behind the Dictionary" feature, recommends these books on usage:

Garner's Modern American Usage, by Bryan A. Garner. "The best single book on the niceties of contemporary American usage."

Modern English Usage, by H.W. Fowler. "The 1st or 2nd edition (not the 3rd edition, Burchfield's Fowler's, which is an entirely different animal). A classic, and a pleasure to read."

The Careful Writer, by Theodore M. Bernstein, "among other usage books by Bernstein. Also classics."

Lapsing Into a Comma and The Elephants of Style, by Bill Walsh, "the Washington Post's very smart, no-nonsense copy chief."

The Language Instinct, by Steven Pinker. "Fascinating information about how language 'works.'"

Barbara Wallraff, the language expert featured in this week's "Behind the Dictionary," suggests:

Google News. "As discussed in the interview."

The OED Online. "Expensive, but I'd be lost without it."

The Linguist List, "for when you want a scientific perspective on language."

World Wide Words, "for accurate, intelligent word lore."

... and other nifty PowerPoint presentations on English usage are available for free from a website called the Guide to Grammar and Writing. If you or your students are interested in learning about "The English House of Commas" or "The Mighty Apostrophe" please click here.

Wait! If you do care if "I could care less" is a phrase misused -- or not -- then check out the Grammarphobia Blog. The site is run by a couple of authors who were once newspaper editors and who now weigh in on "hang" verses "hung," "one fell swoop," another grammatical conundrums. Care to check it out? Please click here.

Have a question about editing and style? These online resources can help:

Chicago Style Q & A

APA Style.org

University of Colorado Style Guide

The Good Grammar, Good Style Pages

If you Google the word "English," one of the top three results -- ahead of giants like the BBC Learning English homepage -- will be a humble but entertaining website called Common Errors in English. It's run by a professor at Washington State University named Paul Brians, a professor specializing in the history of ideas. "This is just a sideline for me," Paul says. But a sideline that has gained a loyal worldwide following since he launched the site in 1997. Paul has now come out with a handy book version of his website called Common Errors in English Usage. (And a daily calendar, too.) We talked to him about his work, and navigating language pitfalls.

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