Harry Evans has edited everything from the urgent files of battlefield reporters to the complex thought processes of Henry Kissinger. He's even been knighted for his services to journalism. In DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?, he brings his indispensable insight to us all in his definite guide to writing well. The right words are oxygen to our ideas, but the digital era, with all of its TTYL, LMK, and WTF, has been cutting off that oxygen flow. The compulsion...

Explains the meanings and origins of numerous cliches and common expressions.

A guide to more than 3,500 cliches explains the meanings of such phrases as "give the devil his due," and "gild the lily," and traces the history of these expressions.

The English language is a battlefield. Since the age of Shakespeare, arguments over correct usage have been bitter, and have always really been about contesting values--morality, politics, and class. "The Language Wars" examines the present state of the conflict, its history, and its future. Above all, it uses the past as a way of illuminating the present.