The Return of the Grammar Guru

Louis and Mr. Walters are back! Presented in the form of a Socratic dialogue, just like its predecessor, *The Return of the Grammar Guru* aims to both educate and entertain its readers through back-and-forth conversations between the Grammar Guru—a retired linguistics professor who runs a pub near the university campus—and Louis, an aspiring English teacher with an insatiable thirst for grammatical knowledge and beer. Through a series of weekly encounters with the Guru, Louis learns about:

• The difference between the infinitive and the gerund, as in "He tried to be nice to his boss" and "He tried being nice to his boss.".
• The use of articles in English, which can make the difference between "He admired Picasso" and "He admired the Picasso.".
• The difference between "Didn't you bring any beer?" and "Didn't you bring some beer?"
• The contrast between bare noun and genitive constructions, as in “Someone stole our car tires” and “Someone stole our car’s tires.”.
• The use of demonstratives in "There was this guy walking down the street" and "There was that guy walking down the street.".
• The effect of adverb position on meaning, as illustrated by the difference between “She shared her experience generously” and “She generously shared her experience.”.
• The subtle difference between "Without a job, Rob would be happy" and "Without a job, would Rob be happy?".

Rather than overwhelm his listeners with endless rules, the Guru brings grammar to life by focusing on the meaning of the various grammatical forms. The book also includes a series of meaning-based exercises that allow readers to test their knowledge of the forms discussed in the book.