Study good writing. All may not agree but the older works by Stevenson, and other authors of the late 1800 and early 1900 when people really wrote good English will help you a lot. I might also suggest the 4 books – Hobbit and Rings. Not for the story but for the way they are written. The language is pure English and really gives a sense of the dignity of the language and the use of words to describe things – objects and events. Some of the Clancy books as well. The big fat ones are very well written. Red Rabbit is not the best of his work. Read some Robert Frost poetry as well. That is some really fine reading. Mark Twain’s “Life On The Mississippi” and other stories are good. “Grapes of Wrath” and all that Authors works, Joseph Conrad wrote some wonderful stories.

One thing I notice as a read many questions on this site – About half the people asking questions cannot write clear English. In a hiring situation, when the applicant explains why they want the job in 100 words or less, these people would not be hired because they cannot clearly express themselves. Communication is the fundamental priority of society. Without the ability to read, write and comprehend language people simply cannot live in a civilized and organized society.

Before the advent of TV and computer games people read a lot. Newspapers, magazines and books. They spoke much better, more fluently, precisely and clearly. There was far less use of slang and “Ya Know” People could state their thoughts and leave the listener without doubt as the their meaning. As evidenced by the entries and asnwers here, the level of English today is sadly deficient in both content and clarity.

Read – Read – Read. Books are the gateways to knowledge and knowledge is power.

AP English Books
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5 steps to a 5 or Princeton Review’s Cracking the AP exam are good. Just make sure you get the right one. There’s AP english language and AP english literature.