English Grammar Bootcamp is a 2016 Great Courses publication.

Dr. Anne Curzan is a member of the American Heritage Dictionary Usage Panel and is a professor at the University of Michigan.

My parents, who are in their eighties, love to keep their minds sharp by taking classes from Great Courses. They ranted and raved about this course so often, I decided to see what all the fuss was about.

The first thing I need to mention is that the title might be a little misleading. This is not a tough, ‘Grammar Police’ exercise course.

It is much more relaxed than the title suggests, and anyone, no matter what your level of grammar knowledge or skill might be, can learn from this course.

The most fascinating part of the course is the way the English language has evolved and continues to evolve. The difference in the way we speak and the way we write, is also a common thread, which was especially helpful to me.

I would never in a million years consider myself knowledgeable enough to call myself a grammar geek, and yes, there have been times when I felt a bit resentful of those who go about correcting my grammar; however, I still felt right at home in this grammar geek hangout.

I had fun discussing the class with my parents, who then presented me with an American Heritage Dictionary for Christmas. It weighs about ten pounds and I LOVE it. Only a grammar geek would enjoy reading a dictionary. So, if there is hope for me, there is hope for anyone else who has struggled with grammar and punctuation.

I recommend this course to anyone who thinks they are an aficionado, even if it is just to brush up on your grammar. But, this course might also help you to relax a little more and lose that offensive, strident tone you might not realize you inhabit.

I also recommend it to those who are not grammar geeks because the course proves how fun English grammar can be and points out many inconsistencies, perhaps offering up just a little vindication.

Overall, I enjoyed watching these short lessons when I had the chance. They are only thirty minute lectures, so it's easy to find time for them.

Sometimes I watched the same course twice, and others I fast-forwarded through.

I often found Dr. Anne to be amusing and her enthusiasm for English Grammar is contagious.

4.5 stars

*I viewed this on video streaming - some libraries have copies of this course too, and of course, one can purchase the DVDs through Great Courses. ( )

I’ve taken a star away, which seems unfair, simply because this is only available as an audible book, and so often I wanted to mark a passage to refer to it later. It is possible to mark passages, but not easy to refer to them later!

But overall, I did enjoy the book, and I did get a lot out of it.

I took another half star away because I strongly disagreed with her presentation of possessive apostrophes. It is NOT correct to write “the Jones’ mailbox “ I am heartily sick of having to correct autocorrect each time I wish to write “I always bowl on Wednesdays) because there is nothing inherently possessive about my Wednesday bowling schedule. The Jones family is not plural—that is just how they spell their name. ( )