While exploring a used bookstore this past weekend, I came across a collection of college English textbooks. It occured to me that my Hodges' Harbrace College Handbook, 7th ed. is the only text that I still have from my college days. And I still use it.

English grammar and usage doesn't change much from year to year, but it does change a little, and it's been a lot of years since I took my freshman English class. They're up to the 15th edition of my Harbrace Handbook now. Of course, if nothing changed, they wouldn't need to keep updating it, right? Well, actually, the frequent revisions to expensive college texts are a scam, to keep students buying new copies instead of recycling last year's edition, but that's another story.

I picked up a copy of The Holt Handbook for $4.00. This is the fourth edition, copyright 1995. I think the current version is the sixth edition, but for four bucks, I can be a little out of date.

So, I should be able to toss out my Harbrace Handbook now, right? Somehow, the red book has some sentimental baggage attached to it. I have plenty of grammer guides (New York Public Library Writer's Guide to Style & Usage, Words Into Type, Elements Of Style) but this is the one I think of as my grammar book. Sigh. I'll have to keep both.

Throw another book on the pile.