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As in title I am interested in getting interested how English grammar (as a whole) could benefit my English communication skills. So to emphasize, I don't look for a 100% complete ultra deep grammar book. All I am looking for is a book to get me interested and convince me (with real life examples) that (obviously) a better understanding of English grammar would benefit my English communication skills.

Thank you for your recommendations.

mechanicious
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    If you are a native speaker, then knowing grammar may or may not benefit your communication skills. That depends on how they are now and what kind of improvement you're looking for. It can; I can tell you that. I used to give courses in grammar and writing, and it worked just fine for many people. But not for others, which is not surprising, since everybody learns reading and writing in their own individual way, like driving, and there's a vast amount of individual variation. That's why there's no best way to teach children to read, nor any best age. – John Lawler Nov 02 '15 at 20:50
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    @JohnLawler Thank you for your reply. To start off, I am not a native English speaker. I am looking forward to sharpen my English grammar to improve my deductive skills of interpreting texts of academic origin. I would like to use a formal system like English grammar, to be able to manipulate writing structures (like sentences) etc. according to a specific formal set of rules. But instead of jumping right into it, I would like to go through a book which would help me build up enough intuition about English grammar and English in general first, enabling me to follow more sophisticated books. – mechanicious Nov 02 '15 at 21:00
  • Maybe better asked in http://ell.stackexchange.com – GEdgar Nov 02 '15 at 21:04

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There are six main types of English grammar books:

  1. Those written for native speakers to allow them to check that they are 'following the rules' correctly, e.g. Oxford A-Z of English Usage by Jeremy Butterfield

  2. Grammar books for native speakers who need to check their writing, e.g. The Only Grammar & Style Workbook You'll Ever Need: A One-Stop Practice and Exercise Book for Perfect Writing by Susan Thurman

  3. Academic grammar books for linguists, such as A University Grammar of English by Randolph Quirk and Sidney Greenbaum (I think you definitely don't want this one!)

  4. Light-hearted guides written mainly for the entertainment of native speakers but which may not be comprehensive enough for you, like My Grammar and I (Or Should That Be 'Me'?): Old-School Ways to Sharpen Your English by Caroline Taggart

  5. Practical guides for non-native speakers of English, such as Practical English Usage by Michael Swan

  6. Guides that attempt to inject interest in grammar as a subject, usually written for native speakers, such as:

    English Grammar for Dummies by Lesley J. Ward

    The Glamour of Grammar: A Guide to the Magic and Mystery of Practical English by Roy Peter Clark

I'd suggest looking at the titles under no 5 and 6.

T. Ioca
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  • There are more than six different approaches to the study of grammar, so I don't see how there can be just six types of books on the subject. And you fail to mention the sad fact that some books on grammar are laced with misconceptions. 'It's us must never be used.' 'Never split an infinitive.' 'Never end a sentence with a preposition.' 'Never use a sentence fragment.' 'This is an adjective.' – Edwin Ashworth Nov 03 '15 at 00:50
  • I wasn't talking about approaches to grammar as a subject, but typical categories of grammar book, to help the OP identify what he might find most useful and which types to avoid. There are a LOT of books out there and perhaps a better understanding of why they are written and their intended audience will assist him. I am sure there are more than 6 categories too, but I think that is enough to give him a quick overview. Your point about books laced with misconceptions is well taken and would fall under category 4. /me shivers ;-) – T. Ioca Nov 03 '15 at 10:31
  • By no means entirely, sadly. I'd even caution readers about blindly accepting all that is written in CGEL as gospel / the best treatment available at present. – Edwin Ashworth Nov 03 '15 at 12:18