筆者目前執教美國College of DuPage，教授文學課程與英文寫作，在大學任教多年的經驗，讓我深深覺得英文句型組合練習對於造句和作文頗為重要。根據最近一、二十年的試驗，英語句型組合練習確實有助於句法的改善，其效果往往超乎一般所謂捷徑英文或其他速成方法。
筆者在英文自序中曾提及，一篇短文的生動與否，決定於句子的長短變化和句型結構的交互使用，而句型的多樣化又是最重要的因素。寫作本來就是將句子組合成有意義的單位，稱為paragraph（段落）。但是寫出的句子若是千篇一律，以主詞開頭，動詞隨之，句號結束，豈不味同嚼蠟？例如：“I love you. You love me. We get married.”讀來像機器運轉，聲音單調，令人昏昏欲睡。
在未讀本書之前，請讀者先自我測驗一下，試看下列十一個句子： 1. The students were very quiet. 2. The students stared at their books. 3. The students’ hands were folded. 4. The hands were in their laps. 5. The teacher began to sit down. 6. The jump was sudden. 7. The jump was to his feet. 8. The teacher’s face turned red. 9. The red face was followed by rage. 10. One hand rubbed his bottom. 11. The bottom was tack-stung.
Staring at their books, the students were very quiet, their hands folded in their laps. The teacher began to sit down and suddenly jumped to his feet, his face bright with rage, one hand rubbing his tack-stung bottom.
