A Tom's book

Question

Hello, teachers, Here is an interesting topic. In my grammar book, although 'a Tom's book' is wrong, a children's book is okay and it says 'a Tom's book' should be 'a book of Tom's'. So what I would like to know is although phrase structures are the same, some are wrong in English and what my grammar book says  is right to native English speakers? Thank you in advance as usual.

Enoon · Accepted Answer

Your grammar book is right about "a Tom's book", but I would say that "one of Tom's books" is more usual than "a book of Tom's", and that "a book of Tom's" is considered informal by some people.

Anonymous · Answer

Thank you. Then, how about 'a children's book'? It is okay to use?

Enoon · Answer

Yes, but be aware that a children's book is a book written to be read by children. A child's book is one owned by a child (probably, I admit, also a children's book).

Anonymous · Answer

A child's book is one owned by a child (probably, I admit, also a children's book).

Thank you so much, but I cannot understand 'a child's book' means 'one owned by a child' because if it is intended to mean it, it should be 'a book of a child's' like you said before and I think the meaning of 'a child's book' is the same with that of a children's book. What do you think? Thank you for helping me and taking your time.

Enoon · Answer

AnonymousI cannot understand 'a child's book' means 'one owned by a child' because if it is intended to mean it, it should be 'a book of a child's' like you said before and I think the meaning of 'a child's book' is the same with that of a children's book. What do you think? Thank you for helping me and taking your time.

I guess I did oversimplify, because I didn't want to give you niggling exceptions when you were trying to grasp fundamentals. Yes, "a child's book" can be construed as "a children's book", the way we can have "a man's world", but I would expect that only pejoratively, for example, "The writer's thinking is so simplistic that it reads more like a child's book than an adult's." Normally, though I'd expect "Washed up on the shore after the cruise ship sank were nothing but a woman's shoe and a child's book."

You can't have "a book of a child's". That is not English. That formula only works with names. Sally's book is a book of Sally's. A toddler's book is not a book of a toddler's.

A Tom's book

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