New York Public Library Writer's Guide to Style and Usage

I have used this book professionally and personally for ten years and it is absolutely excellent in every way. It is well organized, clear, succinct, intuitive, and thorough. The current sharp decline in the importance placed on correct grammar and usage, which is essential to effective communication, could be curtailed if only everyone owned a copy (and would read it). Those horrific emails sent by intellectually and physically lazy persons should be intercepted as spam; they are at least as offensive.

I have a stack of grammar books at hand on my desk, from the classic Strunk & White's The Elements of Style to the witty and wise books of Patricia T. O'Conner, grammar grinch of the New York Times. None is so comprehensive and usable as the NY Public Library's guide. From welcome advice about "bias-free usage" to "the essential comma," the Library Guide gives down-to-earth and much-needed commentary about the problems writers face every day. My favorite section is Misued and Easily Confused Words, worth reading for its entertainment value alone. I've been a professional writer for over 30 years and only wish I could have had this volume with me all that time. I've tried the rest, this is the best. I just bought my son, who is working on his first book, a copy for Christmas.

As a professional writer and editor I have found this book to be the best resource for my everyday style and usage quandries. (And I have used several style guides.) It has been a great help in the last couple of months as I have been writing an editorial style guide for my employer. It's easy to navigate and provides information that can be understood by those of us who aren't rocket scientists. It also explains style and grammar issues and gives real-life examples.