Great Books

Asserting that one must first know the rules to break them, this classic reference book is an essential guide for students, teachers, editors, and writers. In this 1918 original edition, Strunk concentrates on specific questions of usage, the cultivation of good writing, and avoiding overwriting by making "every word tell." E. B. White, a writer at the New Yorker magazine who studied under Strunk, described this "little book" as a "forty-three-page summation of the case for cleanliness, accuracy, and brevity in the use of English." Newly designed and typeset by Waking Lion Press.

A masterpiece in the art of clear and concise writing, and an exemplar of the principles it explains.

You know the authors’ names. You recognize the title. You've probably used this book yourself. And now The Elements of Style–the most widely read and employed English style manual–is available in a specially bound 50th Anniversary Edition that offers the title's vast audience an opportunity to own a more durable and elegantly bound edition of this time-tested classic.Offering the same content as the Fourth Edition, revised in 1999, the new casebound 50th Anniversary Edition includes a brief overview of the book's illustrious history. Used extensively by individual writers as well as high school and college students of writing, it has conveyed the principles of English style to millions of readers. This new deluxe edition makes the perfect gift for writers of any age and ability level.     Fifty Years of Acclaim for The Elements of Style, by William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White                                                                                                                                                                                 “I first read Elements of Style during the summer before I went off to Exeter, and I still direct my students at Harvard to their definition about the difference between 'that' and 'which.'  It is the Bible for good, clear writing.”                         -- Henry Louis Gates Jr.   “For writers of all kinds and sizes the world begins and ends with Strunk and White’s Elements of Style. Only something to actually write about trumps the list of what is required to put words together in some kind of coherent way. I treasure its presence in my life and salute its fifty years of glory and accomplishment.”                         -- Jim Lehrer   “The Elements of Style remains an unwavering beacon of light in these grammatically troubled times.  I would be lost without it.”                         -- Ann Patchett   "To the extent I know how to write clearly at all, I probably taught myself while I was teaching others -- seventh graders, in Flint, Michigan, in 1967.  I taught them with a copy of Strunk & White lying in full view on my desk, sort of in the way the Gideons leave Bibles in cheap hotel rooms, as a way of saying to the hapless inhabitant: ‘In case your reckless ways should strand you here, there's help.’  S&W doesn't really teach you how to write, it just tantalizingly reminds you that there's an orderly way to go about it, that clarity's ever your ideal, but -- really -- it's all going to be up to you."                         -- Richard Ford     “The Elements of Style never seems to go out of date. Its counsel is sound and funny, wise and unpretentious. And while its precepts are a foundation of direct communication, Strunk and White do not insist on a way of writing beyond clear expression. The rest is up to the imagination, the intelligence within.”                         -- David Remnick, editor of The New Yorker    “It’s the toughness–the irreverence and implicit laughter–that attracted me to the little book when I was seventeen. I fell in love with Strunk & White’s loathing for cant and bloviation, the ruthless cutting of crap, jargon, and extra words. For me, that skeptical directness included a tacit permission by The Elements of Style to break its rules on occasion: an alloy of generosity in the blade, a grace I still admire and still learn from.”                         -- Robert Pinsky   “In the quest for clarity, one can have no better guides than Strunk and White. For me, their book has been invaluable and remains essential.”                         -- Dan Rather   "Eschew surplusage! A perfect book."                         --Jonathan Lethem   "Not until I started teaching writing and I reread The Elements of Style did I realize that most everything I would be teaching young writers, and everything I would be learning myself as a writer, was contained between the covers of this slim, elegant, wise little book."                         -- Julia Alvarez    “Strunk and White seared their way into my brain long ago, and I benefit from them daily.”                         -- Steven J. Dubner, co-author of Freakonomics   “Since high school, I have kept a copy of this book handy. That should be unnecessary. I should, by now, have fully internalized The Elements of Style. But sometimes I get entangled in a paragraph that refuses to be ‘clear, brief, bold.’ I dip back into The Elements of Style and am refreshed.      After Scott Simon interviewed me on NPR about whether the word ‘e-mail’ needs a hyphen (yes, it does), some listeners, including friends of mine, wondered why I had answered in the affirmative when asked, in passing, ‘Are you a drunken white man?’ Those listeners misheard. ‘Strunk and White man’ was what Scott said.”                         -- Roy Blount Jr.   “Strunk & White--writing's good-natured law firm--still contains enough sparkling good sense to clean up the whole bloviating blogosphere."                   -- Thomas Mallon    “I used Strunk -- that’s what we called it, Strunk -- as a student at Berkeley fifty years ago.  I didn't know that it was new, and that we were the first generation to be educated in The Elements of Style.  I got a firm foundation in the English language, learned to write basically, and could depict the realistic world.  Then I was able to become an impressionist and expressionist.”                    -- Maxine Hong Kingston    “Strunk and White's gigantic little book must be the most readable advice on writing ever written.  Side by side with Roget, Shakespeare, the Bible, and a dictionary, it's an essential for every writer's shelf.”                         -- X.J. Kennedy...

You know the authors' names. You recognize the title. You've probably used this book yourself. This is The Elements of Style, the classic style manual, now in a fourth edition. A new Foreword by Roger Angell reminds readers that the advice of Strunk & White is as valuable today as when it was first offered.This book's unique tone, wit and charm have conveyed the principles of English style to millions of readers. Use the fourth edition of "the little book" to make a big impact with writing.

A masterpiece in the art of clear and concise writing, and an exemplar of the principles it explains.

The only style manual ever to appear on bestseller lists has explained to millions of readers the basic principles of plain English. The book's mantra-make every word tell-is still on point. Whether seventeen or seventy, this much-loved classic, now in its fourth edition, will forever be the go-to guide when in need of a hint on how to make a turn of phrase clearer, or a reminder on how to enliven prose with the active voice. Kalman's exquisite illustrations give the revered work a jolt of new energy, making the learning experience more colorful and clear. The Elements of Style Illustrated will come to be known as the definitive, must-have edition.

Buy it, study it, enjoy it. It's as timeless as a book can be in our age of volubility. -The New York Times

Since the first edition was published in 1991, The Elements of Legal Style has established itself as the authoritative guide on all the major issues of writing style in law. Now its coverage has been expanded in this new edition, which features additional sections, many more examples, and a thoroughly researched appendix that contains 80 major statements on prose style what it is and how to attain it. Inspired by Strunk and White's The Elements of Style, this book clearly (often wittily) explains the full range of what legal writers need to know: mechanics, word choice, structure, and rhetoric, as well as all the special conventions that legal writers should follow in using headings, defined terms, quotations, and many other devices. The Elements of Legal Style, 2nd Edition is written for lawyers, law students, judges, and their law clerks--and for anyone who writes in and about the law. With broad experience as a practitioner, academic, and writing consultant, Bryan Garner knows firsthand where legal writing so often goes wrong, and he pays particular attention to these trouble spots.

The Elements of Style is the most comprehensive visual survey, period by period, feature by feature, of the styles that have had the greatest impact on interiors of American and British domestic architecture. Unsurpassed in its range of illustrations, this magnificent volume covers more than 500 years of architectural styles from Tudor to Post-Modern and includes a wealth of American and British vernacular styles. Everyone from owners of period houses, restorers, and architects to interior designers, do it-yourself homeowners, and all those interested in our building heritage will find this reference indispensable. More than 3,000 analytical drawings and historic engravings are included in this updated edition as well as 400 photographs in color and over 1,000 in black and white. These extraordinary images provide a systematic guide to the features appropriate for every part of a building, from the major components such as doors, windows, walls, floors, ceilings, and staircases to the small but important embellishments such as moldings and door hardware. At the heart of the book is a chronological treatment of the primary styles and periods of architectural design during the past 500 years. Each chapter begins with an illustrated essay, then looks in turn at individual features, from doors and windows to ironwork and woodwork. The usefulness of this book is further enriched by the inclusion of permanent or semipermanent fixtures such as lighting, kitchen stoves, and floor and wall coverings, as well as strictly architectural details. A useful system of quick reference, employing color-coded tabs keyed to each feature, enables the reader to trace how particular features evolved over time. And at the back of the book, separate chapters dealing with vernacular architecture are followed by a glossary and a fully updated directory of suppliers of authentic materials as well as period and reproduction features. For this new edition, a biographical directory of architects and architectural practices has been added. Compiled by a team of experts headed by Stephen Calloway and Elizabeth Cromley, The Elements of Style is the first book on architectural styles that is comprehensive, incredibly thorough, and accessible in its presentation of individual details. Equally invaluable for authentic period restoration or simply for saying to your contractor, "I want one like that" -- this definitive resource presents literally thousands of details.

"An impressive reference work." - Library Journal (on the 1997 edition) A richly detailed and easy-to-use reference to 500 years of architectural details and styles. Owners and potential buyers of period houses, restorers, architects, interior designers and historical preservationists will find this reference invaluable. The Elements of Style is the most comprehensive visual survey, period-by-period, feature-by-feature, of the styles that have had the greatest impact on interiors of American and British domestic architecture. Compiled by a team of experts, this is the first book on architectural styles that is comprehensive, incredibly thorough, and accessible in its presentation of individual details. This magnificent volume covers more than 500 years of architectural styles from Tudor to Post-Modern and includes American and British vernacular styles. First published in 1991 (with 150,000 copies sold), this new edition is expanded to include the most contemporary styles. Detailed illustrations include 3,000 analytical drawings and historic engravings, 400 photographs in color and 1,000 in black and white. The heart of The Elements of Style is a chronological survey of the primary styles and periods of architectural design. Each chapter begins with an illustrated essay, then covers in detail features such as: - Doors - Windows - Walls, floors and ceilings - Staircases - Ironwork and hardware - Woodwork and built-in furniture - Kitchen stoves and fireplaces - Essential period architectural details, and more. The book also includes: - A useful system of quick reference, employing color-coded tabs showing how particular features evolved over time, and - A fully updated resource list with contact information for locating suppliers of those design elements illustrated throughout the book. The Elements of Style is the essential reference for preservationists, architects, interior designers, owners of period homes, and historians.