Book Review: The Elements of Style Illustrated

If you last read The Elements of Style [ISBN 9781594200694, The Penguin Press] years ago and would most likely not read it from cover to cover again, this reissue of the book with illustrations can draw you back to the text—a good thing, since rereading the material is most useful. The advice on writing still applies. The illustrations are zany and welcome, making the reader stop and think more about the material. For example, the book states, “enclose parenthetical expressions between commas.” The accompanying example sentence is “the best way to see a country, unless you are pressed for time, is by foot.” An accompanying illustration shows people on a rock at the top of a mountain. It would take many words to explain the illustration. The idea is that these people could arrive at this mountain top in one way—by foot.

About the illustrator
The publisher of the book, Penguin Group, provides following information about the illustrator:

”Maira Kalman is acknowledged by the E. B. White estate as the single artist trusted to illustrate the revered The Elements of Style. She is the offbeat and wildly talented illustrator of 12 children’s books, numerous covers for The New Yorker magazine, fabrics for the fashion designers Isaac Mizrahi and Kate Spade, watches and accessories for the Museum of Modern Art, and a mural at the elegant Wavehill estate in Riverdale, among other projects. Her sophisticated and witty images that are yet bright and fanciful have won her a devoted following, especially among young urbanites.”

What do Penguin Group publishers say about the illustrated version? “William Strunk and E. B. White’s classic writing manual, The Elements of Style, has been enriched to include vibrant, witty, and instantly recognizable images by Maira Kalman in a beautiful illustrated edition. Every English-language writer knows Strunk and White’s famous little writing manual, The Elements of Style. Many people between the ages of 17 and 70 can recite the book’s mantra--make every word tell-- and still refer to their tattered grade-school copy 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.”

Considering that millions of copies have been sold to millions of devotees, you might not think to ask what could enhance this (almost) perfect classic. In fact, the addition of illustrations allows readers to experience the book’s contents in a completely new way, making the whole learning experience more colorful and clear, as well as adding a whimsical element that complements the subtly humorous tone of the prose. The Elements of Style Illustrated will come to be known as the definitive, must-have edition.

The Elements of Style Illustrated brings a fresh immediacy to the well-loved, much-valued, and still on-point work that has become an institution. While giving the classic work a jolt of new energy to appeal to contemporary readers, Kalman’s illustrations are themselves timeless, designed to sit alongside the ever-enduring manual for another 50 years and more.

Learn More About Maira Kalman

• Barnes and Noble Interview

This article originally appeared in the STC Northeast Ohio chapter newsletter Lines and Letters, Volume 23, Issue 4, December 2006. Reprinted with permission of the author.

Book Review: XML for Dummies

When I felt I should get a background in XML, my thoughts turned to the Dummies series. In the past, I have had good luck learning from Dummies books.

After reading XML for Dummies, I noticed on amazon.com the book got 2 stars out of 5. Some people called the book worthless and downright wrong, but a few in the minority liked it. While I feel the book did not totally meet my expectations, I don't think the book was totally worthless.

The book did an adequate job of introducing XML concepts. Plus, as a reference on tag formats, it should prove helpful. What I found lacking, however, was the right information to give me the overall grasp on the subject that I wanted to get. After reading the book, I took two online classes on the subject. The classes gave me the right level of conceptual background as well as enough examples of XML, which the book in general did not provide.

Normally, I like the Dummies format, style, and approach, which this book uses. In XML for Dummies it is the content, not the style, that I found lacking.

The sections of the book include the following, in addition to a glossary and index:

• XML Basics
• XML and the Web
• Building In Validation with DTDs and Schemas
• Transforming and Processing XML
• XML Application Development
• The Part of Tens

Book information: XML for Dummies Authors: Lucinda Dykes and Ed Tittel. 2005. Indianapolis, Indiana: Wiley Publishing, Inc. [ISBN: 0764588451] 366 pages, including index. $24.99 USD

Webinar Review: New Standard for Safety Information

STC sponsored a Webinar covering ANSI Z535.6 — A New Standard for Safety Information in Product-accompanying Literature. Rockwell Automation hosted this Webinar locally at their Landerhaven office in Mayfield Heights on January 31, 2007.

Attendees learned about this new standard for presenting safety messages in owners' manuals, product manuals, instructions, and other collateral materials.

The standard focuses on the design and placement of product safety messages (or warnings) in product-accompanying documents such as owners' manuals, instructions, users' guides, maintenance or service manuals, assembly instructions, and safety manuals.

The speakers ably described the new standard and reviewed the four types of safety messages defined in the standard: supplemental directives, grouped safety messages, section safety messages, embedded safety messages.

Participants found the presentation and standard content itself useful for providing ideas on how to work with this type of information.

Here is more from stc.org about the presenters:

Steven Hall serves as vice-chair for the ANSI Z535.6 subcommittee which directed and oversaw the development of the new standard. He is a senior consultant and director of hazard communication consultations at Applied Safety and Ergonomics.

Elaine Wisniewski is a managing consultant in the human factors and product safety group at Applied Safety and Ergonomics. She participates in research, development, and evaluation of safety communication such as warnings, instructions, symbols and graphics, owner's manuals, and other safety-related publications.