Inspired by Meredith’s post about Great Books to Read Aloud With Your Kids, I started thinking which print books are must-haves around my office. Yes, I know, with the Internet, I can always find the information I need without cracking open a book, but I think reference books are important for two reasons–one, the internet doesn’t always work 
and two, it’s often faster to just go straight to the “source” instead of figuring out which of 80.000,000 results you’re going to rely on for your answer.
Besides that, I often like to work with the router unplugged to avoid the distractions of Twitter and Facebook completely, and when I go online to do research, it’s much more tempting to follow a rabbit hole than it is when I simply open up a book and look up the answer. So, those are my reasons for having a print reference library (I’d love to hear yours!), but what five books are on my most-turned-to list?
- The AP Stylebook. I’ve mentioned my magazine background, and it was my very first internship where I learned the importance of a really good stylebook. They used AP, and I’ve stuck with it ever since. If you do any writing during the day, a book like this can help keep your writing style consistent so you’re not referring to Website in one paragraph and web site in another. (Though, I’ll admit, online, there are reasons to write it both ways, and I use email instead of the AP prescribed e-mail… So, in other words, use a stylebook, but don’t wed yourself to it.)
- The Oxford American Dictionary (full set). I have all 20 volumes on my bookshelf, but really, any good dictionary will do. When I was a kid, I used to read the dictionary when I ran out of books, so I splurged. (Weird, I know. But, it was illustrated, if that makes this revelation any better.)
- The Oxford American Writer’s Thesaurus. I seldom use this one, but every so often, I absolutely must have a good synonym for a word, and I’m always glad I can turn to a print thesaurus instead of a web search.
- Flip Dictionary. Billed as the book, “For when you know what you want to say, but can’t think of the word,” I find this resource to be far more useful than my thesaurus. I think it’s in the way the words and concepts are linked, so you’ll want to find the resource that suits your thinking style best (though, really, I don’t think you can go wrong by having both a reverse dictionary and a thesaurus on your shelf). This is the style of resource that I find is most lacking online.
- The Elements of Style. The fifty-year-old classic continues to be a must-have writing resource. Jim Lehrer said, “Only something to actually write about trumps the list of what is required to put words together in some kind of coherent way.” Assuming you have something to write about , this book will help you assemble your thoughts coherently.
So, those are my five top favorites. What are yours? Or are you an internet-only kind of researcher?
***Links in this post are Amazon affiliate links which means you’re supporting GirlyPC when you use them to buy one of these books. We appreciate that!***
When I first started furnishing my home office, I originally thought about buying a conference table. Pre-office space, I loved working on the dining room table because it meant having plenty of space to spread out with whatever project I was working on.
If you’ve ever snuck into the conference room to use the table in there (I did a lot of that at my first magazine job), or taken a project to the dining room, you’d probably enjoy a home office table as well.
These are my five favorite tables for the home office.
The gorgeous Pottery Barn Montego Pedestal Table extends to 65″ long with the included leaf. That’s plenty of space for meeting with clients, or really spreading out a project.
It only comes in the one finish, which is a shame as I think it’d look especially lovely in a darker color, but look at that fantastic hand-turned base! Of course, the trouble with a table with a leaf is that you have to find a place to *store* the leaf, but I think this one’s worth the extra hassle.
This Wisteria Spindle Leg Table in blue has a delicate, fairy tale look. It’s perfect for smaller spaces as it’s just 22 inches deep.
Because it’s hand-finished, each piece feels more one-of-a-kind than some mass produced furniture and that gives this table the air of high quality wood office furniture. The legs are also quite elegant and would be right at home in an office with less modern furniture.
Looking for something more modern than the first two? How about the CB2 Silverado? With it’s sleek silver “sawhorse” base and clear glass top, this one will be right at home in a modern home office.
Round tables look lovely with hanging pendant lights, and I think the designer-recommended Firefly Pendant Lamp might be just the ticket to keep the sophisticated industrial look going.
The stylish drop-leaf Harvest Table from DWR would look smashing in a home office–it’s got simple lines, and a space-saving shape which means you could push it up against a wall when you don’t need all that sprawling room, and pull it out when you did.
I love drop leaf styles because then you don’t have to find a safe place for the table leaves.
The counter-height Umbria table from World Market has space-saving storage underneath with the two shelves. Its compact square size (44″ x 44″) means you could tuck it neatly into a corner, and it would make a fantastic mailing station. Whenever I have to do a mailing, I always high tail it to the kitchen island (after cleaning it carefully, of course) because its so much more comfortable to do that sort of work standing up, with a counter-height surface. If you find yourself doing projects standing up and slouching over a table or desk, this table would be a perfect upgrade to your home office if you have the space.
What do you think? Would a table have a place in your home office? Or do you work in a room (like the dining room) that has one already?
Ever since I got my Vaio desktop (a gorgeous computer that I love working on–seriously), I’ve been enamored with the wireless keyboard. It’s easy to use and really responsive.
Since I’m a fast typist (100+wpm), it’s important to me that the keyboard not hold me back. It’s also important that it not look beat up too quickly–which, since I do a lot of typing… That definitely happens (I’ve rubbed off half the letters on my Mac Laptop’s keyboard…).
The Vaio comes with a really excellent keyboard–it has just the right amount of spring, and has enough extra keys to let me control the computer from a distance (but doesn’t have so many extraneous keys to distract from the keys you really need). I’ve had it for well over a year and its still going strong. It does take (4) batteries which is a little annoying, but I use rechargeable ones so that at least I’m not tossing them regularly, and I’ve found they last quite long–probably at least 3 months with near-constant use.
So, tell us about the keyboard you use right now–is it awesome? Annoying? Are any of the keys broken? Sticky? Keyboards are an oft-overlooked office tool that make a big difference in both typing speed and efficiency (when I’m using a sticky keyboard, typos become way too common). And I’d love to hear about your favorite!
