Swimming in the Steno Pool: A Retro Guide to Making It in the Office

Millions of women have held the position of secretary, alternately lauded as a breakthrough opportunity and excoriated as dead-end busy work. From the female pioneers who infiltrated Capitol Hill offices during the Civil War to today's tech-savvy administrative assistants, secretaries have withstood criticism for abandoning their rightful sphere (the home), weathered the dubious advice of secretarial guide-books, taken hits from feminists and antifeminists alike, and demanded the right to resist making coffee--all while making their bosses look good.

In Swimming in the Steno Pool, author-secretary Lynn Peril profiles the various incarnations of the secretary, from pliable, sexy mate of the "office husband" to postfeminist executive-in-training, drawing inspiration from a wide range of "femorabilia" and secretarial guidebooks of yesteryear. Featuring an array of fabulous illustrations promoting office equipment and office girls alike, Peril delivers a feisty, witty celebration of the women who've been running the show for decades.

Binding Type: Paperback
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
Published: 04/25/2011
ISBN: 9780393338546
Pages: 291
Weight: 0.87lbs
Size: 8.64h x 5.85w x 0.78d

Review Citations: Library Journal 03/01/2011 pg. 90
Booklist 03/15/2011 pg. 8
Kirkus Reviews 03/15/2011
Publishers Weekly 01/17/2011
New York Times Book Review 06/12/2011 pg. 23
Reference and Research Bk News 10/01/2011 pg. 79