The Chicago Manual of Style

For more than a century, The Chicago Manual of Style has been the authority American writers, editors, and publishers turn to when they need an answer. This edition covers everything from grammar and punctuation to citation and manuscript preparation, the thousand small decisions that separate clean prose from sloppy. It is less a book to read than a lifelong desk companion. Guy Kawasaki keeps it on his list of ten favorite books, a nod to craft over flash.