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26th out of 33 books
—
35 voters
Swimming in the Steno Pool: A Retro Guide to Making It in the Office
by
Lynn Peril
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 d...more
Paperback, 275 pages
Published
April 25th 2011
by W. W. Norton & Company
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Any woman who earns her living as an administrative assistant/secretary will find that this book really hits home. In many ways, it’s a self-empowerment book for secretaries, especially for those of us who are college-educated (the majority) and feel we should have accomplished more in our careers than being “just a secretary.” But as the subtitle states, the book is also a “retro guide,” a sort of history-lite survey of what the position entailed pre- and post-feminism and pre- and post-compute...more
a cultural & political history of secretaries in the united states. i love lynn peril's books. this is the same woman who write pink think & bluestockings, about prescriptive literature for young women & the history of women & higher education, respectively. she also wrote the zine "mystery date" back in ye olde day. her books are always funny, well-researched, informative, & super feminist.
i actually learned a few things about the history of women & feminism that i had...more
i actually learned a few things about the history of women & feminism that i had...more
This book was fantastic, like all of Peril's books. The pictures were great, and I learned quite a bit about secretaries. It's quick to read- I finished most of the book while riding the bus to work and back.
I look forward to reading Lynn Peril's "The Museum of Femoribilia" in every issue of Bust Magazine, and I loved her earlier book "Pink Think", but I found "Swimming in the Steno Pool" to be rather dull and repetitive. I found the chapter dealing with the social history behind women and secretarial world to be worth while, but most of the following chapters seemed to be the same topic phrased in different manners. I think the fact that the subject is close to the authors heart (she is a secretary...more
“As we continue to struggle through one of the worst economic times since the Great Depression, some offices simply make do without secretaries: as of May 2010, approximately 1.7 million clerical and administrative workers have lost their jobs. These positions very well may not come back, just as executives discovered they could type in the 1980s, they are now finding that they can handle their own calendars and travel arrangements.” - SITSP, Page 241.
I had such a hard time getting through this...more
I had such a hard time getting through this...more
I've enjoyed Lynn Peril's other books (College Girls: Bluestockings, Sex Kittens, and Co-Eds, Then and Now and Pink Think: Becoming a Woman in Many Uneasy Lessons) and I enjoyed this one as well. This book takes a look at women in the office and how the role of secretary worked both as an opportunity and ultimately, a glass ceiling. Peril's survey of secretarial guide books and mid-century ads adds to the narrative about how the terms "career girl," "office wife," and "career woman" were perpetu...more
Thought I would just scan this book, but I actually read straight through it. The main question that really interested me was whether office work liberated women (introduced them into the business world) or pigeon-holed them into dead-end work (the glass ceiling, etc.). I don't think this really answered that question, but it was intriguing enough to keep reading.
Although its an entertaining and thorough book, by the time I reached the final chapter of Swimming in the Steno Pool, I was left with a sense of sadness. I expected nothing more than a witty retrospective of "How Bad Things Used to Be." But what I ended up with was "Things Are Bad Now for Everyone, Not Just Secretaries." It's depressing that equality in the workplace now means everyone is treated with equal dismissiveness and cruelty.
Author Lynn Peril, a working secretary herself, has gathered...more
Author Lynn Peril, a working secretary herself, has gathered...more
I love Peril's writing so much. I have read all three of her books, and while I don't think the other two can compare with the brillance of her first book, "Pink Think," I still highly recommend her work to anyone looking for an understanding of how it is that we come to view what it means to be a woman in today's world. It helps that she's funny as hell.
3.5
From a scholarly point of view, I'd have to say that wasn't a bad read at all. I am most impressed with the author's feat of primary research (not sure how I wouldn't have wanted to burn a few of those mid-century secretary guide books, if I'd been the one doing the research). But for an entertainment read, it was a bit of a slog. Yes, it has lots of great quotes, images, and information on the topic which went down easy. But it was actually pretty grim. And, apparently, still remains that wa...more
From a scholarly point of view, I'd have to say that wasn't a bad read at all. I am most impressed with the author's feat of primary research (not sure how I wouldn't have wanted to burn a few of those mid-century secretary guide books, if I'd been the one doing the research). But for an entertainment read, it was a bit of a slog. Yes, it has lots of great quotes, images, and information on the topic which went down easy. But it was actually pretty grim. And, apparently, still remains that wa...more
Light, interesting social history of secretarial work in the US, drawing heavily on guides and magazine articles for women about secretarial work, advertising and popular culture depictions of secretaries, and so on. Quite well done. I think the author took some time and care with it but suspect the publisher churned it out quickly to take advantage of any potential Mad Men-related lift - the subtitle and cover are very jokey and don't fairly convey the nature of the book, and there are some sl...more
A great examination of the way that secretaries are treated in popular culture. Very fun, somewhat thought-provoking read.
this was an interesting read to be sure, but i found it to be a bit repetitive in some parts. a quick and breezy read.
Sep 08, 2011
Valley Cottage Library
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Shelves:
nonfiction,
summer-reading-club-2011
SUMMER READING REVIEW: "A thorough history of women and their place in the workforce as secretaries." -Carla Sherman
Thought Pink Think was her best work to date. Perhaps it would have been more well rounded to include women in the work force rather than just secretarial posts?
Reads like a term paper at times, but a fun one. Especially in the early chapters, I'm not sure if Peril always sticks to her chapter theme; it gets a bit repetitive and sounds like a multi-book review of secretarial of advice manuals. Still, it's an interesting topic on a field that has definitely evolved over the years; while I'm not sad that the "women libbers" stopped with the coffee-getting, I sort of wish that positions like existed. I might like being an "office wife". Guess I'll have to...more
This book makes me so thankful that I started work after the invention of the word processor and that I've never had to get someone coffee.
As I said in a comment, not as funny as I expected it to be, but once I realized it was a pretty straightforward history of secretaries, quite interesting. Worth reading, good subway material, not much more.
May 04, 2013
Samantha
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| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
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| for all office support staff | 1 | 2 | May 08, 2012 01:57pm |
Lynn Peril was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, but has lived in the San Francisco Bay Area since 1985. She writes, edits and publishes Mystery Date: One Gal's Guide to Good Stuff, a zine devoted to her obsession with used books (particularly old sex and dating manuals, etiquette and self-help books and health, beauty and fashion guides) and other detritus of popular culture, especially that concerni...more
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Apr 04, 2012 07:30pm