"I'm a handmaiden of technology who began to have doubts. They came early to me, those doubts, but I was young and thought everyone had them. Now a woman of a certain age still working in technology, I have to wonder if I wrote the wrong manual."

And so begins this memoir of a woman trying to make sense of her world. Sharing stories that shaped her career as a technical writer, she delves into the history of professional scribes. Along the way she encounters people just like herself who had a need to document the world around them.

"I was pleased to learn something else, namely that there has always been a Gold Age in the past, a Utopia in the future, and barbarians trying to destroy what we have. It seems that in each era, our life's work has been to define our barbarians and to make the best of what we have right now. We are, after all, only human, and that is all that we can do."

This funny and informative book will give you a fresh perspective on the past - as well as the future. Along with an eclectic bibliography, the author adds another dimension to her book with a substantial "Notes on Sources" section that stands alone as a readable chapter.

By the time you reach the end of this delightful book, you will be full of ideas to explore in your next reading adventure.