The modern conundrum: while the art of letter writing is fast extinguishing, the need for expressive, impressive, appropriate letters is as great as ever. The result? A mortifying amount of miserable missives that sadly miss the mark. E-mail informality is all very well for one's sister in Toledo or one's colleague three cubicles down, but when one needs to promote a product or raise funds, seek a job or request a favor, effectively complain, apologize, or reprimand, or send a letter of condolence, the typically confident and competent achiever gets noodly in the knees. Write a thank-you letter? The prospective correspondent is suddenly busy cleaning his or her desk and organizing the office files.

All you really need is a template to show you the way, and that's where Harold Meyer's Lifetime Encyclopedia of Letters excels. There are 981 letters covering most every business or personal occasion, organized in 600 categories, and followed by a comprehensive index. From Declining Requests (subdivided into "Invitations," "Applications for Credit," and "Donations," among others) and Requesting Favors to Sympathy, Apology, and Thank-You notes, Meyer shows an array of approaches, discusses effective techniques for various intended results, and instructs you on which tone to pursue, depending on whom the letter is going to and what you're trying to achieve. The encyclopedia won't actually write the letter for you or affix the stamp, but it provides proven formats to help structure your thoughts, and smooth starter and closer sentences--typically the hardest to write--to jump-start your communication and end with style. --Stephanie Gold --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

As a template, THE BOOK is very useful, June 26, 2003

The Lifetime Encyclopedia of Letters has come in handy for me on several occasions (both business and personal). The book itself is broken down into categories, and within these are outlines, models, indexes, open/closing sentences, and example letters for each category.

The "How To Do It" outline provides you with a step-by-step process for each letter. This helps to keep your letter focused. The explanations in the outline is brief, and somewhat vague, but if you follow through with the model letter, you can see what direction your letter would take.

There are also suggestions for opening and closing sentences. This will help jog your inspiration. I never used any of the suggested sentences, but it did give me a clear idea of how I should open and close my letters. Many times, hesitation has been a result of not knowing how to start... this book helped solve that problem for me.

The best feature of this book is the variety of letters. Some are more aggressive than others, and this can be tailored to what you are trying to "sell" or say. The contrasts in letter presentation gives you a chance to choose the most appropriate letter for those who will read it.

The personal letter section is useful for the more "delicate" correspondence (compliments, reprimand, gifts, etc...). This book guided me with proper etiquette through some very nerve-wracking letters. It also provided me with the confidence to write more letters for appropriate situations. I have actually received compliments from letter receivers!

This book is meant to be used throughout your lifetime, for business and personal uses. My copy is pretty old, and I still use it. The letters I write using the encyclopedia are absolutely my own. Because I view this book as a template of standards, I merely adapt it to suit my own personal style and needs. I recommend it to anyone who needs to write a letter and wants to do it right with the best results.