APA: The Easy Way! (Updated for APA 6th Edition) by Peggy M. Houghton & Timothy J. Houghton
This handbook covers many detailed specifications of the APA style...including in-text citations, source citations, and a sample paper. It also sheds new light on the manual using step-by-step processes and exemplification that enable readers to fulfill APA rules and regulations while focusing on the content, rather than the format, of their academic research.
Ms. Houghton takes the reader step by step in setting your computer up in APA Style, then the remainder of the book is a quick reference for some of the most frequently used information.
No one can ever rationalize the logic in using APA style in areas other than the Psychological Sciences. Yet there we are, those of use whose studies have little or nothing to do with this area of study. In this regard the APA The Easy Way is a godsend. It takes the pain of dealing with the APA Manual, cuts through the BS and tells you the "meat" of what you really need to know to conform to this style of writing. It could definitely use some more sample papers. It would help to make comprehending the style easier if you could see it used is someone's work. Additionally, it would help immensely if it quoted the page numbers in the actual APA Manual from where each area addressed was taken from. This would help just in case you are challenged to provide a specific reference from where you followed APA formatting. All-in-all a very simple and easy-to-use guide that helps take the sting out of writing APA style.
This is a great little book that summarizes the most important aspects of APA style. It is concise and easy to follow with just enough examples. I highly recommend you start here before buying the style guide which is more difficult to follow. If you do buy the style guide, get this book to work with and the larger more complicated books as a general reference. There are also many free online resources for APA style and some of them are excellent.
