A Field Guide to Sheaffer's Pencils has won several independent book awards: 2023 Next Generation Indie Book Awards - Gold Medal Winner in general nonfiction, and also named Finalist in both the Coffee Table/Photography and the Specialty/Novelty Book categories. 2024 IBPA Ben Franklin Awards - Silver Award Winner, Craft & Hobby/Home & Garden. 2024 Best Indie Book Award (BIBA) - Winner, History The W.A. Sheaffer Pen Company, founded in 1912, was one of the first major writing instrument manufacturers in America to fully embrace mechanical pencils as a vital component in its business. For half a century after the introduction of the "Sharp Point" pencil in 1917, Sheaffer led the industry with numerous technical and design innovations which resulted in some of the most beautiful and durable mechanical pencils ever made. A Field Guide to Sheaffer Pencils thoroughly examines the history and taxonomy of these pencils, presented in unprecedented detail by award-winning author Jonathan Veley with the assistance of several of the world's leading experts in Sheaffer writing instruments. Lavish illustrations allow collectors to identify models, variations, and dates of production for nearly every pencil Sheaffer made until the company was sold in 1966, opening up the microcosm of these beautiful and functional works of art for the first time.