On Book Design

The book is well constructed. In my opinion, the actual design is a tad over done but the writer explains exactly why he made the choices he made. And who am I to say different? They were His choices.The content gives the reader some insight into the various considerations that go into a book design and an insider view of the process. I learned a few things and was affirmed that "My Way is Okay". I appreciated the down-to-earth tone and the complete absence of esoteric arrogance. I feel the author could be a friend of mine if our paths ever crossed.The price may be touch high for the information but not the object: the book is an outstanding example of the way serious books should be constructed. The title and the trim size make it a nice piece of Bookshelf Bling for the highly Dork-o-Matic readers of books about books, a group to which I proudly belong. It looks great standing between The TeX Book and The Indexing of Books, though it may never again move from this position unless it falls over while Knuth's books is being retrieved for consultation. Or if I need to show someone an example of a very well made book.

As author Richard Hendel notes, designing a book is a complicated process, "especially because there isn't a single way to proceed." Hendel is associate director and design and production manager at University of North Carolina Press, ideally qualified to give a true picture of the life of a book designer.On Book Design is divided into three sections. In "Looking Like Books" Hendel discusses what makes a book, a book. More than just the author's words, a book is defined by its typography, the size of the fonts, the width of the margins, where the subheads fall on a page. While this may seem obvious, what is harder to determine is the right combination of all these subjective elements. If a reader is paying more attention to the arrangement of the words rather than to the content itself, the design may be overdone.The book's second section, "The Design Begins Here" describes exactly what it is that designers do-from the big picture stuff (e.g., matching the author's content and tone) to the smallest details (e.g., determining whether to choose old-style or line numbers).Scattered throughout the book are samples of projects designed by Hendel and others. This is extremely helpful and often fascinating, though on occasion the level of detail Hendel provides borders on the tedious.In the third section, "How Designers Work," Hendel hands the page over to several respected designers. Some work entirely on the computer; others, like Hendel, use pencil and paper to create their first design drafts. As Hendel notes, "What is important is not the mechanics of making the layouts but finding exactly the right design and typeface for the author's words."

This book is an elegant one and a though provoking one, but it is NOT for beginners. It is NOT a text book, but rather a guide to expanding book designers' thinking about what kind of issues might be addressed and how various practitioners might approach them. Illustrations are beautiful in black and white, but not well diagrammed. In short, unless you've already designed a number of books, look elsewhere.

The book offers essays by designers who have years of experience. Also features designs by modern designers. It is wonderful to access their very practical knowledge.The book is written in a very friendly style and at the same time speaks from a position of proven worth. I am so glad I found this book.I have not read the entire book yet as it is book to be chewed and digested slowly, but I look forward to reading every bit of it.

I found this book to be one of the best on this topic. The text written by others is also helpful as well but not as much as the author's book. Lots of good advice. For example read the work that you are designing, if not the whole thing then a good chunk of it. Also to consider are the words that the author of the book you are designing, namely big words, small words. Also things to consider about typeface that comes from the same period as the text may or may not help. All good tidbits that are not mentioned in other books. I bought many books on book design before I finally found this book.

Gives a nice peak into the decision making done in book design. However, this should not be your first book on the topic, but it makes a nice addition to an existing collection.

Excellent service, highly recommended. Would definitely use again.