sshhh! This is a working library.

Designing for People

Henry Dreyfuss

The first book on industrial design. A lovely, timeless book. Dreyfuss scattered the pages with his sketches, making for a playful, very human read. more

After Theory

Terry Eagleton

Literary Theory

Terry Eagleton

The classic introduction to literary theory and a capable and somewhat subversive argument for Marxism. more

Ideology

Terry Eagleton

The printing press as an agent of change

Elizabeth L. Eisenstein

A long academic work on the history of the advent of printing. The writing is scholarly (read: stuffy), but the subject is fascinating enough to make it worthwhile. more

The Subversive Copy Editor

Carol Fisher Saller

Carol Fisher Saller’s irreverent guide to copy editing has helpful advice for working with writers, as well as guidance for writers about working with their editor. Her expert (and often hilarious) responses to The Chicago Manual of Style Online’s Q&A are an excellent reminder that editing is as much art as science. more

Made by Hand

Mark Frauenfelder

A chronicle of one man’s attempt to become a DIYer. Frauenfelder learns that making things yourself means mostly making mistakes, but those mistakes can be a source of joy. He also charmingly demonstrates the old adage that the best way to learn is to get in way over your head. more

Rework

David Heinemeier Hansson, Jason Fried

On making work better, from the founders of 37Signals. If you’ve been reading Signals vs. Noise, there’s not much new here. But the combination of short, well-written chapters, large type, and clever illustrations make for a charming and persuasive read. more

The Ecocriticism Reader

Cheryll Glotfelty, Harold Fromm

An introductory collection in literary ecology, the movement that aims to do for environmentalism what gender and race studies did for civil rights. more

Linchpin

Seth Godin

Godin’s newest work argues that what the economy needs are artists—“people with a genius for finding a new answer, a new connection, or a new way of getting things done.” These people are linchpins—indispensable people that hold organizations together. A spirited yet pragmatic call to arms for workers everywhere. more

Standard Operating Procedure

Errol Morris, Philip Gourevitch

The book companion to Errol Morris’ movie of the same name. Where Morris tells the story with video and photography, Gourevitch communicates with words alone. The effect is less emotional or tactile than the film, but it’s indictment of the war is more strident. more

Design and Truth

Robert Grudin

A wide-ranging and philosophical approach to user-centered design. Grudin argues compellingly that design that does not consider the user is dishonest. See also: my review in the Barnes&Noble Review. more

Content Strategy for the Web

Kristina Halvorson

The book on the new(ish) field of content strategy, or, how we’re going to save the web. Required reading for anyone interested in how words can reach their potential now that they are freed from the page. more

Designing Design

Kenya Hara

Detail in typography

Jost Hochuli

HTML5 for Web Designers

Jeremy Keith

The inaugural book from A Book Apart, the new publisher for which I am co-founder and editor. When Jeffrey Zeldman, Jason Santa Maria, and I decided to launch a small press for people who make websites, there was no topic more important than HTML5, and no one better suited to write about it than Jeremy Keith. Required reading for web designers everywhere. more

Fateless

Imre Kertesz

An autobiographical novel, in which Kertész addresses his childhood in Auschwitz and Buchenwald. Kertész’s writing is spare and damning, akin to the filmmaking of Michael Haneke. more

King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Baking

King Arthur Flour

A wonderfully written primer on cooking with whole grains, with excellent recipes as well as guidance on equipment and techniques. My favorite recipes are the tortillas (139), pizza dough (128), and pie crust (349). The pie crust is especially good with bright, tart apples—the nuttiness of the whole wheat flour contrasts with the apples beautifully. The cover is printed directly on the case, so the jacket can be discarded if (when) it becomes soiled. more

Unjustified texts

Robin Kinross

Modern typography

Robin Kinross

A rare object—a book on typography that is as beautifully written as it is designed. more