Design Is a Job
Mike Monteiro
A love letter to web designers everywhere, Design Is a Job catalogs the many and varied mistakes one can make on the path to being successful, and generously warns you away from them.
Love, An Index
Rebecca Lindenberg
Lindenberg’s words touch on darker days, but the form and style are extraordinary even if held apart from the event that triggered them.
Robbed
On How to Fix Copyright
The Frankies Spuntino Kitchen Companion and Cooking Manual
Frank Falcinelli, Frank Castronovo & Peter Meehan
From one of my favorite local restaurants comes a lovely and instructive manual. An entire chapter is devoted to making Sunday sauce, complete with a timeline for the day.
Making copies
On How to Fix Copyright
How to Fix Copyright
William Patry
Patry is senior copyright counsel at Google, and despite the upfront disclaimer, this book defines a vision of copyright that clearly benefits the world’s biggest search engine.
Deploy
On publishing as the beginning, not the end; the third and final part in a series of articles that expand upon my essay in Issue No. 1 of Contents.
Books as History
David Pearson
A smart study of books’ physical form, and a defense of its value independent of the words on the page.
Markup
Why editors need to know HTML; part two in a series of articles that expand upon my essay in Issue No. 1 of Contents.
Represent
The first in a series of articles that expand upon my essay in Issue No. 1 of Contents.
The Lifecycle of Software Objects
Ted Chiang
As a novel, The Lifecycle of Software Objects suffers from expository writing, flat characters, and uninspired prose. But as a thought experiment, it’s surprisingly (if incompletely) compelling.
Names for the familiar
On Community and Privacy
The Interstices
On Community and Privacy
Community and Privacy
Serge Chermayeff & Christopher Alexander
A precursor to Alexander’s A Pattern Language, in which he and Chermayeff define what’s wrong with the design of the suburbs, and outline the principles behind a more human (and urban) environment.
The New Brooklyn Cookbook
Melissa Vaughn & Brandan Vaughn
I use this less as a cookbook than as a guide for where to eat; but the recipes and photography are as lovely as the neighborhoods.
Living and Eating
John Pawson & Annie Bell
A minimalist’s manifesto, with simple recipes and beautiful, spare photography. Keeping it on my coffee table for perusing before heading to the farmer’s market.
Babies and the bathwater
From Issue No. 1 of Contents Magazine.
In real life
On On Writing Well
On Writing Well
William Zinsser
I’m only just now reading this book, but it was a bit like discovering an old friend you didn’t know you had. Zinsser’s is the kind of casual, unassuming writing that sounds effortless, but isn’t.
Mobile First
Luke Wroblewski
The sixth book from A Book Apart features data-driven techniques and best practices for designing for mobile from the inimitable Luke Wroblewski. It also represents the best kind of short book: packed with information and a delightful read.