Reading Textbooks for Fun

You know you’re long out of college when you read textbooks for fun. It helps when you can choose your own textbooks and when they are particularly attractive.

I’m currently reading “Designing Brand Identity” by Alina Wheeler. It discusses the ins and outs of what it takes to brand and re-brand organizations. What’s great about the book is the spare amount of writing to convey what brand designers need to know. The cover and layout are beautiful. The end sheets are a deep hot pink. The book contains plenty of real-world examples of branding projects.

The other book I’m reading is “100 Ideas That Changed Graphic Design” by Steven Heller and Veronique Vienne. Any book about graphic design that isn’t packed with pictures and a wonder to behold ought to be illegal. “100 Ideas” is well within the law in terms of its design. And I’m learning a ton about various graphic design techniques that were so revolutionary when introduced that they’ve become standard for designers today.

If these books aren’t technically textbooks, they certainly should be.