A working library is an exploration of—and advocate for—Recently
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11.5.12
Content Strategy for Mobile
Karen McGrane
The eighth book in the now very successful A Book Apart series reflects back on previous titles while also looking ahead. Mobile best practices meets…
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6.1.12
Starts
Today marks my last day with Typekit.
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4.10.12
Design Is a Job
Mike Monteiro
Mike Monteiro’s writing is as ruthless as it is wise. A love letter to web designers everywhere, Design Is a Job catalogs the many and…
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4.8.12
Love, An Index
Rebecca Lindenberg
When a friend publishes a book, it is cause for celebration. When the topic is the loss of the man she loved, the celebration is…
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3.26.12
Robbed
On How to Fix Copyright
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3.18.12
The Frankies Spuntino Kitchen Companion and Cooking Manual
Frank Castronovo, Frank Falcinelli, 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…
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3.6.12
Making copies
On How to Fix Copyright
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3.6.12
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…
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2.27.12
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.
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12.19.11
Books as History
David Pearson
If you can get past the absolutely reprehensible cover design, Books as History is a smart study of books’ physical form, and a defense of…
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12.12.11
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.
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12.5.11
Represent
The first in a series of articles that expand upon my essay in Issue No. 1 of Contents.
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12.1.11
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…
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11.29.11
Names for the familiar
On Community and Privacy
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11.28.11
The interstices
On Community and Privacy
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11.28.11
Community and Privacy
Christopher Alexander, Serge Chermayeff
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…
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11.27.11
The New Brooklyn Cookbook
Brendan Vaughn, Melissa 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…
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11.27.11
Living and Eating
Annie Bell, John Pawson
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.
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11.9.11
In real life
On On Writing Well
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11.9.11
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…
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10.18.11
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…
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10.18.11
Designing for Emotion
Aarron Walter
Aarron Walter joins the A Book Apart rainbow of knowledge with this short book on designing for humans. A mix of psychology and case studies…
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10.2.11
Human power
On Working
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10.2.11
Working
Studs Terkel
Terkel interviewed people of all walks of life (though mostly the working kind) about what they do and how they feel about it. The result…
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9.8.11
How to read in an age of abundance
On I Read Where I Am
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9.6.11
I Read Where I Am
Geert Lovink, Mieke Gerritzen, Minke Kampman
A collection of short reflections on the future of reading, including those from Ellen Lupton, James Bridle, Erik Spiekermann, and N. Katharine Hayles. Independently, none…
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8.22.11
The in-group
On Trickster Makes This World and The Comedy of Survival
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8.18.11
Sacred
On Trickster Makes This World
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8.18.11
Trickster Makes This World
Lewis Hyde
Hyde exceeds the terrain of “creative nonfiction” (a term I always find slightly disparaging) to write academic tomes that feel alive, unlike the usual ivory…
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8.9.11
Disaster capitalism
On The Shock Doctrine
