December Book Haul

Hello,

It is that time of year once again where all of the bookish people in the world begin to share their additions to their collections by posting their post-holiday book hauls. One I received a few books, I decided to the exact same. Why not? Despite the tone heavy consumerism, these things are actually fun to watch, read, and look at. It is always interesting to see what the current reading tastes of all of my favorite readers are. 

So I’ve decided to bundle up all of the books that I not only received over the holidays as gifts, but also all of the books I have acquired throughout the month of December. And to be honest, I am a little disappointed. There are about 25 books in this haul. I don’t even know howI accrued that many, but it means that January’s book buying will be put to the bare minimum. Or so I say. So let’s dive in.

How to Style Your Brand
Fiona Humberstone
Fiona Humberstone’s prequel to Brand Brilliance where she guides readers on designing their brands. This book covers a wide range of topics like logo design, color selection, brand assets, and even web design. I initially picked this up to see how it compares to her newer book, Brand Brilliance, as well as to see how much they relate and differ.

Ignore Everybody: and 39 Other Keys to Creativity
Hugh Macleod
Written by cartoonist and blogger, Macleod, this book helps advise and inspire other creatives on being, well, creative. I picked this book up because I enjoy books on the process of creativity and the various subjective advice that creative people have on trying to achieve it. They are always so inspiring and I always feel the need to create while I read them.

The Beats: A Graphic History
Harvey Pekar
A graphic novel about the Beat Generation where author, Harvey Pekar, collaborated with various writers and artists that delves into the world of writing and art in the 40s and 50s. After watching a video by Ariel Bisset where she talked about her interest in the Beat Generation, I felt compelled to read up on it. After a few a online searches I became hooked and decided that this book would be a fun bridge between Bibliografik’s hunger for the visual, and my own desire to learn something new.

Draft No. 4 On the Writing Process
John McPhee
This is another book that has been sitting idly on my Amazon wishlist. I’ve heard and read many great things about the book but I don’t think I encountered it at the right time. I initially wanted it while I started Bibliografik but I wanted to test out my own writing before I read any advice on writing craft. This book is a compilation of essays by esteemed writer and Princeton University Professor, John McPhee. Each essay is a combination of guidance in terms of arrangement, diction, and tone that shapes nonfiction writing as well anecdotes.

Work For Money, Design for Love
David Airey
This book has been sitting on my Amazon wishlist for quite some time but I could never bring myself to splurge the $30 or so to purchase it. After reading some reviews, I cracked. Another reputable blogger, Airey answers questions that designers have when they are just starting out on their own self-employment journey.

Things I Have Learned in My Life So Far
Stefan Sagmeister
I’ve begun reading Sagmeister & Walsh’s new book, Beauty,  and decided that I needed to pick up something else of Sagmeister’s to see how it compares. This book focuses on bits of advice that Sagmeister has accumulated throughout his life, and I thought it would be interesting just to see what this advice is.

Bohemians: A Graphic History
Paul Buhle
Similar to, The Beats: A Graphic History,  this book takes on a similar execution, but discusses the Bohemian counterculture of the 19th century. What intrigued me about this book is that it delves in to the culture from various viewpoints and doesn’t focus on the Bohemians in Paris, but expands to Greenwich village, West Coast, and even the Midwest.

Two-Dimensional Man
Paul Sahre
I’ve read this book a year ago or so and I fell in love with it. The writing, the layout, and the narrative hooked me right from the get-go. I borrowed the book at the time and couldn’t bring myself to purchasing it because I didn’t want to purchase I book I had already read until I was ready to read it again. So I gave it a year and now I’m ready. This book focuses on graphic designer, Paul Sahre’s, life path, career, and his work. It is undoubtedly inspiring as he talks about his early college life, his relationship gone sour during a time of lifetime confusion, his relationship with his mentally handicap brother, and even his experience during 9/11. 

How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big
Scott Adams
To be honest, I’m not sure what compelled me to buy this book. It’s written by the creator of, Dilbert, and it documents his life from office worker to famous cartooner. According to the summary and reviews it heavily consists of career advice to help navigate through and around failure.

Useless Magic: Lyrics and Poetry
Florence Welch
A compilation of Florence Welch’s lyrics and poems while writing her last few albums. I was hesitant about buying this book because it is mostly a compilation of her lyrics and I didn’t really need a book solely on that. But after watching a video of her apartment tour from 2015, I was hooked, and I couldn’t refute it any longer.

The Modern Magazine: Visual Journalism in the Digital Era
Jeremy Leslie
Focuses on the editorial design of magazines as they adapt to digital media. It primarily revolves around the decade leading up to 2013. What I like about this book is that it includes both independent and mainstream publishing which will be interesting to see how those two relate. There’s also a bunch of interviews with prominent people in this field. 

How to Sell Your Art Online Live a Successful Creative Life on Your Own Terms
Cory Huff
This book looks similar to, Show Your Work, by Austin Kleon so I just wanted to check it out. It’s described as the essential guide for every kind of artist to help them sell their art without the need for a gallery. I’m particularly curious about the section on social media and social interaction because I’m assuming that is a fairly large part in building an online presence.

Plant Kingdom: Design with Plant Aesthetics
SendPoints
A compendium centered around nature and plants being the focus for various graphic design related projects. I like plants.

How to Make Books
Esther K. Smith
Smith creates easy DIY book making projects that will help readers create simple zines to gorgeous sketchbooks.  This is a fully illustrated guide that ensures anyone can follow the tutorials.  I picked this up because I enjoy Esther K. Smith’s work, especially her letterpress stuff, so I thought this would be a fun one. 

The Botanical Bible: Plants, Flowers, Art, Recipes & Other Home Uses
Sonya Patel Ellis
Not really sure why I wanted this except that I like plants. This book has so much going on for it. It discusses various plants as well as recipes for primarily vegetarian dishes, botanical art, and even floral arrangements. I think I wanted to see how cohesive the design would be since it delves into so many various realms.

Sagmeister & Walsh: Beauty
Stefan Sagmeister & Jessica Walsh
This is Sagmeister’s and Walsh’s latest book that discusses the concept of beauty and why design has shied away from it despite it being the focal point of art and design for thousands of years. I wanted to check this out more so for the design but I have no doubt that I will be wowed from the amount of research here.

Brains on Fire
Robin Phillips & Greg Cordell
This book was a recommendation in Jeff Finley’s book, Thread’s Not Dead, so I thought I would check it out. After a quick flipthrough I have no doubt I will enjoy this book as it discusses various forms of word of mouth communications. 

A People’s Guide to Publishing: Build a Successful, Sustainable, Meaningful Book Business
Joe Biel
I preordered this book a while ago while researching self-publishing and the publishing industry. I held out on other books of similar topics because I felt this one was the most promising. Written by Joe Biel, self-publisher and independent bookstore/zine shop owner, this book definitely has a lot of merit.

Think Like an Artist 
Will Gompertz
This is another book about improving creativity and productivity, but this one takes it through an approach of artists of the past. Gompertz delves into the psychology of creativity and ten key lessons from various artists.

Aspects of Contemporary Book Design
Richard Hendel
Focusing on book design, this book breaks down the different design methods and principles for various types of books like nonfiction, fiction, instructional, etc. I picked this up because I don’t think I ever learned many proper tips and techniques for various types of publishing. I wanted to learn more about usability and readability for different consumers of different books. I also want to become more analytical when I analyze the books I post reviews on.

Sharpie Art Workshop
Timothy Goodman
I picked this up on a whim as well as learning a new, stress-free technique to being creative. It primarily focuses on various forms and methods of creations with sharpie. There are also several artist profiles.

Low Tech Print
Caspar Williamson
A compendium of 100 printmakers from around the world that discuss their printmaking process. I’ve been getting into block printing and I wanted to read up on some advice that some block printers had to share.

Syllabus: Notes From an Accidental Professor
Lynda Barry
A collection of syllabi, drawings, writings, and musings from Lynda Barry while she taught her classes that focused on how are brains, storytelling, and drawing are all connected. I am infatuated with Lynda Barry and this has been on my wishlist for some time. I think Austin Kleon recommends this book in, Steal Like an Artist, and that solidified that for me. Absolutely amazing book, you can check out my review here.

This Book wIll Teach You How To Write Better
Neville Medhora
Basic (very basic) guide to writing. I have already read this and I don’t recommend it.

Marian Bentjes: Pretty Pictures
Marian Bantjes
A collection of work ranging from patterns, branding, typography, posters, etc. created by Marian Bantjes.

Weaving: Contemporary Makers
Katie Treggiden
A collection of contemporary weavers profiles where they discuss their process and work, and well as a collection of essays about the sociological history of weaving. I’ve also been getting into weaving once again and I have picked up a 3’x3’ lap loom, so I thought this would provide some incredible inspiration. And it did! You can check out my review here.

If there were any books that caught your eye and want a flipthrough of asap, leave a comment below and I will get to it. Also, did you receive any interesting books this month? Share your hauls below!

Cheers!