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La forma del libro
First edition in English, translated from the German first edition of 1975 by Hajo Hadeler. This edition contains an introduction by Robert Bringhurst. Illustrated. Black covers, trade paperback.
179 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1975
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
June 20, 2012
Non-fictional collection of essays that discuss typography and book layout.
My Take
Oh my god, what a pretentious twit! Albeit one with a lovely gift for words, so flowery in his discourse on the beauty of book layouts. I couldn't decide if I was reading a critique on book construction or wine.
Tschichold's use of the word "morality" as part of the title is a good tip-off as to his feelings on tradition and the rightness of continuing to lay out as has been done in the past. Part of me wants to strangle him for his obdurate, close-minded nature while the other half applauds his attention to detail. I completely understand his frustration with the poor quality of so many books today. The worst of which is the need so many publishers seem to have to jam words right into the spine of the book so the reader has to practically crack the book open to be able to read the entire line.
Where does he get off stating that "The work of a book designer differs essentially from that of a graphic artist"? The graphic artist has to be (or should be!) as devoted to the written word as the book designer. It's the whole point of the cover—to convey a scene, mood, or summary of the book.
As for what Tischchold has to say about book jackets! Hmmmph...one of my favorite things about a book jacket on a hardcover is being able to use the flap as a book marker. And I like seeing those colorful spines pointing out towards me on the shelves. Now, if the cover underneath were in a beautiful leather or well-done cloth…
His comments about Fraktur were certainly interesting and I went exploring on the font manager in my computer...it looks as though I'll have to explore on the Internet instead. I find myself wishing I could hear his pronouncements on all the font possibilities we have on the computer today. I'm sure he'd keel over in horror! Although, he has made me much more aware of fonts. As well as the horror of not indenting my paragraphs!
I certainly do agree with his comments on readability. It's not just legibility that one must be concerned with, but the need to make the text easily read. Much like web designers should be taking into account when choosing fonts, font-sizes, and colors for a website. One thing I can definitely say in Tschichold's favor, he is quite certain of what is proper and what is not.
The Form of the Book was first published in 1975 in Germany and translated and published in English in 1991. Well before desktop publishing and computers. I think even before PostScript printers. So some of Tschichold's information needs to be taken with a grain of salt, some should be drunk down with a good glass of wine, and the rest are some excellent considerations which authors, editors, and publishers should take into account.
The Cover
The cover is black with white text. I did enjoy the layout of the title with the subtitle alternating line by line.
The title is very appropriate as The Form of the Book: Essays on the Morality of Good Design is all about its visible shape or configuration. And Tschichold is definitely on his moral high horse about the proper techniques to use!
My Take
Oh my god, what a pretentious twit! Albeit one with a lovely gift for words, so flowery in his discourse on the beauty of book layouts. I couldn't decide if I was reading a critique on book construction or wine.
Harmony is determined by relationships or proportions. Proportions are hidden everywhere: in the capaciousness of the margins, in the reciprocal relationships to each other of all four margins on the page of a book, in the relationship between leading of the type area and dimensions of the margins,n the placement of the page number relative to the...and on and on
Tschichold's use of the word "morality" as part of the title is a good tip-off as to his feelings on tradition and the rightness of continuing to lay out as has been done in the past. Part of me wants to strangle him for his obdurate, close-minded nature while the other half applauds his attention to detail. I completely understand his frustration with the poor quality of so many books today. The worst of which is the need so many publishers seem to have to jam words right into the spine of the book so the reader has to practically crack the book open to be able to read the entire line.
Where does he get off stating that "The work of a book designer differs essentially from that of a graphic artist"? The graphic artist has to be (or should be!) as devoted to the written word as the book designer. It's the whole point of the cover—to convey a scene, mood, or summary of the book.
As for what Tischchold has to say about book jackets! Hmmmph...one of my favorite things about a book jacket on a hardcover is being able to use the flap as a book marker. And I like seeing those colorful spines pointing out towards me on the shelves. Now, if the cover underneath were in a beautiful leather or well-done cloth…
His comments about Fraktur were certainly interesting and I went exploring on the font manager in my computer...it looks as though I'll have to explore on the Internet instead. I find myself wishing I could hear his pronouncements on all the font possibilities we have on the computer today. I'm sure he'd keel over in horror! Although, he has made me much more aware of fonts. As well as the horror of not indenting my paragraphs!
I certainly do agree with his comments on readability. It's not just legibility that one must be concerned with, but the need to make the text easily read. Much like web designers should be taking into account when choosing fonts, font-sizes, and colors for a website. One thing I can definitely say in Tschichold's favor, he is quite certain of what is proper and what is not.
The Form of the Book was first published in 1975 in Germany and translated and published in English in 1991. Well before desktop publishing and computers. I think even before PostScript printers. So some of Tschichold's information needs to be taken with a grain of salt, some should be drunk down with a good glass of wine, and the rest are some excellent considerations which authors, editors, and publishers should take into account.
The Cover
The cover is black with white text. I did enjoy the layout of the title with the subtitle alternating line by line.
The title is very appropriate as The Form of the Book: Essays on the Morality of Good Design is all about its visible shape or configuration. And Tschichold is definitely on his moral high horse about the proper techniques to use!
February 20, 2022
Una raccolta di saggi sulla tipografia e sulle forma del libro. Sebbene i saggi siano scritti prima dell'avvento delle tecnologie digitali i punti salienti sono ancora validi.
Particolarmente illuminante la differenza fatta dall'autore tra graphic designer e book designer: il primo sempre attento alla moda e alle novità, il secondo attento studioso dei capolavori classici da cui attingere regole e consuetudini; dove la grafica pubblicitaria deve stupire la tipografia deve essere invisibile.
Sebbene alcuni saggi siano molto godibili, alcuni sono decisamente tecnici al limite della pignoleria, l'autore spacca il punto tipografico. Pone l'accento sulla giusta importanza da dare al frontespizio, al paragrafo, al rietro per ogni paragrafo pari al corpo del carattere in uso in composizione, tratta il formato del libro ed il rapporto con i margini, considera la struttura delle note, l'importanza del maiuscoletto, e diverse altre faccende.
Particolarmente illuminante la differenza fatta dall'autore tra graphic designer e book designer: il primo sempre attento alla moda e alle novità, il secondo attento studioso dei capolavori classici da cui attingere regole e consuetudini; dove la grafica pubblicitaria deve stupire la tipografia deve essere invisibile.
Sebbene alcuni saggi siano molto godibili, alcuni sono decisamente tecnici al limite della pignoleria, l'autore spacca il punto tipografico. Pone l'accento sulla giusta importanza da dare al frontespizio, al paragrafo, al rietro per ogni paragrafo pari al corpo del carattere in uso in composizione, tratta il formato del libro ed il rapporto con i margini, considera la struttura delle note, l'importanza del maiuscoletto, e diverse altre faccende.
November 2, 2011
Jan Tschichold's argument runs like this. Good typography should be invisible. It becomes invisible by being tasteful. What is good taste, exactly? Oh, well, you can't argue about it. That would be bad taste, you see. Why, YES, good taste does happen to exactly line up with the the taste of the egoless master typograsphy JAN TSCHICHOLD.
Incredibly pompous load of bullshit. My favourite part is when Tschichold compare the quarto and octavo formats to men and women. The proportions between them are as desirable as the marriage between a man, and a woman, he claims, and to change that proportion is as impossible and undesirable as creating equality between the sexes! Good for a laugh, otherwise, go directly to DUSTBIN OF HISTORY, do not pass go, do not collect 200 dollars.
Incredibly pompous load of bullshit. My favourite part is when Tschichold compare the quarto and octavo formats to men and women. The proportions between them are as desirable as the marriage between a man, and a woman, he claims, and to change that proportion is as impossible and undesirable as creating equality between the sexes! Good for a laugh, otherwise, go directly to DUSTBIN OF HISTORY, do not pass go, do not collect 200 dollars.
October 13, 2020
É um livro que reúne ensaios sobre a concepção do livro. Em todos os pontos, a informação/ensinamentos são preciosos, mesmo nas certas alturas do seu discurso estejam referentes ao passado, presente do autor.
Como designer, que gosta da particularidade editorial, foi um livro capaz de me agarrar e ensinar. É um livro que aconselho, para quem quer algumas reflexões pontuadas, como: formatos do livro, tipografia e como usar esta, composição, questões técnicas (kerning, tracking, caracteres., etc) chegando mesmo a falar-nos do papel.
Um mestre a lembrar.
Um livro a rever.
Como designer, que gosta da particularidade editorial, foi um livro capaz de me agarrar e ensinar. É um livro que aconselho, para quem quer algumas reflexões pontuadas, como: formatos do livro, tipografia e como usar esta, composição, questões técnicas (kerning, tracking, caracteres., etc) chegando mesmo a falar-nos do papel.
Um mestre a lembrar.
Um livro a rever.
May 29, 2025
Tschichold no busca impresionar, sino servir al texto, al lector y al libro como objeto de cultura. Puede sonar rígido pero siento que viene desde unos principios sumamente claros.
Creo que hay muchísimo para tomar sin sentirse atado a sus reglas.
Gracias tschichold, jamás me harán odiarte.
Creo que hay muchísimo para tomar sin sentirse atado a sus reglas.
Gracias tschichold, jamás me harán odiarte.
April 12, 2024
Apesar de rabugento e muitas vezes datado, Tschichold tem experiências e opiniões muito valiosas se usadas com consciência e em comparação com outros autores.
July 4, 2011
Libro che ogni grafico dovrebbe aver letto e meditato.
Leggendolo si comprende l'importanza del rigore nel lavoro. Le regole da conoscere non sono molte e soprattutto sono immutate da secoli: formato dei libri (e brochure), proporzioni dei margini, disposizione del testo nella pagina. La creatività va messa nel rappresentare i contenuti, non in discutibili impaginazioni di fantasia: "apprendisti ciabattini" e "figli di puttana" NON si devono vedere in un buon lavori di grafica (= le righe che giacciono sole abbandonate in una pagina bianca).
Si legge come un romanzo ma fornisce indispensabili e rigorosi schemi per raggiungere risultati d'eccellenza nell'impaginazione.
Leggendolo si comprende l'importanza del rigore nel lavoro. Le regole da conoscere non sono molte e soprattutto sono immutate da secoli: formato dei libri (e brochure), proporzioni dei margini, disposizione del testo nella pagina. La creatività va messa nel rappresentare i contenuti, non in discutibili impaginazioni di fantasia: "apprendisti ciabattini" e "figli di puttana" NON si devono vedere in un buon lavori di grafica (= le righe che giacciono sole abbandonate in una pagina bianca).
Si legge come un romanzo ma fornisce indispensabili e rigorosi schemi per raggiungere risultati d'eccellenza nell'impaginazione.
March 30, 2017
Jan Tischichold was a leading proponent of modernism — he died in the 70s, and left the legacy of the redesigned Penguin Classics books. He later recanted on his rigid views as laid out in Form of the Book. Read it to see deep insights into form and structure of texts; underlying patterns of form stretching back to illuminated manuscripts; the oddities and peculiarities of folks in typography; and how the lack of an indent on a paragraph leads to misunderstanding, cultural ruin, and decay.
The book itself should be highlighted as a paragon of successful typography: beautiful paper, set in Linotype Sabon, and a real pleasure to read.
The book itself should be highlighted as a paragon of successful typography: beautiful paper, set in Linotype Sabon, and a real pleasure to read.
January 4, 2019
I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who was considering studying typography and book design.
Whist some of the methods in book production are obviously outdated, there are parts that are still very current and should be taken into consideration by modern designers. (Particularly the size of book formats and the color of paper used.)
This book is a collection of Tschichold's essays that were written between the 1930s up to the 1970s; originally written in German and later translated into English.
I found them interesting, informative, and sometimes entertaining. (Tschichold doesn't hold back on expressing his opinion.)
Whist some of the methods in book production are obviously outdated, there are parts that are still very current and should be taken into consideration by modern designers. (Particularly the size of book formats and the color of paper used.)
This book is a collection of Tschichold's essays that were written between the 1930s up to the 1970s; originally written in German and later translated into English.
I found them interesting, informative, and sometimes entertaining. (Tschichold doesn't hold back on expressing his opinion.)
January 13, 2023
Давно хотел прочесть эту книгу, буквально с момента её выхода в свет. Примерно из тех же побуждений хочу когда-нибудь приобрести Кристофера Александера "Язык шаблонов. Города. Здания. Строительство". Вообще я люблю читать профессионалов, влюбленных в своё дело, а в случае с этой книгой это и познавательно, хоть и поверхностно, в плане истории книгопечатания, и полезно, так как местами пересекается с моей профессиональной деятельностью, хоть и вскользь. Можно спорить с высказываемыми автором мыслями, но выслушать небесполезно. Рекомендовать не решусь, для меня эта книга своебразный фетиш, но если интересно, как создавались книги и какими они должны быть, то прочитайте. Мне было интересно.
December 15, 2021
Can't believe I hadn't read this book until now. Tschichold is nuts, of course, and ridiculously self-confident in his assertions. But what the haters and losers don't want to admit is that he is almost always exactly right. This work is magnificent, and Tschichold is a shining light.
November 17, 2024
The bible.
Read
July 8, 2012On the subject of the book page and its type area, there are some pages of quite mathematical minutiae, but this supports the overall impression one gains that the secret of typographical success – as with so much else – lies in the details. He loves the finer points of design and book production, and there are eloquent passages on the spacing of ellipses, the thickness of an em-dash, the positioning of illustrations, and – two of his pet hates – white paper and the design of book jackets.
For those with a serious interest in typography, this is a ‘must have’. It belongs alongside works such as Robert Bringhurst’s Elements of Typographic Style as a modern classic. Even if it’s out of print – order it, or keep looking. It’s worth the effort.
For those with a serious interest in typography, this is a ‘must have’. It belongs alongside works such as Robert Bringhurst’s Elements of Typographic Style as a modern classic. Even if it’s out of print – order it, or keep looking. It’s worth the effort.
September 3, 2016
Небольшая, но шикарная книга для графических дизайнеров. Она рассказывает об искусстве оформления книги. Настоящее удовольствие для тех, кто понимает (в буквальном смысле). Если вы не собираетесь в ближайшие годы верстать книгу, то можно не читать, но если вы желаете расширить свой дизайнерский кругозор, то обязательно стоит обратиться к этому изданию. ИЗДАЛовские книги, как всегда, шикарно оформлены и напечатаны.
September 22, 2012
This is Bible of Design..
October 11, 2012
Очень полезная книга для всех, кто работает с оформлением текстов.
Want to read
May 11, 2013The true garment of the book is its cover; the jacket is merely the raincoat.
March 26, 2014
Absolute classic - seminal by the master of the art ...
February 7, 2016
Detailed advice on book design from the one of the masters.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews