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The Best American Infographics 2013
The rise of infographics across virtually all print and electronic media—from a striking breakdown of classic cocktails to a graphic tracking 200 influential moments that changed the world to visually arresting depictions of Twitter traffic—reveals patterns in our lives and our world in fresh and surprising ways. In the era of big data, where information moves faster than ever, infographics provide us with quick, often influential bursts of art and knowledge—on the environment, politics, social issues, health, sports, arts and culture, and more—to digest, to tweet, to share, to go viral.
The Best American Infographics captures the finest examples from the past year, including the ten best interactive infographics, of this mesmerizing new way of seeing and understanding our world.
The Best American Infographics captures the finest examples from the past year, including the ten best interactive infographics, of this mesmerizing new way of seeing and understanding our world.
184 pages, Paperback
First published October 8, 2013
12 people are currently reading
841 people want to read
About the author
Gareth Cook
4 books10 followersGARETH COOK is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, columnist at the Boston Globe, and editor of "Mind Matters," Scientific American’s neuroscience blog.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 62 reviews
February 22, 2014
Oh, infographics. I have so many feelings about you. I think the internet is in love with you, for better and for worse, and I don't know when that will go away, if ever. This book really shows what I love and hate about infographics.
The best ones, really, are not just beautifully designed, but also accurate, logical, meaningful, and revelatory of the facts in a way that prose and photographic images could not convey.
The worst are mishmashes of facts, slickly produced to appear meaningful, but the deeper you go as a reader/viewer, the more confused you get. And even this book contains some of those.
here are some in this book that work really well:
"Should I Check My E-mail?" = classic funny flow-chart, just enough info, beautifully hand-drawn and colored.
"Fever Flow" = public health problems are a natural for the infographic format and visualizing the epidemics is an actual public service.
"And the Oscar Goes to ... New York City"
fun and simple visualization of the locales of all films that have won "Best Picture." Something I didn't even know I've always wondered about, simply visualized in a way that draws me in.
"Just How Fast is Bolt?"
I remember seeing this visualization in the Times of all the fastest sprinters - every Olympic medalist since 1896, it absolutely made sense to see all these little figures put next to each other and made me understand racing in a new way.
here are some that don't:
"The Common Cook's How-Many Guide to Kitchen Conversions" = a great concept, looks beautiful, but is actually pretty difficult to navigate. There's got to be a better way to display that information.
"Sexism, Visualized" - The gender wage gap and so on is a super important topic and one I care about, but the way the data's visualized here is so confusing, and I'm left wishing I'd just read these facts in clear, well-cited prose.
"Your Microbiome" - fascinating, but hard to read. Honestly, I think the pie chart type diagrams really tend to try to cram way too much in and then be hard to peruse.
I will say, though, that all of these infographics, mostly, have the benefit of lots of data, solid research, and good journalism behind them. Which is probably not true of most of the infographics you find out on Buzzfeed or whatnot.
So, all this to say, caveat lector when it comes to infographics.
The best ones, really, are not just beautifully designed, but also accurate, logical, meaningful, and revelatory of the facts in a way that prose and photographic images could not convey.
The worst are mishmashes of facts, slickly produced to appear meaningful, but the deeper you go as a reader/viewer, the more confused you get. And even this book contains some of those.
here are some in this book that work really well:
"Should I Check My E-mail?" = classic funny flow-chart, just enough info, beautifully hand-drawn and colored.
"Fever Flow" = public health problems are a natural for the infographic format and visualizing the epidemics is an actual public service.
"And the Oscar Goes to ... New York City"
fun and simple visualization of the locales of all films that have won "Best Picture." Something I didn't even know I've always wondered about, simply visualized in a way that draws me in.
"Just How Fast is Bolt?"
I remember seeing this visualization in the Times of all the fastest sprinters - every Olympic medalist since 1896, it absolutely made sense to see all these little figures put next to each other and made me understand racing in a new way.
here are some that don't:
"The Common Cook's How-Many Guide to Kitchen Conversions" = a great concept, looks beautiful, but is actually pretty difficult to navigate. There's got to be a better way to display that information.
"Sexism, Visualized" - The gender wage gap and so on is a super important topic and one I care about, but the way the data's visualized here is so confusing, and I'm left wishing I'd just read these facts in clear, well-cited prose.
"Your Microbiome" - fascinating, but hard to read. Honestly, I think the pie chart type diagrams really tend to try to cram way too much in and then be hard to peruse.
I will say, though, that all of these infographics, mostly, have the benefit of lots of data, solid research, and good journalism behind them. Which is probably not true of most of the infographics you find out on Buzzfeed or whatnot.
So, all this to say, caveat lector when it comes to infographics.
October 29, 2015
I teach a dataviz class for statisticians, and so I'm mostly looking for exemplary examples of what you might call statistical graphics: taking a spreadsheet-shaped dataset, with observations in rows and variables in columns, and showing patterns/insights in that.
Some examples here were more what I'd call scientific illustration (how short people dunk, how cheetahs run fast). These were really informative and well-done, just not what I'm looking for.
As for the statistical graphics: this book has lots of beautiful design, but many of them didn't seem to give much insight. Even the introduction-writer admits it:
What a great phrase: "oversized dingbat." I'll have to start using that.
I won't nitpick the dingbats included here. (Except for one: The Death Toll in Breaking Bad---WHY do people misuse the poor periodic table so? This list is not periodic, it's not an effective graphic form, it gives no insight, aaaargh! It's a beautiful poster, but why include such things in this book?)
But these were the ones I did like:
* How Common Is Your Birthday? raises more questions than it answers: Why the dramatic gap around 4th of July, and similarly-sharp jump on Valentine's Day?
* How to Build a Dog: Family Ties is a nice example of loose clustering (without sharp class boundaries), informative sorting, and icons for annotation
* Fifty States of Grey isn't that exceptional of a graphic---but I didn't realize Goodreads even had a data analyst team, much less data visualization staff! May be worth exploring for the next job search :)
* A Campaign Map, Morphed By Money---cartograms have their weaknesses, but the ridiculously dramatic distortion for Ad Spending Per Voter is really effective.
* Mapping Best Picture (item 5 here; I can't find the original, though this seems to be a precursor) is again a cartogram with very effective distortion. This also breaks one of my "rules"---a simple list or table is usually best just arranged in tabular form---but seeing the individual data points (movie names) on the cartogram really does work here.
* Obama Was Not as Strong as in 2008, but Strong Enough: a novel graphic form, well explained when it could have been confusing
* A National Report Card does a great job providing annotations and context---although the map itself would get the point across better as a simple scatterplot.
* The 1% Next Door again breaks a "rule" by showing numbers on a map as text, not graphically; but it works here somehow.
* Usain Bolt Against the Olympic Medalist Field Since 1896 is a clever case of the advice to show comparisons directly
* Number of guns per 100 people: sometimes a simple Excel bar chart is all you need to make a powerful statement.
* The United States redrawn as Fifty States with Equal Population is like the inverse of a cartogram: instead of keeping boundaries where they are but distorting shape, keep the land's surface as it is but change the boundaries until they match the data. Nifty idea, well executed.
* Going, Going, Gone? (sadly I can't find the original) is a really great illustration of how baseball stadiums differ. Players recently signed to a new team and new stadium might hit balls that *would have been* home runs at their old stadium, but aren't in the new one.
* Women as Academic Authors, 1665-2010 is the closest one here to what I'm seeking: show a large dataset informatively, show global comparisons cleanly, then let readers slice & dice for further detail as they please. Although some of the automatically-clustered subfields are pretty weird (in my own field of Probability & Statistics, *nobody* would consider "Negative binomial distribution" to be a major subcategory worth highlighting on its own).
* 512 Paths to the White House is another great interactive: they *could* have forced the reader to navigate by choosing branches one at a time, but showing the global view first (with mouseover for detail) is so much more insightful.
Some examples here were more what I'd call scientific illustration (how short people dunk, how cheetahs run fast). These were really informative and well-done, just not what I'm looking for.
As for the statistical graphics: this book has lots of beautiful design, but many of them didn't seem to give much insight. Even the introduction-writer admits it:
p.xv: "Sometimes a picture or graphic is indeed worth those 1,000 words. Sometimes a graphic is merely a replacement for those words, and sometimes it's an oversized dingbat, merely visually breaking up the blocks of text on the printed or web page."
What a great phrase: "oversized dingbat." I'll have to start using that.
I won't nitpick the dingbats included here. (Except for one: The Death Toll in Breaking Bad---WHY do people misuse the poor periodic table so? This list is not periodic, it's not an effective graphic form, it gives no insight, aaaargh! It's a beautiful poster, but why include such things in this book?)
But these were the ones I did like:
* How Common Is Your Birthday? raises more questions than it answers: Why the dramatic gap around 4th of July, and similarly-sharp jump on Valentine's Day?
* How to Build a Dog: Family Ties is a nice example of loose clustering (without sharp class boundaries), informative sorting, and icons for annotation
* Fifty States of Grey isn't that exceptional of a graphic---but I didn't realize Goodreads even had a data analyst team, much less data visualization staff! May be worth exploring for the next job search :)
* A Campaign Map, Morphed By Money---cartograms have their weaknesses, but the ridiculously dramatic distortion for Ad Spending Per Voter is really effective.
* Mapping Best Picture (item 5 here; I can't find the original, though this seems to be a precursor) is again a cartogram with very effective distortion. This also breaks one of my "rules"---a simple list or table is usually best just arranged in tabular form---but seeing the individual data points (movie names) on the cartogram really does work here.
* Obama Was Not as Strong as in 2008, but Strong Enough: a novel graphic form, well explained when it could have been confusing
* A National Report Card does a great job providing annotations and context---although the map itself would get the point across better as a simple scatterplot.
* The 1% Next Door again breaks a "rule" by showing numbers on a map as text, not graphically; but it works here somehow.
* Usain Bolt Against the Olympic Medalist Field Since 1896 is a clever case of the advice to show comparisons directly
* Number of guns per 100 people: sometimes a simple Excel bar chart is all you need to make a powerful statement.
* The United States redrawn as Fifty States with Equal Population is like the inverse of a cartogram: instead of keeping boundaries where they are but distorting shape, keep the land's surface as it is but change the boundaries until they match the data. Nifty idea, well executed.
* Going, Going, Gone? (sadly I can't find the original) is a really great illustration of how baseball stadiums differ. Players recently signed to a new team and new stadium might hit balls that *would have been* home runs at their old stadium, but aren't in the new one.
* Women as Academic Authors, 1665-2010 is the closest one here to what I'm seeking: show a large dataset informatively, show global comparisons cleanly, then let readers slice & dice for further detail as they please. Although some of the automatically-clustered subfields are pretty weird (in my own field of Probability & Statistics, *nobody* would consider "Negative binomial distribution" to be a major subcategory worth highlighting on its own).
* 512 Paths to the White House is another great interactive: they *could* have forced the reader to navigate by choosing branches one at a time, but showing the global view first (with mouseover for detail) is so much more insightful.
October 31, 2013
Oh no! Somebody forgot to scoot the infographics out from the depths of the book's gutter. Given that these are information-rich layouts, a lot gets swallowed. So -- despite the HUGE fun and smart in so many of the pieces presented here, we have an overall Fail. Also, why did David Byrne need to say any of those words he said? That introduction only adds to the sense that this potentially awesome book was rushed to print.
March 9, 2015
Some good, some not so great. Huge flaw with the book layout– Any graphics that took a full spread were not properly laid out and pinched into the binding and margin so you couldn't see the full graphic. In addition, a lot of the infographics were really not designed for the size of this book and the legibility suffered as a result.
March 12, 2014
I have conflicted feelings on infographics, but this was fun to flip through on breaks.
August 19, 2017
I picked up this book at my local library because I had just started a Coursera data visualization class, and the first assignment involved finding and critiquing a misleading infographic. Having pored over a lot of mediocre infographics to find something particularly bad, I wanted to study some really good ones. In that respect, the book did not disappoint.
But, a couple of formatting issues made the book much less enjoyable than it could have been. Even though it was a relatively large format paperback book, some of the descriptions of the infographics were in a ridiculously small font size. Some pages made even Wired seem like large print. Although the book binding was high quality, it was hard to read some pages that spanned facing pages, because parts of the image and text were buried in the binding.
But, a couple of formatting issues made the book much less enjoyable than it could have been. Even though it was a relatively large format paperback book, some of the descriptions of the infographics were in a ridiculously small font size. Some pages made even Wired seem like large print. Although the book binding was high quality, it was hard to read some pages that spanned facing pages, because parts of the image and text were buried in the binding.
November 16, 2024
The information and data, from the bizarre to the important, was super interesting. The majority of the graphs were just conceptualized very artistically and it made them difficult to read. For the most part they didn't even grab my attention. My husband flipped through and found no interest in it, but when I read him a few of the stats he took interest. If they had been shown a little simpler and visually pleasing, this book would have been great.
July 27, 2019
This was a great collection of infographics. I liked how so many of them seemed relevant to a broad range of readers. The interactive part is weak, considering how they're just not meant to be consumed in book format. I appreciated a lot of illustrated infographics.
September 21, 2018
Fascinating.
June 3, 2021
Even though it's a bit dated some of the infographics still managed to surprise me, in 2021!
August 20, 2023
This book gives you that nostalgic feeling of reading through an almanac as a child. And I long to own a 2011 Between Five Bells wine bottle.
December 18, 2013
A good collection of infographics covering a variety of topics, styles, levels of execution, and publication media (magazine, newspaper, online, gallery). An interesting summary of the infographics of 2013 and the events of 2013 themselves.
The book allows you to quickly thumb through and find interesting visuals but if you actually read the graphics you might be surprised at the time it takes you to get through the book. After all, these graphics were made to present information and many of them have a lot to convey.
I was disappointed with how some of the graphics broke down when forced into this format -- spanning the pages sacrificed information to the binding, large images became difficult to read when sized down to fit this page size/ratio.
Also, I have a huge problem with the centerfold, "Influence: A Brief History. 200 years of transformative moments" from Time. It has to be one of the poorest infographics I've seen, both in terms of precision (the events aren't accurately positioned to the timeline) and in terms of style (the text paths are ridiculous, the layout forces you to jump around with no sense of time or topic flow). Perhaps it's not meant to be the centerpiece of the book and the ratio of the graphic demanded the centerfold, but it certainly feels featured. And a piece this bad has no business being featured.
I kept thinking it's somewhat offensive to limit this collection to the best "American" infographics (i.e., initially published for an American audience). But it made sense once I remembered my experience reading The Functional Art by Alberto Cairo. Though an excellent book, Cairo selects examples from around the globe and my experience with some of them was limited because I don't speak spanish, or an outline of Brazil isn't immediately familiar to me. Regardless of who made the graphics in this collection or where they were when they made them, they're graphics Americans can understand.
Gareth thanks his "Brain Trust" -- people who sent him graphics or offered him advice -- in the back of the book. I don't know exactly how much they contributed, but what an amazing collection of advisors!!
The book allows you to quickly thumb through and find interesting visuals but if you actually read the graphics you might be surprised at the time it takes you to get through the book. After all, these graphics were made to present information and many of them have a lot to convey.
I was disappointed with how some of the graphics broke down when forced into this format -- spanning the pages sacrificed information to the binding, large images became difficult to read when sized down to fit this page size/ratio.
Also, I have a huge problem with the centerfold, "Influence: A Brief History. 200 years of transformative moments" from Time. It has to be one of the poorest infographics I've seen, both in terms of precision (the events aren't accurately positioned to the timeline) and in terms of style (the text paths are ridiculous, the layout forces you to jump around with no sense of time or topic flow). Perhaps it's not meant to be the centerpiece of the book and the ratio of the graphic demanded the centerfold, but it certainly feels featured. And a piece this bad has no business being featured.
I kept thinking it's somewhat offensive to limit this collection to the best "American" infographics (i.e., initially published for an American audience). But it made sense once I remembered my experience reading The Functional Art by Alberto Cairo. Though an excellent book, Cairo selects examples from around the globe and my experience with some of them was limited because I don't speak spanish, or an outline of Brazil isn't immediately familiar to me. Regardless of who made the graphics in this collection or where they were when they made them, they're graphics Americans can understand.
Gareth thanks his "Brain Trust" -- people who sent him graphics or offered him advice -- in the back of the book. I don't know exactly how much they contributed, but what an amazing collection of advisors!!
October 7, 2013
A variety of subjects and styles are represented, including a map from the Goodreads blog. I loved the "Material World" chapter, with its focus on science and historical subjects.
While I appreciated the thought and skill that went into some of the slickest, most complicated graphics, I often preferred the simpler ones that I could take in at a glance. For example, the very existence of a full-page flowchart titled "Should I Check Email" makes an instantly recognizable point.
I'm so used to seeing infograhpics in the context of news reports that it was a bit of a surprise how dated a few of these selections, all created in 2012, already feel. Gaffes from the Republican presidential primary? Tim Tebow as the NFL player with the most SportsCenter mentions? It was like a whole different world.
Some of the layouts make it difficult to see details that are printed across both pages. And while I understand the impulse to include interactive graphics, even showing multiple images from them don't really make them enjoyable in print form. The book includes a URL where readers can check out the interactives for themselves, but the address printed in my copy 404s as of the time of this review (10/7, one day before the book's release). Google came through with a list of links if anyone else would like to poke around in the stuff from the interactive chapter.
I recieved a copy of this book through the Goodreads Giveaway program.
While I appreciated the thought and skill that went into some of the slickest, most complicated graphics, I often preferred the simpler ones that I could take in at a glance. For example, the very existence of a full-page flowchart titled "Should I Check Email" makes an instantly recognizable point.
I'm so used to seeing infograhpics in the context of news reports that it was a bit of a surprise how dated a few of these selections, all created in 2012, already feel. Gaffes from the Republican presidential primary? Tim Tebow as the NFL player with the most SportsCenter mentions? It was like a whole different world.
Some of the layouts make it difficult to see details that are printed across both pages. And while I understand the impulse to include interactive graphics, even showing multiple images from them don't really make them enjoyable in print form. The book includes a URL where readers can check out the interactives for themselves, but the address printed in my copy 404s as of the time of this review (10/7, one day before the book's release). Google came through with a list of links if anyone else would like to poke around in the stuff from the interactive chapter.
I recieved a copy of this book through the Goodreads Giveaway program.
January 13, 2014
I received a copy of this book compliments of Houghton Mifflin through the Goodreads First Reads program.
A diagram of a battle aids the understanding of a description by making the relationships of the forces and their positions clear. A well executed infographic works the same way and doesn't necessarily need further explanation. This book offers a diversified collection of well designed infographics. Yes, there are a few my brain doesn't take to immediately and the type (and sometimes the lack of contrast) are for younger eyes than mine, but overall it is a sampling of the best of 2012 (that's when they were produced). The statements included with each selection often add another dimension to understanding the choices made for the final product. It would be interesting to see six or so examples of the same project rendered by different designers. Both the Foreword by Gareth Cook and Introduction by David Byrne point to the fact that the design of an infographic can hide or distort data as well as make it more understandable. As ever, the manipulators are out there, keep an eye out.
I enjoy this book a great deal and am not done going back to reread and look closer - for once I'm not muttering "couldn't they have included a diagram?"
A diagram of a battle aids the understanding of a description by making the relationships of the forces and their positions clear. A well executed infographic works the same way and doesn't necessarily need further explanation. This book offers a diversified collection of well designed infographics. Yes, there are a few my brain doesn't take to immediately and the type (and sometimes the lack of contrast) are for younger eyes than mine, but overall it is a sampling of the best of 2012 (that's when they were produced). The statements included with each selection often add another dimension to understanding the choices made for the final product. It would be interesting to see six or so examples of the same project rendered by different designers. Both the Foreword by Gareth Cook and Introduction by David Byrne point to the fact that the design of an infographic can hide or distort data as well as make it more understandable. As ever, the manipulators are out there, keep an eye out.
I enjoy this book a great deal and am not done going back to reread and look closer - for once I'm not muttering "couldn't they have included a diagram?"
October 20, 2013
I won this book through Goodreads First Reads, and I can't wait to put it on my coffee table. In some ways it's like a visual time capsule, because many of the infographics will already be dated by this time next year (the one that breaks down social networks using bacon, for example, includes some icons that many people probably won't even recognize in ten years). I think they're chosen well enough, though, that they'll still be interesting as time goes on.
The topics covered by the infographics vary widely: America's most popular birthdays, tornado paths, the anatomy of cocktails, who ESPN likes to talk about the most, the Breaking Bad body count, how many Oscar-nominated movies have taken place in various locations, the history of the bracelet (a lot more interesting than you'd think), what the U.S. would look like if it were divided into fifty states with equal populations. Since they're visual, you can just glance through and see every page in about twenty minutes, or you can spend more time and learn some very cool things. Infographics have gotten on my nerves with their ubiquitousness, but in this format, I'm a fan.
The topics covered by the infographics vary widely: America's most popular birthdays, tornado paths, the anatomy of cocktails, who ESPN likes to talk about the most, the Breaking Bad body count, how many Oscar-nominated movies have taken place in various locations, the history of the bracelet (a lot more interesting than you'd think), what the U.S. would look like if it were divided into fifty states with equal populations. Since they're visual, you can just glance through and see every page in about twenty minutes, or you can spend more time and learn some very cool things. Infographics have gotten on my nerves with their ubiquitousness, but in this format, I'm a fan.
October 13, 2013
Six stars. An instant hit. Looking forward to this new title since Best American announced this inaugural edition, released Tuesday. Infographics = visual storytelling.
Sixty-nine fun, funny, engaging and awesome infographics, each one taking at least a two-page spread. An artist statement appears with each one. About a dozen came from The New York Times. NPR, Washington Post, National Geographic, freelance and other sources make multiple appearances.
Sure these are graphics. But good info and design can engage for as much time as a similar page of solid text. So it's not just a picture book.
The Best American series publishes stories on story paper. But this new title on infographics appears as a little art book on art paper.
David Byrne wrote the introduction.
"Does the work yield insights? Did it challenge me to think? Does it suggest a different view of the world? Do I know something I didn't know before?' — Gareth Cook, editor
In addition to that intellectual power, the editor also looked for aesthetic sophistication, the careful use of color or texture or space. What about the emotional impact: Did it create surprise or laughter?
Sixty-nine fun, funny, engaging and awesome infographics, each one taking at least a two-page spread. An artist statement appears with each one. About a dozen came from The New York Times. NPR, Washington Post, National Geographic, freelance and other sources make multiple appearances.
Sure these are graphics. But good info and design can engage for as much time as a similar page of solid text. So it's not just a picture book.
The Best American series publishes stories on story paper. But this new title on infographics appears as a little art book on art paper.
David Byrne wrote the introduction.
"Does the work yield insights? Did it challenge me to think? Does it suggest a different view of the world? Do I know something I didn't know before?' — Gareth Cook, editor
In addition to that intellectual power, the editor also looked for aesthetic sophistication, the careful use of color or texture or space. What about the emotional impact: Did it create surprise or laughter?
November 6, 2013
I was lucky enough to receive a copy of this book through a Goodreads giveaway.
I was very interested reading this book, having read a number of other books in "The Best American..." series before, and the idea of collecting the best infographics in a year is an interesting proposition. Typically infographics are attached to news articles--to be able to easily represent complex data easily to readers--and by that nature are disposable.
Gareth Cook, the editor of this book, did a good job finding and presenting fascinating charts, maps, and graphs for this book, and you can open the book to any page and find something that will draw your eye in. He should be commended.
However, the nature of the book means that the impact of many of infographics aren't as powerful as they should be. Resizing, lack of context, and placement within the book make the infographics more opaque that they would be in their original setting.
That, however, is an issue that could be made with any book that has reproductions.
All in all, if you're interested in infographics or how information can be presented, this is a worthy read.
I was very interested reading this book, having read a number of other books in "The Best American..." series before, and the idea of collecting the best infographics in a year is an interesting proposition. Typically infographics are attached to news articles--to be able to easily represent complex data easily to readers--and by that nature are disposable.
Gareth Cook, the editor of this book, did a good job finding and presenting fascinating charts, maps, and graphs for this book, and you can open the book to any page and find something that will draw your eye in. He should be commended.
However, the nature of the book means that the impact of many of infographics aren't as powerful as they should be. Resizing, lack of context, and placement within the book make the infographics more opaque that they would be in their original setting.
That, however, is an issue that could be made with any book that has reproductions.
All in all, if you're interested in infographics or how information can be presented, this is a worthy read.
November 12, 2014
Received as an ARC from Houghton Mifflin.
This collection of interesting infographics allows the casually intrigued to flip through in merely a couple of hours or the incredibly obsessed to spend days, weeks, months, or years analyzing the bits of data as they are artistically rendered. Gareth Cook piques the readers mind from the beginning with a fluid, yet detailed, offering of his favorites from the list, while David Byrne connects with the "list afficianado" within us all by categorizing the book into even more segments.
What I found the most amazing was the wide swath of culture that was represented within the data schemes: from the number of mentions of NFL players on specific ESPN shows to the damage done by Hurricane Sandy. Most list or data books detail a particular category and offer rather shallow analysis, while this book spreads the wealth to engage a more disparate portion of the population and still delving deep into the cultural questions.
I highly recommend this book to anybody looking to enjoy themselves and get lost in the beauty of information.
This collection of interesting infographics allows the casually intrigued to flip through in merely a couple of hours or the incredibly obsessed to spend days, weeks, months, or years analyzing the bits of data as they are artistically rendered. Gareth Cook piques the readers mind from the beginning with a fluid, yet detailed, offering of his favorites from the list, while David Byrne connects with the "list afficianado" within us all by categorizing the book into even more segments.
What I found the most amazing was the wide swath of culture that was represented within the data schemes: from the number of mentions of NFL players on specific ESPN shows to the damage done by Hurricane Sandy. Most list or data books detail a particular category and offer rather shallow analysis, while this book spreads the wealth to engage a more disparate portion of the population and still delving deep into the cultural questions.
I highly recommend this book to anybody looking to enjoy themselves and get lost in the beauty of information.
January 10, 2015
Hmmm. Some of the infographics are really interesting, entertaining, enlightening... but as with other forms of print, they can be misleading. I slogged my way through the introductions, which seemed somewhat interesting... but wordy. I don't know if this was the best format, because some of them were too hard to read and many of them disappeared into the gutter. The first page of the Titanic had print way too small to read.
I wonder if a book is the best place for these, although the idea of just putting the book out for students to look at would be an interesting experience. Even though I taught science for over two decades, I found some of the graphics confusing. The graphic on American education seemed very disjointed and biased to me. The infographics are only as unbiased as the statistics that are used to create them. I wouldn't consider Goodreads as a completely scientific source for readership. The ESPN graphic would look completely different in a slightly different time period. To fully appreciate Bear 71, you really need to go online
Some of my favorites: best picture winners, dog breeds, the SuperBowl halftime.
I wonder if a book is the best place for these, although the idea of just putting the book out for students to look at would be an interesting experience. Even though I taught science for over two decades, I found some of the graphics confusing. The graphic on American education seemed very disjointed and biased to me. The infographics are only as unbiased as the statistics that are used to create them. I wouldn't consider Goodreads as a completely scientific source for readership. The ESPN graphic would look completely different in a slightly different time period. To fully appreciate Bear 71, you really need to go online
Some of my favorites: best picture winners, dog breeds, the SuperBowl halftime.
January 7, 2014
Received as an ARC from Houghton Mifflin.
This collection of interesting infographics allows the casually intrigued to flip through in merely a couple of hours or the incredibly obsessed to spend days, weeks, months, or years analyzing the bits of data as they are artistically rendered. Gareth Cook piques the readers mind from the beginning with a fluid, yet detailed, offering of his favorites from the list, while David Byrne connects with the "list afficianado" within us all by categorizing the book into even more segments.
What I found the most amazing was the wide swath of culture that was represented within the data schemes: from the number of mentions of NFL players on specific ESPN shows to the damage done by Hurricane Sandy. Most list or data books detail a particular category and offer rather shallow analysis, while this book spreads the wealth to engage a more disparate portion of the population and still delving deep into the cultural questions.
I highly recommend this book to anybody looking to enjoy themselves and get lost in the beauty of information.
This collection of interesting infographics allows the casually intrigued to flip through in merely a couple of hours or the incredibly obsessed to spend days, weeks, months, or years analyzing the bits of data as they are artistically rendered. Gareth Cook piques the readers mind from the beginning with a fluid, yet detailed, offering of his favorites from the list, while David Byrne connects with the "list afficianado" within us all by categorizing the book into even more segments.
What I found the most amazing was the wide swath of culture that was represented within the data schemes: from the number of mentions of NFL players on specific ESPN shows to the damage done by Hurricane Sandy. Most list or data books detail a particular category and offer rather shallow analysis, while this book spreads the wealth to engage a more disparate portion of the population and still delving deep into the cultural questions.
I highly recommend this book to anybody looking to enjoy themselves and get lost in the beauty of information.
October 10, 2013
*This review is part of the First Reads program.*
Many of the infographics in this book are excellent tools for teaching analysis in the English composition classroom, which is why I was excited to receive it.
Portions of the book I found especially useful are Byrne's introduction, "The Rules of Invention" by Hagland, Matthews-Ramo, and Pagels, "Understanding Social Media--with Bacon" by Smith, "A Better Food Label" by Bittman, Marsh, Dorfman, Werner, and Forss, "Sexism Visualized" by McGill, "American Education Gets a Grade" by Allan and Kiss Me I'm Polish, and "A Magnificent Horse Is Brought to Life" by Cuadra and Berkowitz.
I agree with other reviewers when they say the interactive chapter was not as accessible as it could have been, but I understand the impulse to include screen shots and URLs of digital infographics.
I intend to teach segments of this book, but I also think it's a great coffee table text or conversation starter.
Many of the infographics in this book are excellent tools for teaching analysis in the English composition classroom, which is why I was excited to receive it.
Portions of the book I found especially useful are Byrne's introduction, "The Rules of Invention" by Hagland, Matthews-Ramo, and Pagels, "Understanding Social Media--with Bacon" by Smith, "A Better Food Label" by Bittman, Marsh, Dorfman, Werner, and Forss, "Sexism Visualized" by McGill, "American Education Gets a Grade" by Allan and Kiss Me I'm Polish, and "A Magnificent Horse Is Brought to Life" by Cuadra and Berkowitz.
I agree with other reviewers when they say the interactive chapter was not as accessible as it could have been, but I understand the impulse to include screen shots and URLs of digital infographics.
I intend to teach segments of this book, but I also think it's a great coffee table text or conversation starter.
October 31, 2013
This book is quite beautiful. The graphics are stunning--crisp, clear, and full-color images on every page. It's the type of book you want to leave out for friends to flip through. There are several instances, however, when the infographics are printed over two pages. In these cases, the binding running through the center of the image is an unwelcome distraction. The infographic about gun ownership rates actually requires you to turn the page to see all of it.
At the end of the book, the author included some interactive infographics taken from various websites. They unsurprisingly lose something in translation.
The infographics in this book certainly speak for themselves, but I enjoyed reading the artist statements as well. I wish the author had included some of his own commentary.
I recieved a copy of this book through the Goodreads Giveaway program.
At the end of the book, the author included some interactive infographics taken from various websites. They unsurprisingly lose something in translation.
The infographics in this book certainly speak for themselves, but I enjoyed reading the artist statements as well. I wish the author had included some of his own commentary.
I recieved a copy of this book through the Goodreads Giveaway program.
May 6, 2014
I loved the idea of this book. Infographics are great! It was interesting and informative and covered a wide range of subjects and styles. What was most disappointing was the format of the book. Often the font was a bit too small to read legibly and they also could have used a very hard look at the format. There were many instances where the infographic was spread over the two pages and text and picture got lost in the book binding between. It was a highly frustrating experience for something that should have been beautifully designed. The focus was a little heavy on political infographics because of the recent presidential election but how they split the information into "me, you, etc" was interesting. I'd read the next year's edition of this.
October 15, 2013
I received The Best American Infographics 2013 as part of a Goodreads giveaway.
Fantastically fun book that samples infographics from around the country. Some are humorous (The Rules of Invention, with careers being ranked on the question "Can I make stuff up?"), others more serious. Topics range from the political (The Amazing Morphing Campaign Money Map) to the demographic (America's Most Popular Birthdays) to pop culture (What Does ESPN Talk About? and Who Reads Erotica?)
Great book that packs a big informational punch with relatively few words.
Fantastically fun book that samples infographics from around the country. Some are humorous (The Rules of Invention, with careers being ranked on the question "Can I make stuff up?"), others more serious. Topics range from the political (The Amazing Morphing Campaign Money Map) to the demographic (America's Most Popular Birthdays) to pop culture (What Does ESPN Talk About? and Who Reads Erotica?)
Great book that packs a big informational punch with relatively few words.
December 3, 2013
No surprise here: the best one was by Randall Munroe of xkcd. Runners up in terms of usefulness include the "When are Fruits in Season?" and "Every Cocktail."
A lot of these were incredibly beautiful and interesting, but were busier than I was able to really handle. The few that they put in for their simplicity were almost too simple. Regardless, a really cool book, especially if you work with infographics regularly. I make some for the organization I work for, and they are shit, so I can appreciate how much skill and talent goes into making decent infographics.
A lot of these were incredibly beautiful and interesting, but were busier than I was able to really handle. The few that they put in for their simplicity were almost too simple. Regardless, a really cool book, especially if you work with infographics regularly. I make some for the organization I work for, and they are shit, so I can appreciate how much skill and talent goes into making decent infographics.
March 25, 2014
"This book was something special. With no narrative, and hardly any uniform text, one would expect it to be a book fairly devoid of information. In fact, it is packed cover-to-cover with information about the oceans, cocktails, and the way we live our lives. I was pleasantly surprised by this book, expecting it to be either intellectually sterile or so full of info that it was unreadable. Despite the subject matter, however, the book manages to be easily understood, with a note from each infographic author. This is definitely a worthwhile read, and a great book to own."
October 16, 2013
A FirstReads GoodReads Winner.
Hello! This book starts with a paragraph about Idaho. How cool is that.
A wonderful look at some of the data and information of the past year. It deserves 5 stars except that within a few years it will be dated -- but that happens with pop culture anyway.
I've put this one on the coffee table. It will be a delight and conversation starter for the year to come I am sure.
Hello! This book starts with a paragraph about Idaho. How cool is that.
A wonderful look at some of the data and information of the past year. It deserves 5 stars except that within a few years it will be dated -- but that happens with pop culture anyway.
I've put this one on the coffee table. It will be a delight and conversation starter for the year to come I am sure.
December 7, 2013
I'm a huge fan of infographics so it was pretty easy to like this book. The info graphics cover a wide range of disciplines and formats; there is something for everyone here. This book also makes me think everyone should take a course or courses in statistics, data analysis, research methods, etc. We really need to be able to accurately interpret and analyze the vast amount of data we're given daily.
Overall, fun and enlightening!
Overall, fun and enlightening!
December 29, 2013
The designs and graphics in this book are amazing, inspiring, and unreal. The concise and effective ways these artists, journalists and statisticians have found to represent data simply blow my mind. I just love it when statistics can be displayed in such an artful manner. At its heart, statistics exists to explain data in some context and these graphics are excellent tools to that end. I wish I had posters of so many of these!
June 18, 2015
Lots of great info graphics. Some just ok. I was disappointed by the amount of info that got lost due poor book design. I know most of these infographics were originally designed for newspapers or magazines or screens, but there must have been a better way to fit them in a book so the reader isn't always fighting the gutter (is that the right term? the crease?). The one gatefold page was well used. Would have liked to see more of those.
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