Comic Sans: The Biography of a Typeface

by Simon Garfield

By Simon Garfield Since its improvised creation at Microsoft in the mid-1990s, Comic Sans has become one of the most used and talked-about typefaces of the digital age. The subject of April Fools pranks and endless internet discourse, it has spawned a movement to ban it, inspired revivals and spinoffs, and continues to be widely promoted by educators. In this delightful history, best-selling author Simon Garfield tells the story of how Comic Sans emerged from speech bubbles on educational software to become one of the most recognized—and reviled—typefaces on earth. He considers how the computer transformed type into something that anyone could use and have an opinion on, explores how new fonts emerge with changing times and technology, and meets die-hard Comic Sans adherents and haters. He concludes the book by asking the Could Comic Sans now be the coolest typeface ever made? Includes Bibliography and List of Further Reading, as well as an index Book 3 of Garfield's ABC of Fonts Series Jacket design by Derek Thornton Published by W. W. Norton & Company, 2024 Hardcover, 123 pages, b&w, 4.75 × 7.5 inches 978-1-32-408624-6

Unknown Binding

About the author

Simon Garfield is a British journalist and non-fiction author. He was educated at the independent University College School in Hampstead, London, and the London School of Economics, where he was the Executive Editor of The Beaver. He also regularly writes for The Observer newspaper.