Il Gioco Della Lettura

by Gerard Unger

This book is about everything that happens while you’re reading – in front of your eyes and inside your head – and about what type designers, typographers and graphic designers bring to a page to make it happen.

Renowned type designer Gerard Unger distills decades of design experience into a playful, accessible text that reflects the range of his professional projects, from designing the fonts read daily by millions in USA Today to being responsible for the look of the highway and metro signs in the Netherlands.

For Unger, regardless of the application, designers should always consider two important questions: How is it possible to read without seeing any letters? To what extent do all readers possess hidden typographic knowledge? Keeping these two core ideas in mind, Unger explores such topics as legibility, invisible typography, pattern recognition, the reading process, the ergonomics of letterforms, the universe of signs, negative space and typographic illusions.

The most seasoned typographers and designers will find as much value in this fresh, first-ever English translation as beginners and the curious who have always wondered how reading happens.

Genres: Design, Nonfiction, Art, Reference, Art Design

221 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Gerard Unger was a world-renowned type designer. He studied graphic design, typography and type design at the Gerrit Rietveld Academy and later taught there as well as at at the University of Reading and the University of Leiden. A freelance designer since 1975, he designed stamps, coins, magazines, newspapers, books, logos, corporate identities, and many typefaces.

In 1984 he was awarded the H.N. Werkman Prize for his typographic work, for digital type designs in particular, and for his reconciliation of technology and typographic culture. In 1988 he won the Gravisie-prijs for the concept of his typeface Swift, and in 1991 he was awarded the international Maurits Enschedé-Prize. He wrote articles for the trade press, and several larger publications such as ‘Landscape with Letters’, linking the usually limited scope of type and typography with a much wider cultural view. His book ‘Terwijl je leest’ on the process of reading was published in 1995 and a new edition was published in 2006.

Reviews

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, I would recommend While You're Reading because it has a number of things working for it. The book is written in a conversational tone that pulls you into the material. It also covers a lot if interesting things that have a studied scientific basis, like how a reader's eyes move across the page. The author is also able to compile a lot of anecdotal information on why things are designed as they are for functionality into formulated thoughts that are neatly sectioned into chapters.

On the other hand, there are a few spots where I thought the author could have expanded more on the subject at hand. I appreciate that books were referenced for additional reading, but I would have liked to have read more within the chapter. On the positive side, I liked the personal stories included about Unger's experiences with creating typefaces for different applications and his thoughts on what inspires his work with type. I found this book to be an enjoyable read on a subject that could have easily fallen into an impenetrable drone.

[Eclectic Indulgence · Rating 2 out of 5]

I learned a few things, but dislike the way this book was structured. It was hard to follow the point exactly... and the title is not representative of the content which is largely about typography / creation of fonts.

[Colleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a fun, quick, and informative read. I also really liked the design of the text.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This has some real interest. It discusses what actually happens in the eye and the brain when we read. The way it's designed, you can actually observe yourself doing it while you're reading the book, and it's startling and fascinating. We can READ the word fascinating for example--meaning we look at it--it's a combination of many letters--and it's a visual pattern we recognize, Within milliseconds our brain connects a treasure of meaning and association and familiarity. And we read in phrases--we take in as described a number of these words with their instant recognitions at once. It's amazing. Who knows how we do it? We are amazing creatures.I read all the time and think nothing of it. It's good to have the wonder of it brought to my attention. There's also a very good historical section on typography which was a pleasure for me to read. Having more historical information makes me feel less vulnerable to typography's fads and more confident in and grounded in my own tastes. It's written from an artist's point of view and looks at the way various font styles were made in reaction and relation to other font styles. And there's a really good section on designing your own fonts. Plus it's fun to hold and read a book that's so self-consciously designed.

[Deniz Cem Önduygu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Straightforward, no-nonsense, rational, rich, fluent. Covers the whole spectrum from minute details of glyphs to big questions such as "Why do typographers freak out over details while other people don't even notice them?" Highly recommended for people interested in typography/reading who want more than descriptions of leading and kerning.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book is mostly an idiosyncratic tour through typography, and that falls in line with Unger's outlook on how we design and use type. Nothing outlandish or shocking, just a series of short essays on why designers design type when most of their audience never notices it.

[Ramon de Santiago · Rating 3 out of 5]

Have to give this book another read. Found it by chance while hunting down other Dutch typography books. Just read a quick review on Nijhof & Lee which makes me think I should give this more time.

[Jacques le fataliste et son maître · Rating 5 out of 5]

Le riflessioni di un grande designer di caratteri sulla lettura e sulle parole scritte.