About the Book
'Congratulations, you have decided to open this book, even though you have no idea what it's about, and the cover is weird and seemingly at cross-purposes and possibly even pretentious. But you opened it anyway. And you know what? That was a design decision. Yes indeed, whether you realised it or not, most of the decisions you make, every day, are by design...Take my word for it, you are a designer. 'Chip Kidd opens with the promise that everyone is a designer, and uses every page to show the reader why that is. Each spread explains and demonstrates a critical introductory graphic design concept, the same ones taught in the first year of art school: form, size, scale, repetition and pattern, colour, typography, etc. Beautifully designed, and clearly explained, GO: A Kidd's Guide to Graphic Design, is an original, truly one of a kind.
About the Author :
Chip Kidd is an award-winning designer whose work for Knopf and other publishers helped create a revolution in book design. He is also the author of two novels, The Cheese Monkeys and The Learners, as well as the graphic novel Batman: Death by Design. He lectures frequently on design, and his 2012 TED talk was cited as one of the “funniest of the year.” Mr. Kidd divides his time among New York City; Stonington, Connecticut; and Palm Beach, Florida.
Review :
Kidd’s folksy, conversational tone, in which he speaks directly to readers, is appealing. . . . This is a book not only for art classes, but also for courses in journalism, communications, media, and writing, for units on persuasive writing and advertising, and to demonstrate how strong visual images convey meaning and appeal."
– School Library Journal (starred review)
"Beginning with the striking cover design—a red stop sign reading "GO"—this book challenges our assumptions about what we see and read. Kidd skillfully uses typography and illustration to demonstrate how graphic design informs the ways we make decisions that affect our lives. . . . An engaging introduction to a critical feature of our modern, design-rich environment."
– Kirkus Reviews
"A series of lucid, witty, and absorbing analyses of graphic design techniques . . . tomorrow’s designers will want to grab a pencil and get going."
– Publishers Weekly
“'GO: A Kidd's Guide To Graphic Design,' is pretty awesome.”
– The Huffington Post
“Kidd . . . uses his writing skill to make design theory more interesting and appealing for young artists. . . . A great choice for the high school student considering a design career and perhaps for older or younger readers as well.”
– Library Journal
“Chip Kidd is the world’s pre-eminent book-jacket designer. He’s done more than 1,000 of them, and built such a sterling reputation that several high-profile authors, including Oliver Sacks, have it in their contracts that Kidd design their book covers. The man has mastered graphic design. But that’s not to say his job is without challenges. One of the more recent ones? How to think like a 10-year-old. . . . Kidd faced that challenge to create his new book, Go: A Kidd’s Guide to Graphic Design. The book covers the fundamentals of graphic design: form, typography, content and concept. . . . Kidd’s book features many examples of great design, including some of his own covers, to illustrate points. It’s as much a visual experience as an intellectual one, which is a measure of great graphic design. . . The ideas in Go are simple, whether it is playing with scale or how fonts convey meaning. And they are all put forward so clearly and with such visual flair that readers will walk away feeling like junior Milton Glasers. Many, actually, maybe not so junior. . . . Considering that it’s a Chip Kidd book, meaning fantastically designed, and that it covers a very popular subject, there’s a good chance that some adults will grab it for themselves.”
– The Globe and Mail
“Chip Kidd has been called the closest thing to a rock star in the design world. . . . In his new book, Go: A Kidd’s Guide to Graphic Design, Kidd shares this rock star wisdom with the pubescent set, explaining the basics of typography, form, function, color, branding with playful narration and eye-popping visuals. . . . It’s written for young readers aged 10 and up, but its witty, direct approach makes it a perfect primer for older design rookies as well. And the design of the book itself is, of course, far too beautiful to be reserved just for children.”
–Co.Design, a Fast Company blog
“The design superstar gives us a crash course in the field; not surprisingly the book itself is extraordinarily designed!”
–Pop Candy, a USA Today blog
“A thing of beauty.”
–People Magazine
“In Go, Kidd—the renowned book-jacket designer—repeats the mantra “Form follows function” and adheres to it beautifully. The form of the book—a clever meld of text and images—follows its function, which is to convey the fundamentals of graphic design. Even if you’re not an aspiring graphic artist, you’ll learn the logic behind common symbols, like button arrangements on remote controls or the typefaces used in novels.”
–Entertainment Weekly
“At a time when arts programs in schools are under assault, [Go: A Kidd's Guide to Graphic Design] offers a beautiful distillation of the principles of great design and the careful decisions that go into making things look the way they do. The book is "for kids," but this grown-up was captivated too.”
—Ed Catmull, president of Pixar and Disney Animation, in the Wall Street Journal
Kidd’s folksy, conversational tone, in which he speaks directly to readers, is appealing. . . . This is a book not only for art classes, but also for courses in journalism, communications, media, and writing, for units on persuasive writing and advertising, and to demonstrate how strong visual images convey meaning and appeal."
– School Library Journal (starred review)
"Beginning with the striking cover design—a red stop sign reading "GO"—this book challenges our assumptions about what we see and read. Kidd skillfully uses typography and illustration to demonstrate how graphic design informs the ways we make decisions that affect our lives. . . . An engaging introduction to a critical feature of our modern, design-rich environment."
– Kirkus Reviews
"A series of lucid, witty, and absorbing analyses of graphic design techniques . . . tomorrow’s designers will want to grab a pencil and get going."
– Publishers Weekly
“'GO: A Kidd's Guide To Graphic Design,' is pretty awesome.”
– The Huffington Post
“Kidd . . . uses his writing skill to make design theory more interesting and appealing for young artists. . . . A great choice for the high school student considering a design career and perhaps for older or younger readers as well.”
– Library Journal
“Chip Kidd is the world’s pre-eminent book-jacket designer. He’s done more than 1,000 of them, and built such a sterling reputation that several high-profile authors, including Oliver Sacks, have it in their contracts that Kidd design their book covers. The man has mastered graphic design. But that’s not to say his job is without challenges. One of the more recent ones? How to think like a 10-year-old. . . . Kidd faced that challenge to create his new book, Go: A Kidd’s Guide to Graphic Design. The book covers the fundamentals of graphic design: form, typography, content and concept. . . . Kidd’s book features many examples of great design, including some of his own covers, to illustrate points. It’s as much a visual experience as an intellectual one, which is a measure of great graphic design. . . The ideas in Go are simple, whether it is playing with scale or how fonts convey meaning. And they are all put forward so clearly and with such visual flair that readers will walk away feeling like junior Milton Glasers. Many, actually, maybe not so junior. . . . Considering that it’s a Chip Kidd book, meaning fantastically designed, and that it covers a very popular subject, there’s a good chance that some adults will grab it for themselves.”
– The Globe and Mail
“Chip Kidd has been called the closest thing to a rock star in the design world. . . . In his new book, Go: A Kidd’s Guide to Graphic Design, Kidd shares this rock star wisdom with the pubescent set, explaining the basics of typography, form, function, color, branding with playful narration and eye-popping visuals. . . . It’s written for young readers aged 10 and up, but its witty, direct approach makes it a perfect primer for older design rookies as well. And the design of the book itself is, of course, far too beautiful to be reserved just for children.”
–Co.Design, a Fast Company blog
“The design superstar gives us a crash course in the field; not surprisingly the book itself is extraordinarily designed!”
–Pop Candy, a USA Today blog
“A thing of beauty.”
–People Magazine
“In Go, Kidd—the renowned book-jacket designer—repeats the mantra “Form follows function” and adheres to it beautifully. The form of the book—a clever meld of text and images—follows its function, which is to convey the fundamentals of graphic design. Even if you’re not an aspiring graphic artist, you’ll learn the logic behind common symbols, like button arrangements on remote controls or the typefaces used in novels.”
–Entertainment Weekly
“At a time when arts programs in schools are under assault, [Go: A Kidd's Guide to Graphic Design] offers a beautiful distillation of the principles of great design and the careful decisions that go into making things look the way they do. The book is "for kids," but this grown-up was captivated too.”
—Ed Catmull, president of Pixar and Disney Animation, in the Wall Street Journal
