Best design books on Reddit
105 reviews from r/graphic_design, r/Permaculture, r/Design and 9 more subreddits
105 reviews from
and
By Brand
/By Product
#1
Amazon
4.7
(25)
"An insightful book on interaction design."
"Basically the bible for the agile sprint framework used in companies and studios around the world."
"A great tool to have around when you're looking for ways to incorporate the users voice into your designs or concepts."
"A great resource for designing great products."
"It helps you learn how to apply grids into your layouts and create more cohesive designs."
"A great book for designers of all disciplines, it talks about how to approach design and how to effectively work and lead teams as a designer."
"A solid design book that is valuable to designers of all disciplines."
"An essential read for interaction design."
"A must-read for RPG designers to understand probability."
"An essential guide for typography enthusiasts."
#2
N/A
4.4
(5)
"It includes photos and floor plans of a lot of small houses and apartments all over the world, furnished in many different styles."
"Element's of Typographic Style"
"The Art of Game Design emphasizes workflow and psychology, making it a valuable resource for understanding narrative in games."
"Primetime Adventures is another great example of a narrative-driven RPG that can help understand compelling game design."
"Fiasco is a narrative-heavy RPG that provides insights into engaging storytelling."
#3
Mollison
4.3
(3)
"A comprehensive guide to permaculture that is worth the investment."
"A great introductory book for those new to permaculture."
"Very dense and worth reading, but not easy to read through for many folks."
#4
Bruno Munari
5.0
(2)
"Bruno Munari, Enzo Mari and Thomas Maldonado books."
"Bruno Munari books"
#5
The Elements of Typographic Style
5.0
(2)
"Good basics are Thinking With Type, The Elements of Typographic Style, and The Typographic Idea Book."
"Here is a list of books that I found useful."
#6
Gaia's Garden
5.0
(2)
"If you're in the suburbs, then Gia's Garden."
"I think Gaia’s Garden by Toby Hemenway would be good for you."
#7
Ellen Lupton
5.0
(2)
"• Design is Storytelling by Ellen Lupton"
"Thinking With Type, Ellen Lupton"
#8
Patrick Holleman
5.0
(2)
"An insightful look into another classic JRPG."
"A detailed analysis of a classic JRPG."
#9
Jan V. Wright
5.0
(2)
"I found Editing by Design by Jan V. Wright great for magazines."
"You can also find Designing for Magazines free on his website for specific case studies."
#10
Don Norman
4.5
(2)
"A must-read for anyone interested in design and usability."
"Great for learning about human centered design and ease of operation."
#11
Permaculture: A Designer's Manual
5.0
(1)
"If you have more land, then Mollison's Permaculture: A Designer's Manual."
#12
Edible Forest Gardens
5.0
(1)
"Edible Forest Gardens by Dave Jacke and Eric Toensmeier."
#13
Objectified
5.0
(1)
"Not a book but Objectified is a documentary that looks at industrial design through a few different lenses."
#14
Rob Thompson
5.0
(1)
"Material/manufacturing books by Rob Thompson"
#15
Nigel Cross
5.0
(1)
"Design thinking, Nigel Cross"
#16
99% Invisible
5.0
(1)
"Not a book but a PodCast called 99% invisible is really well made. It’s all about design. Couldn't recommend it enough."
#17
Learn UI Design
5.0
(1)
"This complete guide by Erik Kennedy of Learn UI Design should get you pretty far."
#18
Edible Landscaping with a Permaculture Twist
5.0
(1)
"This is one of the easiest design books I’ve come across and has multiple easy garden bed ideas."
#19
The Permaculture Handbook: Garden Farming for Town and Country
5.0
(1)
"Peter Bane"
#20
Practical Permaculture
5.0
(1)
"By Jessi Bloom and Dave Boehnlein"
#21
Around the World in 80 Plants
5.0
(1)
"By Stephen Barstow"
#22
Burn Your Portfolio
5.0
(1)
"Is one I like."
#23
Thinking With Type
5.0
(1)
"Good basics are Thinking With Type, The Elements of Typographic Style, and The Typographic Idea Book."
#24
The Typographic Idea Book
5.0
(1)
"Good basics are Thinking With Type, The Elements of Typographic Style, and The Typographic Idea Book."
#25
Michael Evamy
5.0
(1)
"[Logo by Michael Evamy]"
#26
Josef Albers
5.0
(1)
"[Interaction of Color by Josef Albers]"
#27
Josef Muller-Brockman
5.0
(1)
"[Grid Systems in Graphic Design by Josef Muller-Brockman]"
#28
Carolina De Bartolo
5.0
(1)
"[Explorations in Typography by Carolina De Bartolo]"
#29
Meredith Davis
5.0
(1)
"• Visual Communication Design: An Introduction to Design Concepts in Everyday Experience by Meredith Davis"
#30
Cramsie
5.0
(1)
"The Story of Graphic Design, Cramsie"
#31
Myquillyn Smith
5.0
(1)
"Both of Myquillyn Smith's books, for sure."
#32
Kevin Duncan
5.0
(1)
"• The Ideas Book by Kevin Duncan"
#33
Clayton
5.0
(1)
"The Golden Thread, Clayton"
#34
Robert Bringhurst
5.0
(1)
"*The Elements of Typographic Style* — Robert Bringhurst"
#35
Alan Fletcher
5.0
(1)
"The Art of Looking Sideways"
#36
Emily Henderson
5.0
(1)
"She's got 1 book out (Styled: Secrets for Arranging Rooms, from Tabletops to Bookshelves) and another forthcoming."
#37
Austin Kleon
5.0
(1)
"• Steal Like an Artist by Austin Kleon"
#38
Middendorp
5.0
(1)
"Shaping Text, Middendorp"
#39
Timothy Samara
5.0
(1)
"Making and Breaking the Grid, Timothy Samara"
#40
Grace Lees-Maffei and Kjetil Fallan
5.0
(1)
"Made in Italy: Rethinking a Century of Italian Design by Grace Lees-Maffei and Kjetil Fallan"
#41
Jessica Hische
5.0
(1)
"In Progress, Hische"
#42
Nelson
5.0
(1)
"How to See, Nelson"
#43
Ellen Lupton and Jennifer Cole Phillips
5.0
(1)
"Graphic Design: The New Basics, Lupton and Phillips"
#44
Young
5.0
(1)
"Fonts and Logos, Young"
#45
Jost Hochuli
5.0
(1)
"*Designing Books: Practice and Theory* — Jost Hochuli"
#46
Betsy Helmuth
5.0
(1)
"I have found Big Design, Small Budget by Betsy Helmuth to be a handy guide for the -very- basics."
#47
John F. Pile
5.0
(1)
"A History of Interior Design 3rd Edition by John F. Pile"
#48
Frank Chimero
5.0
(1)
"Not so much about Theory or History but more about how to think about creating and designing. Definitely worth a read and it's free!"
#49
Visual Ideas
5.0
(1)
"Fantastic book with loads of helpful ideas and beautiful imagery."
#50
Brad Lancaster
5.0
(1)
"It’s really accessible, has great examples of small scale projects for an urban setting and explains permaculture in a way anyone can understand."
#51
Kim Bjorn
5.0
(1)
"Push Turn Move by Kim Bjorn is beautiful"
#52
Dominic Bradbury
5.0
(1)
"It is pricey but worth it, you can find it on amazon for about £30."
#53
Beth Tondreau
5.0
(1)
"Layout Essentials by Beth Tondreau is a really nice intro to grid systems."
#54
Drew de Soto
5.0
(1)
"It has tonnes of helpful information that I refer back to regularly."
#55
101 Design Methods
4.0
(1)
"Good for learning UX research and ethnography"
#56
Reddit Booklist
4.0
(1)
"There are a ton of resources on reddit."
#57
Non-Reddit Booklist
4.0
(1)
"[Non reddit booklist](https://designonething.com/2016/08/13/useful-graphic-design-books/)"
#58
Scott Robertson
4.0
(1)
"How to draw: Scott Robertson"
#59
Julia Cameron
4.0
(1)
"As far as generic book recommendation though, The Artist's Way is worth checking out. It's on strengthening/maintaining creative flow."
#60
Material
4.0
(1)
"[https://material.io/design](https://material.io/design)"
#61
Apple
4.0
(1)
"Reading Material Design and Human interface Guideline would help, not an easy read though, takes some time to get used to."
#62
BBC
4.0
(1)
"I stumbled across this BBC show called Design Rules from the early 2000s. I learned a lot from watching it."
#63
Humble Book Bundle
4.0
(1)
"Lots of game design books available in this Humble Book Bundle."
#64
A Theory of Fun for Game Design
4.0
(1)
"A Theory of Fun for Game Design might be what you're looking for."
#65
The Art of Game Design: A Book of Lenses
4.0
(1)
"I read The Art of Game Design: A Book of Lenses by Jesse Schell and it seemed good at the time."
#66
Level Up
4.0
(1)
"Level Up is the book you are looking for."
#67
5questionsfor100designers.com
4.0
(1)
"I'm gonna plug 5questionsfor100designers.com as a great resource for finding books to check out."
#68
AIGA
3.0
(1)
"The only thing that comes close on my shelve's are a few 365 AIGA Year In Design which is just a collection of work that's not identity focused."
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