This book consists of 100 “articles”, each of which illustrates a design principle in words and with examples. The examples are usually illuminating, and the text is concise and clear (except for a few typos in the first few articles).

The design principles are wide-ranging, from laws of perception to steps in the design process. Some specific examples: “80/20 Rule”, “Constancy”, “Garbage In-Garbage Out”, “Golden Ratio”, “Life Cycle”, “Most Average Facial Appearance Effect”, “Orientation Sensitivity”, “Recognition Over Recall”, “Storytelling”, “Three-Dimensional Projection”.

As you go through this book, you will likely think of your own projects and how they can be improved by incorporating these design principles. I know that it has inspired me to make changes to some of the projects I am currently working on! A thought-provoking and useful book. I may buy a copy and flip through it when designing every new project I’m on, to make me think hard about the design process and what can be incorporated to make my design better. (Note that I’m not a designer: just about every project, though, involves presenting information in some way, and then this book will come in handy!)