Phew. We’ve all survived the london design festival and i don’t know about you, but i’m exhausted!
Highlights for me were many, but a big one was that i finally got to meet my blogging pal holly, who has come to stay with me and is here till tomorrow.
When i introduced the my library category i announced it a monthly column. As i love books so much and to keep it (sometimes) ‘hot of the press’, i will from time to time increase these posts.
Today i’d like to introduce you to a newly published book i totally geek over. Apologies for the ‘drooling’ and ‘geekiness’ in advance.
Around the world – the atlas for today is a visual feast for the mind, published by the brilliant gestalten. Now, i’m a big believer in visual learning. There is nothing like it. Give children and adults visual stimulus when trying to teach and they immediately form associations in their brains. A purely text-based piece of information, in my opinion, cannot compete.
The atlas for today is a comprehensive compilation of infographics that show us snippets of the world we live in. You’ll find the atlas divided into sections. There’s ‘the place we call home’, ‘living together’, ‘the days the earth stood still’, ‘the good life’, ‘fear and loathing’, ‘money makes the world go round’, ‘the world is not enough’ and ‘our greatest ideas’.
I’ve always been fascinated by infographics and even enrolled in a skillshare class on this very topic. Apparently, the title for designers of inforgraphics is ‘visual journalist’. I rather fancy that!
What makes this book different (i have many books on infographics) is the way it tells a comprehensive story and helps us to relate to ourselves and to each other in today’s world. More than just a visual feast filled with information, it has a narrative i’ve not seen before in this genre of book. It makes me want to engage and know everything i can about this beautiful, complex and complicated world! In the foreword it reads:
“As a compilation, this book could be a time capsule for future generations, or the text sent out into space to explain planet earth to alien life. This is the world that we live in, beautiful and complicated, drawn out and explained. Take a good look”.
I am in love with this book and hope it has inspired you a little. Excuse me while i carry on the ‘drooling’.
Do you love these kind of books? Have you got any you can share with us?