Assignment #4: Typeface Choices in Book Design

Find a book that is the same format as the series you are designing, or very close (5 x 8), and contains a similar style of content - a biography, for example. Tell us the title, author, publisher, publication date and ISBN. Analyze the typography and address the following questions in your blog post. Use images to illustrate your findings.

I chose Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray, written in 1890 and revised in 1891.  The book is a portrait orientation that measures 4 7/8 x 7 7/8.   The publisher is Oxford University Press, published originally in  2006. It's a sort of biography, however the character is fictional. The ISBN is 978-0-19-280729-8

Below are some type samples. The first compares a scan of the text in the book to Ehrhardt by Linotype, and the second is a paragraph scanned out of the book.

• Typeface - what is the typeface and why do you think it was chosen? Is it appropriate?

The typeface is Ehrhardt, offered for sale by Linotype online. I can't find any sort of connections between the typeface selection and origin, publication date, or historical precedents. The typeface does, however, support for many languages and applications, with 629 characters. It is slightly condensed when compared to other serif faces, which helps to conserve space. Being a serif face, it is easier to read for extended periods of time. There are 4 fonts: Roman, Roman Italic, Semibold and Semibold Italic - which is enough variation for the purpose of a book.

• Type size - using the scale on page 36 in Publication Design Workbook, give an educated estimate of the size of the type used.

The type size is about 10 pt.

• Interline space, or leading - looking at page 39 in Publication Design Workbook, which example most closely resembles the text setting of the book you are examining?

The leading most resembles a medium ground between example C and D. The type is set as something close to 10/12.5

• Indent - if the paragraphs are articulated using an indent, how deep does it appear to be? is there a relationship to the size of the type or the leading?

The indent is approximately an em. That would be a 10 pt. em, creating a relationship between the indent and the type size.

• Line length - how many words per line, on average? Is is comfortable to read?

There are about 10-12 words per line on average, and 45-55 letters per line. It is plenty comfortable to read.

Now, compare the book series you are designing. How do your design decisions compare?

My book is set in 10/14.1 Baskerville. the decision to use Baskerville is the same - the readability of the serif face - however Baskerville is not as condensed to save space, and I chose to lead out my type to read easier. My indent is 1.125 in., much more than a single em (about 1/8 in, which I think helps to distinguish the paragraphs better, however I may re-consider such a drastic indent. My book series boasts about 10 words and 45 characters per line, which reads similar to this Oscar Wilde book.