Garner’s superb grammar book provides a thorough and comprehensible guide to the parts of speech. He explains each part in granular details and with clear examples. I have learned a great deal on my first read and will return to it again and again for reference.

Here what I wrote about Greg Tate’s first book: “Never mind the ill-designed cover (horrendous use of typography and colors), Flyboy in the Buttermilk: Essays on Contemporary America is packed with Greg Tate’s ingenious criticisms ranging from music (jazz, funk, punk-rock and hip-hop) to book to film.” Typeset in Chaparral Pro, designed by Carol Twombly, Flyboy 2 is a huge improvement. If you’re fan of Tate’s insightful writing and thought-provoking criticism, Flyboy 2, a collection of his influential, critical essays in the past thirty years, is a delightful treat. Many topics he wrote, people he interviewed, and works he analyzed in this book I have never heard of; therefore, I will be re-reading it again and again in the future.

Like many beginner’s book on JavaScript, this one offers clear explanation of the basics including data types, conditional statements, and loops, but doesn’t provide practical exercise on how to use them in actual webpages. The only chapter that does that is on DOM scripting; therefore, I don’t find the book to be useful. If you want to learn the basic concepts and then put them to use with step-by-step instructions, I recommend John Pollock’s JavaScript: A Beginner’s Guide instead.

With Helvetica text set against different colored background, the book is a little hard to read. Once I get past that readability issue, I quite enjoy Draplin’s stories, especially how he got into design. Like the man himself, his work is filled with personality, particularly his logo designs. If you haven’t listened to Draplin on podcast, I highly recommend checking him out. He curses like a motherfucker, but a very kind heart. I have tremendous respect for him.

I love the design of this book. Helen Armstrong, who is the editor of the book, had done a wonderful job designing it. The text is set in Seria by Martin Majoor and combined with Interstate by Tobias Frere-Jones. The essays, on the other hand, are not always exciting for me. I liked some, but not all of them.

In this illuminating and inspiring book, Biz Stone reveals the success behind Twitter. It boils down to two words: empathy and humanity. As a designer and co-founder, Stone helped shaped the culture at Twitter by placing empathy and humanity before technology and money. It’s a recommended read for designers.

1. Art Direction for the Web, by Andy Clarke, is a good start if you want to make memorable web experiences.
2. The Brand Gap, by Marty Neumeier, is an informing read on branding because of the author’s concise writing and clear illustrations.
3. Branding: In Five and a Half Steps, by Michael Johnson, is a must-have guide for creating successful branding in any industry.
4. Build Your Brand Like You Give a Shit, by Bobby Gillespie, is for you if you give a shit about building your brand through leadership and compassion.
5. Designing Brand Identity, by Alina Wheeler, is a comprehensive reference on brand design and development.
6. Don’t Make Me Think, Revisited, by Steve Krug, is the go-to guide for user-experience design.
7. Ordering Disorder, by Khôi Vinh, is the first book that taught me the concept of grid design.
8. Seeing is Forgetting the Name of the Thing One Sees, by Lawrence Weschler, consists of conversations with Robert Irwin whose work had been stripped down to its pure essence: lines, dots, discs, and light.
9. Things a Little Bird Told Me, by Biz Stone, shares the co-founder’s experience in shaping the culture at Twitter, which puts empathy and humanity before technology and money.

This morning I got upset at my wife for leaving the minivan running for sixteen hours. I meant to remind her, but I vent at her instead. I drove to work feeling terrible. Why did I let such a stupid little thing got to me? I immediately apologized when I arrived at work.

In the past few months, I noticed a change in me. I get irritated easily about every little thing and it is fucking up my head. How have I become this way? Stress? Anxiety? Lack of sleep? I am not making any excuse for myself and my behavior. I need to change. I need to refocus my priorities. Letting go of all the things that are out of my control.

Two weeks ago while on vacation, I came across the book that could help me fight my demon. I picked up Richard Carlson’s Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff… and it’s all small stuff out of a bargain bin. The book has 100 advices and each one makes a good blog post, which is perfect for quick reads. The advices that speak to me include: “Ask yourself the Question, ‘Will This Matter a Year From Now?’,” “Surrender to the Fact that Life Isn’t Fair,” “Resist the Urge to Criticize,” “Think of What You Have Instead of What You Want,” “Practice Ignoring Your Negative Thoughts,” and “Be Happy Where You Are.”

Like what I had done this morning, I am applying these advices into my life. I am working out my flaws, emotions, and irritations. I can do it if I can let go off the little things that do nothing good for me except driving me crazy.

As a fan of Jay Z, how in the world did I not read this book six years ago when it was published? Part memoir, part lyrical analysis, Decoded is much better than what I had expected. In particular, the way he writes about the art of hip-hop and his appreciation for different kinds music and artists are compelling. I also glad that he doesn’t focus much on the business side. Unlike what I have read from some critics, the book lives up to his high standard. It is not a disappoitment at all. Now I understand why he rapped, “Fuck critics. You can kiss my whole asshole.” I still have mad respect for this guy.

An expansive collection of George Lois’s logos ranging from successful, unusual to rejected works. His short, smart, and humorous comments on each piece make the book engaging. One in particular is his concept for Novak Djokovic’s active sport wear. He writes, “The extroverted Serbian, Novak Djokovic, one of the greatest tennis players of all time, didn’t have the balls to run with this logo.” If you’re into logo design, this book is a must-have by your side.