Reading Instruction Books

Many of the examples used in this textbook are atributes for Elementary Literacy Assessments. It can be used for Secondary;however I felt it was more for Secondary Special Education, not general education.

The notation for a half and a whole rest has been reversed in some of the text. The explanation for sub-dividing the beats is clear in many of the examples but fuzzy in some. On the positive side, there are many fun exercises (if you like counting beats and rests).

There are very little, if any, few diagrams and the explanations are given to you as though you already have a background with electricity and mechanical items. The sections you perceive to be full of information are probably only 3 pages in length. The diagrams are there to show you what the instruments looks like, but no indications on the diagram of how it would work. Not a book I would recommend to people who want to be in-depth about their systems and planes.

Very basic note reading exercises for both treble and bass clefs. Not much for the older grades.

I was mainly interested in one essay among the many submitted by mostly Southern California-based scholars -- $8 (including shipping)for a brand-new book and sold by an Amazon book seller was well worth the price. But it seems to me that one reason for the low price tag was that the book seller wanted to unload this text, for practically free, and I am not entirely surprised. This text is like a book version of an exhibition catalogue for a past LACMA show, and the quality of the articles is uneven. It is a fun book, nonetheless!

Like many other Berklee Bass books, this DOES NOT have a CD.
That makes this a very difficult book to work through, especially on your own. Maybe, with an Advanced instructor, it would be easier. But, for self-study, the authors do not provide enough insight or assistance.

Also, something very troubling I found with this book -- there were places where special notations were used but never referenced. The authors seem to be in such a hurry to present complex information that they neglect EXPLAINING the references and notations they use. This makes it IMPOSSIBLE to understand what they're trying to communicate. Very Frustrating and a major no-no for any published work that claims to be "instructional". This book should have gone through a "technical edit" process before it was published.

Be aware that this music is written for treble instruments (violin, to be specific) not for voice. No words are provided, even for the folk songs or for other pieces that were originally intended to be sung.
The readability, the typesetting, and the paper quality of this book are good.

The back covers states that this book picks up where The Ultimate Guided Reading How-To Book left off. Not so. I bought both books and this one basically rehashes a lot of what is in the guided reading book. If you teach primary grades the guided reading would be better for you. If you teach grades 2-5, this book would be better.
It is an easy read. The book provides a very good overview of literature circles and reciprocal teaching. It also covers reader's workshop and writer's craft. There are some good suggestions for assessing comprehension.

...to violinists...carefully graded and covers up to about level 3...some of the pieces include piano accompaniment...I particularly like the way it emphasizes to the student to always "keep going" regardless of mistakes -- essential to successful sight-reading mastery...took away two stars for several reasons...first -- redundancy...at the beginning of each section is a page listing "six steps to success" and it is basically the same thing each time...and those 8 pages represent more than 10% of the book -- that is simply wasteful...second, there is no CD available and that hampers self teaching...third, the piano accompaniments are not separate and, of course, that means a great deal of space is taken away that could have been used for more rhythmic examples...and, finally, there indeed needs to be many more examples...successful sight reading requires daily practice at just sight reading alone and that requires lots of examples...string players should also look at sight singing books from Adler, Lieberman, and Ghezzo.

... this is an excellent reference for both typographic disigners and type designers. Gunnar is well educated in the ways of typography and has used his knowledge to assemble an invaluable collection of essays. in my fairly extensive typographic library, I count this volume among my most favored.

as for the design of the book, it comes down to matters of taste. certainly, none can question its readability. other than a few minor PostScript errors, I have never found this book anything but comfortable and efficient. to be honest, the cover is the only thing I took issue with, the rest of the book is quite well designed and relevant to the topic.

I highly recommend it for any typographers or designers library.

I wrote a lengthy and very flattering review for this book here the other day. I hope this very brief version makes it through so people won't be deterred by some of the other reviews.

I simply want to say that this book ranks among my most treasured resources in a fairly extensive typographic library. Gunnar is a well educated man in the ways of typography and has used that knowledge to assemble essays of value to both the typographic designer and type designer.

any issues one may take with the design are purely subjective. the layout and design treatment function quite nicely and give adequate focus to the question at hand. there has been no time in my reading of this volume that I ever found it to be anything but comfortable and effecient (accepting a few PostScript errors in its production which are only slightly distracting).

I recommend this book for experienced typographers looking for a little intellectual challenge as well as students only beginning to explore the issues of typography.

let me first say that the two February 2002 reviewers are out of their minds. the articles Swanson compiled/commissioned are superb! from controversial contemporaries such as Hrant Papazian to unquestionable typographic staples such as Beatrice Warde, Swanson has covered his bases. each and every article provides invaluable insight into topics for both the typographic designer and the type designer alike.

"The essays although well written didn't really say anything" (William Benard from Minneapolis, MN)
if anyone finds themselves with this sentiment, you may be lacking some basic knowledge needed to understand the issues. the authors have done a fine job of covering important problems, but these are short format articles and they would be hard pressed to frame the entire argument for all levels of readership.

"leave the exploration of graphic design and reading (books) to the qualified... the reader. Why should the heady designer try to redefine what reading is?" (A reader from In a state of...)
unfortunately, reading is largely subconscious. the many variables that affect reading comprehension and speed are not even recognized by the reader. psycologists have conducted coutless studies to try to assist in the design of books. however, the designers are ultimately the ones who need to discuss and be educated in these matters.

in terms of design, he has certainly illustrated the question of the uneasy relationship, but I found the structure to be quite readable. if anything, I was disappointed with the cover treatment, but it's just a matter of taste. if this were a long reading text book or novel I might question his technique; but given the short essay format, his occasional illustrations penetrating the margins are quite refreshing.

I rate _Graphic Design & Reading_ among the most essential design theory works in my library.

This book contains a number of valuable essays on the relationship between reading and graphic design. Ironically and unfortunately, it is so flawed in its own design that I get angry when I try to read it and put it back on the shelf before finishing a chapter. I'm ready to throw it in the trash. That the author and organizer of this book was also the designer/typographer/illustrator undermines its credibility. The page design has no relationship to the format of the book. The text and titles are lost in the gutter because not enough space has been left for the binding. The images are badly reproduced and so filled in that they are dead spaces in each chapter. Many of the chapters begin with corrupted type...where was GS for the press checks? The author's attempt at illustration with marbled paper doesn't make any sense, is comical and the book was printed with the grain of the paper running horizontally so the pages cannot be opened and are cockling along the foredge. Grrrr.
Perhaps these essays can be re-published with a more knowledgeable and sensitive designer at the helm. The authors and readers deserve this.

Bought it, read it, wish I didn't spend it. Hoping it would have been one that would have been worthy of my typographic and design library, but it doesn't make the cut. I loaned it to few other designers as well, they reached the same conclusion. If the economy is bad don't buy it, if it's good..up to you.