Book Design

Book design determines the layout of interior pages and covers of books. In some cases, illustrators or photographers also contribute to the design of book covers.

Featured Articles

Three award winning book covers from AIGA's 2019 50 Books 50 Covers competition

What Goes Into Designing an Award-winning Book Cover?

For these 50 Books 50 Covers winning designers, it’s all about bold typography, texture, and a ton of wit.

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The Detroit Printing Co-op image of book interior

The Detroit Printing Co-op Showed the Revolutionary Potential of Design

The prolific producer of leftist literature worked to define a different relationship to wage labor, materials, and politics

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Montage of book covers by Jason Ramirez

Jason Ramirez Wanted to Become a Doctor. Now He Brings Stories to Life

The Viking Books art director came to cover design late, but he's made up for lost time with a prolific portfolio of titles

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Interior view of Madeleine Morley cookbook

Designing a Cookbook That’s as Much About Life, Love, and Sex as Food

“At least one can turn pain to color”

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Montage of Jo Walker book covers

Want To Make Something Novel? Start With an Idea, Not an Aesthetic

For book designer Jo Walker, good design is all about the thinking behind the image

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Montage of ten book covers using identical images

Why Do So Many Book Covers Look the Same? Blame Getty Images

Meet the cast of stock image characters that grace dozens of book covers

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50 Books | 50 Covers

This time-honored competition aims to identify the 50 best-designed books and book covers yearly. The juror-selections exemplify the best current work in book and book cover design.

Learn More or Submit Your Work

50 Books 50 Covers

Featured Talks

View of book cover of Wa The Essence of Japanese Design

Webinar

Julia Hasting

Designing Phaidon Books

A conversation with Julia Hasting, Creative Director, Phaidon.

Chip Kidd at the AIGA Design Conference

Talk

Chip Kidd

What Are You Doing Here?

After 25 years working nonstop as a graphic designer and writer, it happens: Chip Kidd gets the commission of a lifetime. That should be a good thing, shouldn't it? Well, shouldn’t it?!

The AIGA Design Archive

View the collection of books in AIGA's archive.

Recommended Reading

A Book on Books: New Aesthetics in Book Design

By Victionary

Thinking with type: A Critical Guide for Designers, Writers, Editors, & Students

By Ellen Luptin

Editorial Design: Digital and Print

By Cath Caldwell

The New Typography

By Jan Tschichold

Cover

By Peter Mendelsund

The Form of the Book: Essays on the Morality of Good Design

By Jan Tschichold

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