The Principles of Beautiful Web Design

The Principles of Beautiful Web Design
Jason Beaird
Sitepoint
ISBN: 0975841963
Non-Fiction, Web Design
Reviewed by John R. Clark

I like a number of things about this book. The five chapters are well thought out: Layout and design, Color, Texture, Typography and Imagery. In addition, the author makes it clear in the preface that corrections, responses to questions raised by readers and not covered in the book as well as follow-up discussion relating to the content are all covered/answered on the publisher's website.
If there is any criticism, it is that the author assumes that most, if not all who buy the book will have familiarity with Photoshop. It would have been good to have a disclaimer on the cover or in the beginning of the book to that effect.
However, the logical flow and rationales from the beginning to end in the text make this a very useful addition to anyone's personal library of books on web page development. As one who does exactly as the author describes-go blank while looking at a blank page when starting a new website, I found many of his suggestions and observations grist for my upcoming makeovers of both my personal and work web pages.
I suggest this as an addition for library collections as well because there is a continuing stream of people seeking inspiration as they enter the world of website creation.