Back to Font: Behind the Typefaces You Thought You Knew

by Anitra Nottingham, Jason Phillips (Illustrator)

Overview

Calling all type nerds!
Get ready for a chatty and opinionated, deeply nerdy history of how 16 of the most famous typefaces were made and why they look the way they do.

Who were their "parents" and "family"? Where do they come from and how were they born? And what was happening in the world at the time that influenced their growth and use? What's pretty and interesting about them, and what isn't? How are the typefaces used (and abused), and where can we find them "in the wild"? Finally, and most importantly, Back to Font will help you decide whether to kiss, kill, or marry that typeface.

An entertaining yet authoritative text by two Australian academics will be enhanced by color illustrations showing typefaces in use. Based on the authors' podcast The Type Pod. Warning: this book may cause you to rethink your default font settings.

Contents:
Times New Roman / Gill Sans / Futura / Bodoni / Goudy / Baskerville / Akzidenz Grotesk /
Mrs Eaves / Trajan / Novarese / Bell Centennial / Foundry Sterling / Transport /
Zapf Dingbats / Univers / Papyrus

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781529438703
Publisher:	Laurence King Publishing
Publication date:	08/05/2025
Pages:	176
Product dimensions:	6.60(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

Anitra Nottingham worked as a book designer for Oxford University Press, and Penguin Books, Australia. She was Online Director for the School of Graphic Design at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco for 13 years, where she taught typography and graphic design history. Anitra is now Lead Learning Designer at the University of Melbourne Online, where, among other things, she ensures that the learning design team uses en-dashes correctly.

Jason Phillips began his career designing banknotes, before moving into book design for Oxford University Press, Hardie Grant Books, and a number of other Australian and international publishers. He spent a decade teaching tertiary-level typography and editorial design. Jason currently works in curriculum development in the vocational training sector, where his role includes educating stakeholders that Arial is not their friend.