Non-Designer’s Type Book, The, Second Edition

It’s Your Choice

Choose one alignment per page—don’t mix centered with flush left, for instance. With any alignment you choose, be aware of its strengths and weaknesses. Each alignment presents an initial visual image to the reader, has a different level of readability, and has particular quirks in regard to setting it. Evaluate these strengths and weaknesses, and base your decision on the combination of factors that best communicates your message.

In this book, I am using justified type. The uneven word spacing bothers me, but because there are so many typefaces and type examples on these pages, I wanted the clean lines of a justified text block. It acts as a contrast to the extra stuff, and also as a solid, stable, repetitive background for ...