The Art of Looking Sideways - Alan Fletcher > Reviews > "Have you seen a purple cow?!"

Author's product rating:   

Degree of Information
How interesting was the book?
How useful was it?
Would you read it again?
Value for money

Advantages:	Great light reading
Disadvantages:	Very big book (so also quite heavy reading ! )

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

I came across this book whilst browsing on Amazon, and once I had read a little about it, I just had to have it. The list price is £24.95, but Amazon charge only £16.46, and there are many copies available new and used for as little as £13.00, I have just checked. It sounds very expensive, but in my opinion this is great value for what you are getting, you will never tire of this book.

First of all, it is massive. It is hard-backed, a little wider and a little shorter than A4, and about 2 inches thick, so you get a lot of book for your money! The cover is quite striking, and an interesting read in itself. It is white and has lots of sayings, proverbs and quotes ("Have you seen a purple cow?"). All the text is black, except for one piece that stands out in red, "The art of looking sideways", the title.

It is by Alan Fletcher, a successful designer and art director. He is obviously a collector, and this book is a culmination of everything he has 'aquired' over the years, anything from unusual facts, quotes and anecdotes, to striking images, some his own, and some borrowed from others.

Fletcher himself describes this book as '"a journey without a destination", and I would say that you cannot get a much better description than that. Although the book has been arranged into chapters (a whopping 72 of them!), there is no real order, no real story, no real point. That is the beauty of this book! It is the perfect 'coffee table' read (or bedroom floor, in my case). I love to dip into it whenever the mood takes me, and I can just open at any page and start reading. It's not really something you read from beginning to end, unless you have A LOT of time on your hands. It's like a big collection of snipets! Leave this lying around and I guarantee someone will pick it up for a quick flip through.

What is this book about? The simple answer would be everything! Yes, Fletcher is a graphic designer, and yes, graphic design, typography and creativity play a role in this book. But there is so much more to it than that. It is about people, civilisation, the world in general, everything you can think of. It is nice to hear about things from someone with a different point of view and a clever way of thinking, making this an interesting and refreshing read.

One part I found particularly interesting was the prologue. This basically describes various theories about how the universe started, and how we as humans came to be. I found it really interesting, and there are lots of great facts and ideas, such as the 'Out of Africa' theory: that every person in the world is descended from a small group of about 100 people in Africa, and possibly from just 1 African 'Eve'. For more details like that you will have to read the book, I don't want to give too much away! And there is still so much of this book I haven't seen!
Another section I enjoyed was the section about symmetry and optical illusions. I have always liked this sort of thing. There is no point describing these, as they have to be seen really, but there are some good ones in this book.

I love all the random quotes and facts. For example, if you look at the zip on your trousers, it will probably be branded with the letters YKK. I know, it sounds weird, but as I read this I checked the zipper on my jeans and low and behold! YKK! If your zip doesn't say this (but it probably will), ask someone sitting near you, someone is bound to have one that does. How does he find out these things, and aqquire this kind of useless, but intriguing, knowledge? This book is full of thing like this, some more though-provoking than others.

The illustrations throughout the book are great. Some of the images have been collected, but many are by Fletcher himself. They are colourful, quirky, and simple yet clever, and I love their painty, inky, smudgy style. In fact, the whole book is a visual journey, with each page leaping out at you. The colours, images and text all work together to provide asthetic brilliance on every page.

The style of writing is also good and enjoyable to read. Fletcher provides perceptive and interesting reading material. There are annotations of the various images in the book, as well as his memories and general thoughts on certain topics, stories, anecdotes, jokes, everything.

I would recommend this book to just about anyone. Perfect for a flip through whenver you fancy, or for people who don't have the time or the will to get stuck into some heavy reading. Those of you who like trivia, anecdotes, and creative thinking, you will love this book. And everyone else probably will too!