This is the essential list of best UX design books to read this coming year
UX design as a discipline is growing and evolving all the time. It’s important to keep up with the latest thinking, and new ways of working. Some of these books reinforce core UX principles. However, there are a few that are vital reads, which will help you keep up with the industry. The best UX design books are the ones that leave a lasting impression. Above all, fundamentally change your practice for the better.
A Smile in the Mind
This isn’t strictly a UX design book, but it is a classic that teaches a very important lesson. It teaches you how wit and humour can be powerful devices in visual communication. Simply put, that extra bit of thought and consideration makes the “smile in the mind”. This can be the difference in getting ahead when it comes to the world of branding and marketing.
It is an enjoyable and leisurely read, full of illustrated examples. It will leave you inspired to think how you can take your design to the next level
Content Design
You might be thinking, why are you suggesting a book about content in a UX design blog? Content is at the heart of a user’s experience. Notably, this is essential reading to understanding how powerful content design can be. This book offers a practical guide to create content with the user in mind. It cuts through the jargon and provides practical and usable techniques.
You’ll devour this book in one sitting, but the lessons it teaches you will buzz in your brain for years to come. This is one of the best UX design books because it teaches you about the most important aspect of UX design. Content!
The Mom Test
This book is a short but powerful read. UX design is all about understanding your user, and designing the right thing. This book offers straightforward advice on how to get more out of your user interviews. Moreover, it will help you learn how to get your ideas validated, to then take forward into reality.
It’s contains refreshing advice that removes the fear of conducting customer interviews.
How to Measure Anything
This is another book that isn’t strictly a UX design book. Many UX designers will need to measure what they’ve made. Obviously, this is important to know how to iterate. This book’s main point is to only measure if you intend to do something useful with what you learn. Design can be a difficult thing to measure. Especially when subjective opinion is thrown into the mix.
This book teaches you the importance of not knowing the exact value of something. Rather, knowing enough to make a decision.
Change by Design
As UX design is all about problem solving. In brief, this book goes into great detail how any problem can be solved with “design thinking”. It talks about how low fidelity prototyping can provide quick answers. Above all, it introduces the double diamond process of converging and diverging ideas. This new way of thinking has been fundamental to processes such as the Design Sprint.
The Art of Looking Sideways
This is a book that should be on every designer’s coffee table. It was created to spark ideas, and inspire new thinking. Moreover, it makes you ponder what went through Alan Fletcher’s mind when he designed this behemoth of a book. Reading it takes a course of weeks, but it is a unique experience that deserves your attention on a rainy afternoon. Especially with a cup of hot chocolate.
Game Storming
For those meetings where everyone has their arms crossed. This book gives you practical tools and processes. In addition, it helps you get those stuffy people up on their feet and engaging with the design process. Not only does it help you get ideas flowing in a group, but it also allows you to get to shared decisions. This is a great book to learn how to facilitate meetings to get the most out of people, in a fun way.
Lean UX
This is the best UX design book of 2019, and forever. The timeless Lean philosophy has been used since the dawn of manufacturing. It shows how you can take this philosophy and apply it to your UX practice. It offers a brilliant guide to designing products that are validated by real people. If you’re a designer working in an Agile organisation, then this book is a must read. It contains techniques you may be familiar with, but wrapped up in a way that gets the most value out of your time. Lean is all about adding value and removing waste!
Sprint
This is one of the best UX design books to keep this book under your pillow, as you’ll need to pull it out in a pinch. Design sprints are all the rage, and for good reason. “Sprint” by Jake Knapp offers a reliable and repeatable process for solving problems quickly. In addition, the art of facilitating a room of people is broken down into easy to follow steps. It’s a fun and very effective process, and not just for UX designers.
For anyone wishing to solve a problem in a Lean way, read UXRead.com’s step-by-step guide to running a design sprint
Paper Prototyping
Paper Prototyping offers practical guidelines to help you improve testing your digital designs, before they get digital. Whether you are an experienced UX designer or not, this book gives you all you need to know about testing your designs.
Grid systems in Graphic Design
Another must read book for UX design students and professionals. It encompasses the fundamentals of graphic design, which are absolutely essential to building robust and effective digital products. Not to mention, understanding grid systems is one of the core design skills needed in a digital world. This book gives exacting directions on how to use grid systems. Moreover, how to use them to your advantage.
Don’t Make Me Think
Words to live by. This is one of the best UX design books that should be in any designer’s shelf. If you do anything this year, make sure you read this book. Moreover, it’s a funny, enjoyable read whilst remaining practical. It oozes common sense that you only need to read once for it to be instilled in you. Read this book if you want to understand what makes a good design so intuitive.
About Face
About Face is an extraordinary book to have on hand, whether or not you are a web developer or designer. It elaborates on the jargon you hear, and shows you what good practice looks like. Above all, it contains plenty of detail. In brief, it provides especially helpful techniques you can apply to your own UI design. A must have for any designer or developer.
Keep on reading, keep on improving
We hope you found our list of the best UX design books to read useful. We try and cut the cream from the crop so you know what is worth spending your money on. We’re always on the look out for the best UX design books out there. Of course, if you have any suggestions you think should be included in this list. Get in touch.
