10 Lettering Books Fabulous for for Inspiration. I went through my “lettering library” and pulled out all my go-to books to flip through when I need inspiration!

10 Lettering Books Fabulous for Inspiration

I love books. And I love my tech, but one thing I’m super old school about it having an actual book in my hand. Nothing compares to the feel, the smell, and flipping through the pages of a real book. And because I can see them, unlike a bunch of PDFs, pictures, or “Pins”, I reach for them far more frequently.

This will be an ongoing series comprised of at least three posts because as you can see, I have a lot of books on my shelves. I try to add a few books to my collection each month and always have at least a few on my Amazon wish list. I’m focusing on writing these posts by book theme. Today’s post is a collection of my favorite lettering and typography books for inspiration.

Inspirational vs. Instructional Lettering Books

In other words, these are not how-to lettering books. They’re filled to the brim with lettering and typography styles and inspiration, so I flip through them anytime I want to try a new lettering style or just want to look at pretty things!

If you’re an intermediate or advanced letterer, or just want to try new styles, then these would be excellent books to add to your shelves.

Stay tuned for a post on instructional lettering and calligraphy books.

Graphique De La Rue: the Signs of Paris

This book by Louise Fili is downright dreamy. It’s one of those times when you can totally judge a book by its cover. Swoon. I ordered her “Grafica della Strada: The Signs of Italy” and pre-ordered “Gràfica de les Rambles: The Signs of Barcelona” books while writing this post.  We visited Paris, Italy, and Barcelona this year so I’m extra excited about these. I especially loved the street art in Barcelona!

The Custom Lettering Series

These “decades” books by Rian Hughes are some of my most beloved books! Can you see all the sticky note tabs and dog-eared pages in the photo below?

• One: Custom Lettering of the 20s and 30s
• Two: Custom Lettering of the 60s and 70s
• Three: Custom Lettering of the 60s and 70s

In Progress

Jessica Hische is the reason I first become interested in the art of lettering. Her book does contain a bit of instruction but it’s largely inspirational, so I felt it fit best on this list.

True Print

Dafi Kühne is a Swiss designer with a super cool way of mixing modern with a vintage-style letterpress look. This book just came last week and I’m so happy to have it on my shelves!

Elegantissima

More Louise Fili because she’s pretty much the original queen of type and design work!

Scripts: Elegant Lettering From Design’s Golden Age

Yet another one by Louise Fili and her husband, Steven Heller. He wears a lot of hats in the design world. Script lettering and calligraphy are my favorite!

Junk Type

This book is like hitting up all the flea markets and vintage shops without having to leave home. An introvert’s dream.

Logo, Font & Lettering Bible

This may have been my very first lettering book purchase. It’s from 2004 and super cheap now, but it’s still an awesome resource to have in your collection!

And there you have it!

You might also like:

10 Lettering and Callgraphy Books for Beginners

Did you fill up your Amazon Wish List?

Which of these books are at the top of your must-have list?

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