Rating: 
Summary: kind of dry
Review: The book is pretty dry. But it is good if you wanted to know the rules of typography.
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Summary: why this book doesn't bug me:
Review: I can see that there are plenty of reviews telling why this book is essential to any typographer or typographic designer, so I won't bother repeating. however, I also noticed one particular person who gave rather misleading criticism, so I will offer a rebuttal of his points.Lamberti-Mershon from Evanston, Illinois USA, pointed out that Bringhurst's book "bugged" him for the following reasons: 1) i hate books that are organized like, 3.2.1, 3.4.6, for points. It totally breaks up a narrative flow, and it looks ugly. the section numbering system, in this case, makes the book an amazingly simple thing to navigate. this is one of the finest points of Mr. Bringhurst's structure. 2) the type is small, my wife saw that right away. certainly this is a subjective matter, but I can think of no more readable book. if I remember correctly, the text (Minion) is set 10/12. are there any typographers out there who wish to question the functionality of those numbers? 3) he uses a wide border from text to page, so that I have to yank and pull and stretch the book wide open in order to see the text towards the binding. [...] My point is, the book is hard to read! Go figure. like I said before, this is subjective, but this really is quite a readable book. the borders this reviewer speaks of are of the Renaissance sort, large outer borders for the placement of the thumbs. I don't remember a time when I felt the need to "strech" the book, the spine of my copy is in beautiful conidtion. carrying his thought one further, the overall proportions of text area to page are historically well established. to me, the structure of such a system is unquestionably comfortable.
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Summary: A definitive resource for typographic knowledge
Review: I loved the book -- even though I disagree with many of his positions. For my positions, see "Introduction to Digital Publishing" (by me) which is a more practical book for day to day working. Bringhurst is very conservative -- retro is a huge understatement. Robert's book is an amazing resource for typographic trivia. It is gorgeously typeset. His basic design decisions are a little anal, but solid. It is exclusively about typesetting for non-graphic books. It is a must read for all typesetters and desktop publishers.
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Summary: a handbook for aspiring graphic and type designers.
Review: Type is an historic art. There are rules that have been passed down from generation to generation. When one tries to break rules of typography , they are usually met with a page of slop.
This book is a handbook for type sensitivity and usage. One learns to mold type and shape type using color, leading, kerning and of course font. When one knows these rules they can let go of themselves and explore uncharted territory while still staying true to historic knowledge of type design.
A must for every designer.
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Summary: An Essential Typographical Reference
Review: The art of typography is given its due in this handsome volume. Bringhurst's prose is lucid. His brief history of type and his mini-essays on many of the most popular fonts will help anyone understand what separates great book design from merely good or adequate design. ¶ I work for a composition house which deals with many of the largest publishers, and I can tell you this: if more book designers were familiar with the principles so well and succinctly outlined in this little treasure, some publishers might be able to take their production costs down a notch. ¶ The book itself is wonderfully designed, although it's true that the gutter margin (complained of in another Amazon review) could be a little bigger. ¶ Overall, "The Elements of Typographic Style" is definitely an essential reference book for those involved with type on a regular basis, as well as a fascinating, well-researched read for anyone with a passing interest in fonts or book design.
Rating: 
Summary: Brilliant and lucid.
Review: Bringhurst gets at the heart of typography as an expressive medium. The work does not focus right or wrong, but poses reasons why one might make one choice over another. I think this may be the best book for someone just learning about typography to start with. At the same time, it is insightful for those with more experience.
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Summary: This Book Bugs Me!
Review: After the reading the reviews of this book, I couldn't wait to get it. But I tell you, the book bugs me. Why? Well first of all, i hate books that are organized like, 3.2.1, 3.4.6, for points. It totally breaks up a narrative flow, and it looks ugly. Second, the type is small, my wife saw that right away. Thirdly, he uses a wide border from text to page, so that I have to yank and pull and stretch the book wide open in order to see the text towards the binding. It's nuts! Now the irony here is that the author goes to great lengths in the book to explain the mathematical and musical formulas for page layout! My point is, the book is hard to read! Go figure. I'll dig through through this thing, but I tell you, sometimes the masters don't follow their own advice, or they are just too far gone!
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Summary: The why before the how
Review: Good craft teachers are able to teach their students all the skills it takes for their professional life. Great teachers go beyond that: they try to make their students Understand the craft. By telling them about its historical development, by developing their taste instead of just giving good recipes, by showing the inside. In The Elements of Typographic Style, Robert Bringhurst puts the why before the how. His work is a mix of a very elaborate history of typography, a wealth of discussions on all kinds of big and little subjects any typographer wants or forgets to consider - and yes, also practical advice. For instance, Bringhurst first makes clear why with some fonts, it is inappropriate to use bold - and then he goes on showing how to create up to six visually different levels of subheads without using bold once. Even in such cases, Bringhurst stays far away from soothing his readers with quick and dirty advices. As he explained after finishing the book, he wanted nothing more or less than simply to write a book about typography as good as he could - a truly genuine approach in an age where customer orientation is often taken to the extremes. No wonder Bringhurst values timeless typographical virtues higher than the fashions of the day. Some readers may find the result of this approach a bit too academical or lyrical. For them, other excellent books on typography are waiting on the shelf. For me, Bringhurst is a great teacher.
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Summary: You'll never look at a book the same way again.
Review: I work at a typesetting house where we do annual reports for several major corporations- and gosh, it's amazing to see how much Bringhurst's rules apply (or don't) when the too-trendy-for-words designs come in to us. I bought this book and realized that Bringhurst had put into words what I had vaguely perceived about the drawbacks of putting typographical tools in the hands of people with no training- thus the onslaught of terribly designed self-published books and magazines, poorly kerned commercial signage, and common typographical mistakes ending up in daily newspapers. While some of these are ephemeral, some, like signs, stay around for years, and become part of the visual clutter we have to put up with in our cities. If I have one complaint about the book, it's that the section on'Shaping The Page' is long on theory and math but short on practical examples. I realize he doesn't want to date the book by pointing out real-world examples (as layouts change with art directors) - but instead of mathematical formulas, perhaps a tutorial CD-ROM, with Quark / InDesign templates and examples, would help designers by giving them something 'real' to dissect and experiment with.
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Summary: A Bible Of Typography
Review: »The Elements Of Typographic Style« is a very very interesting book. Robert Bringhurst is a very good writer, with an unusually wide knowledge of not only typograpy, and therefore the book becomes extremely very relevant and not at all overspecialized. Mr Bringhurst's writing skills and knowledge have also succeeded in creating what is rare among reference books: A reference book that you can actually read from one end to the other, which is what I did myself. Without getting bored, no, in fact it was hard for me to put »The Elements Of Typographic Style« down! The only drawback is that, sometimes, Mr Bringhurst tends to make statements which he makes look like the only truth, despite his amazing knowledge of the subject. His solutions are often, but not always, discussed - and especially when they are not, it seems annoying to read about what is his personal taste and preferences. But »The Elements Of Typographic Style« seems to me like a Bible of typography! An extremely relevant book that will open not only typographers', printers' and authors' eyes and make them at the very least a little more aware of what makes a written medium inviting and worth reading. Of course, this book itself is a beautiful example of well-taken care of typography and layout!
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