Dear Data

This was a fun book to read on my lunch breaks at work, as it didn't require close reading, but I could look at each page for a while, notice things and meditate on them, and then move on. Giorgia and Stefanie sent postcards to each other with hand drawn visualizations of data that they collected about themselves over the previous week. Each week the data topic changed, and topics ranged from tracking each time they thanked someone, to the times they were alone, to apps on their phones, to all the times they said goodbye.

Over the course of reading the book, you become acquainted with the different styles of the two women. Giorgia's drawings are filled with tiny details, and she often makes her visualization resemble the type of data she's tracking. Stefanie's drawings are often more blunt and expansive. Both add humourous commentary along the sides of their postcards.

I read this to try to learn something about how to do data visualization. I've read some manual-type books, but looking at an art book of data visualization put into practice was a much more pleasant way to learn.