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A review by purplelorikeet
SignsSymbols of the World: Over 1,001 Visual Signs Explained by D.R. McElroy
3.0
Signs and Symbols of the World is a broad and general book that talks about signs and symbols used in the world from ancient times to the present. This is one of those books that's great for browsing and has bits of information attached to the many illustrations provided. The chapters are mostly in alphabetical order, starting at alchemy and finishing with transportation.
The book covers many subjects and some of them seem to be done quite well. But I did find several that seemed to overlap. This was particularly apparent between languages and various other subjects. I'm assuming it was necessary to make judgements as to how to categorise but I must admit it doesn't seem quite as logical as it could be.
I don't know how comprehensive it is, but the chapter on sex and gender is particularly strong and there were a number of symbols that were completely unfamiliar to me. I felt like the chapters on manufacturing, music and ideograms also covered quite a bit of territory that the average person might run across. Also the chapter on digital symbols was pretty good and there were a number of good illustrations there. That said, I don't feel it was so necessary to show so much of the clipart, especially seeing at its relevance today isn't as high as it might have been in the past.
I do feel the chapter on the military was entirely US-centric, and therefore was quite limited in scope. Instead of showing so many of the US symbols. it might have been good to see examples of various other countries instead. The transportation chapter was reasonably good but I also felt it was rather limited to US examples. It does mention signs from other countries but then fails to show examples. I think just a common speed limit sign from Europe would have been the least that could be illustrated as it is quite a common one outside the US.
Overall, this was an enjoyable read and I give it 3.5 stars. I would like to thank Netgalley and Chartwell Books for providing an advanced reader copy for free. This review was written voluntarily.
The book covers many subjects and some of them seem to be done quite well. But I did find several that seemed to overlap. This was particularly apparent between languages and various other subjects. I'm assuming it was necessary to make judgements as to how to categorise but I must admit it doesn't seem quite as logical as it could be.
I don't know how comprehensive it is, but the chapter on sex and gender is particularly strong and there were a number of symbols that were completely unfamiliar to me. I felt like the chapters on manufacturing, music and ideograms also covered quite a bit of territory that the average person might run across. Also the chapter on digital symbols was pretty good and there were a number of good illustrations there. That said, I don't feel it was so necessary to show so much of the clipart, especially seeing at its relevance today isn't as high as it might have been in the past.
I do feel the chapter on the military was entirely US-centric, and therefore was quite limited in scope. Instead of showing so many of the US symbols. it might have been good to see examples of various other countries instead. The transportation chapter was reasonably good but I also felt it was rather limited to US examples. It does mention signs from other countries but then fails to show examples. I think just a common speed limit sign from Europe would have been the least that could be illustrated as it is quite a common one outside the US.
Overall, this was an enjoyable read and I give it 3.5 stars. I would like to thank Netgalley and Chartwell Books for providing an advanced reader copy for free. This review was written voluntarily.