Smashing Magazine continues its tradition and releases another great book. This time it's the new Smashing Book #5: Real-Life Responsive Web Design. It's jam packed with theory and practices all centered around responsive web design with almost 600 pages of content that can make any professional drool.
The book
I ordered the book from the official shop and received it after aprox. two weeks in the same style cardboard packaging like the #4 predecessor (Romanian Postal Service strikes again with the delays, luckily I had the .pdf version until it arrived). The book itself feels more premium with its new refined cover and I found it easier to browse through pages (no stickiness or finger smudges). Despite this, I do like the previous cover design more, with the touch-feel stripes, mainly because it gave it more personality and uniqueness.
The book comes with a nifty cartoonish Thank You! card and with a two page list of names of all the smashing supporters out there. I got lucky and I'm the third on the list. Maybe, someday, I will contribute with an article (I tried once and failed, but one can only hope).
What I enjoyed so far
I admit I didn't finish it yet. Just like the previous book, you need to take your time. There are chapters you can enjoy on a lovely Sunday afternoon and there are others that need your full attention with Sublime turned on and practicing the code as you progress. Yes, it tends to get a bit too technical for my taste, but it's for my greater good.
The chapters are fit for every level of experience (beginner or professional, it doesn't matter, there is content for all). From the impressive techniques in Sara Soueidan's Mastering SVG For Responsive Web Design to the curiosity behind Dan Mall's Modern Responsive Designer's Workflow. Also, you get to know more about Flexbox, Responsive Images, Web Fonts Performance, Offline Optimizations and many, many, many more (remember... ~600 pages). Vitaly Friedman's Responsive Design Patterns and Components was a blast and I got up to speed with the current solutions for the responsive challenges I can face. For me it felt like a solid full-movie/sequel to his popular RWD online workshop.
Conclusion
If you want to stay updated with the latest responsive web design trends and gimmicks, I recommend you order the book now. It's more than a reading material, it's a practice tool and professional companion.
Final Rating
Awesomedary ★★★★★
Subscribe to stay updated
I added a subscribe feature for you to get the latest news from the blog right on your inbox. It's based on Mailchimp's RSS campaigns, so on each Wednesday you'll receive an email with what's new on the blog (if new posts exist).
If you are interested, head over at pxdotpt.com/subscribe/ and register now.