Sketchnote Handbook, The: the illustrated guide to visual note taking

Brief Review:If you want a simple, helpful and supportive introduction into visual note-taking then buy this book. Highly recommended.Longer Review:This is a lovely book. I enjoyed reading it through first and then going back to it again and again to try out the exercises.Like a lot of people, I've always been a bit of a 'doodler'. Like a lot of people, I got in trouble at school for doodling when I should have been studying!It's funny how those type of memories stay with you.My continued interest in sketching and mind-mapping, meant that when I saw this book mentioned on a blog I was reading, I headed over to Amazon to pick it up. I'm glad I did.The book is titled, 'The Sketchnote Handbook' because it's meant for people who take notes during conferences, seminars, webinars and so on. Whilst it's an awesome guide for those type of events, the book provides plenty of insights and inspiration for those of us who just like to doodle!Saying that, if you are someone who needs to collect and collate information from events, or if you want to better engage with study materials, then visual notetaking (combining written notes with sketches, icons and diagrams) really helps. Indeed, the sketchnote process makes the whole note-taking thing more enjoyable and rewarding. Which means you'll take more notes and learn from them better too!The book provides a step-by-step process of how to create your own sketchnotes. It gives you plenty of exercises to try out and simple ways to draw everyday things. I especially liked the part that helps you draw convincing faces! The book even tells you which types of pens and notebooks to use!What's great about the advice in the book is that you can apply it straight away and see an immediate improvement in the sketches you make.Since reading the book, I've been applying these techniques on the whiteboards and flipcharts I use when training people (in digital marketing). People now say things like, 'Wow! You're so good at drawing!'.I just smile and nod appreciatively :)Finally, I know some people don't feel that they can draw. Well, this book helps you overcome that anxiety. Although it won't turn you into a great artist, this book will certainly help you become a great 'sketchist'?!Recommended!

I feel that this review should be in a form of a sketchnote, shame an option unavailable to amazon (yet).Mike Rohde is an illustrator, designer, author and a sketchnoter from Wisconsin. He is also a cool dude, who likes to get entertained more often than regular people get a chance to. The accumulated over the years experience of doodling during lectures, talks and conferences would be a waste if it didn't find an exit into a wonderful book Mike created. He firmly believes that this form of note-taking is a far more useful, quick, and, most importantly, fun way of recording and storing information.This book is not for artists. This book is for absolutely everyone who takes notes, any notes. And especially for those who can't resist wonderful things like Muji pens, Moleskine notebooks and other pretty stationary. It reads with pleasure and sets your brain into sketchnote mode, you won't resist trying it out almost immedeately. I am convinced that most people who will pick up this book will get inspired and lose their blank-page-fobia.I am the type of person who takes precise notes in gazillion sentenses and never ever looks at them again. However, I have used the sketchnoting approach (without realising what it was) to transmit information onto my students. I never thought this method applied to my out of classroom situations, I now realise I was wrong. I also never thought I could draw people. Ever. Not only can I draw them now, I can also give them a purpose or an emotion in under 10 seconds.And even if you don't find this approach practical in your professional life, after reading this book you will certainly rock at pictionary.A little something to improve: the book is printed on a nice to touch expensive paper. It also has many pages with a black background. It was a shame to find some fingerprints on the main cover when I opened the amazon brown envelove (of course, I added some myself almost immediately). A plastic wrap around it could solve handling damage, at least until the book gets to its owner.

I've been 'sketch noting' by accident for some time, having started off 'studying' (reading, trying, being unimpressed with my own attempts) Mind Mapping.Mind Mapping was too structured for me. I ended up focusing more on the Mind Maps than the content I was trying to record and quickly lost heart.So I threw the MM ideas out, pretty much but liked the idea of quick summaries of relevant points, in a visual manner.I'm also the first to admit I 'can't' draw.The person who draws a horse and is told 'Nice pig'...I developed what I called 'drunk spider' mind mapping - basically my excuse for note taking, of which I do a great deal.I stumbled on the Sketchnote Handbook and read it in one sitting.~ It's pricey,~ it's annoying that you can't bookmark (the sketchnote Handbook is 100% conveyed by ... Sketch notes and is therefore images throughout - interestingly effective and inspiring! Talk about walking your talk)~ .... and it's undeniably inspiring and helpful.There's not just~ information,~ helpful tips from other sketchnoters but also a~ a good set of exercises (which will be my practice tonight)I'm pleased I've purchased and read it and would recommend it to others... in fact, I will be doing just that as 'Book of the Week' on my own blog.