Table of Contents

Table of Contents, such a simple thing, or is it? I know it tends to be the overlooked, last minute item in the publishing industry. But when you think of it, the TOC has a very important role. Partnering with folios, it is a book’s main navigation system. If the TOC is designed poorly, the reader can become frustrated with the entire book. When done well, you can create a gorgeous page of well-set typography.

Designers spend so much time designing the meaty interior pages, often the TOC gets overlooked. Is TOC design becoming a lost art? Maybe not. Michael Bierut, William Drenttel and Jessica Helfand produced The Next Page: Thirty Tables of Content, a book showing their favorite TOC designs. It is out of print, but they have placed the book in slideshow format on Design Observer. If you love typography, you will enjoy flipping through.