What Makes A Good Coffee Table Book

What exactly is a coffee table book? Is it a book full of pictures, full of words, is it a biography, a photo book, the Guinness book of records or something completely different?

When we talk about coffee table books there seems to be one big misconception: its a certain type of book. Over the years you will have probably visited plenty of houses that have an array of books on the table, question your memory, were they biographies, art books, children books or indeed a fiction book? Were there any set characteristics: were they hard back, were they all large books in size and the number of pages? The answer is they were all probably a mix. This often seems the same in corporate offices, there’s something for everyone.

The decision maker, really, is what do you feel comfortable displaying on your coffee table? What appeals to you? What reflects your tastes of the moment?

Let’s reflect on books of the past. Often these are valuable as they are no longer in print, they are rare yet make a statement sometimes of perceived wealth or of a genuine interest in a subject but are they coffee table books, would you really want them to be fondled by your visitors, would it devalue the book itself?

So the answer really is its about you and what you want and feel comfortable displaying. If your home is full of children then kids books are probably per tenant for the table after all they will be thrown around and handled with the delicacy of a toy being thrown through a hedge.