Yahoo Lifestyle The 27 Best Coffee Table Books of 2024…So Far
Here are the best coffee table books of 2024…so far. They feature the best of art and photography, capture sports at their best, reflect a love of nature or a serious hobby or just make someone smile. Elton John. Diane Keaton. Yoko Ono. New York City. They’ve all got coffee table books!
You need a nice gift but struggling to think of the perfect choice? Coffee table books are ideal: they’re nice and lavish (but not too expensive) and when you choose the right one, it shows you get this person. You know what makes them tick. If you need to spruce up your home or want to show off your passions, your personal taste, the obsessions that make you tick? Get a coffee table book. Whether it’s the holidays or a housewarming, a coffee table book is always a smart choice. So let’s get reading! At the head of the Parade are…
The 27 Best Coffee Table Books of 2024…So Far
Courtesy of Angel City Press, Fuel, Artisan
1. Bowlarama by Chris Nichols with Adriene Biondo
2. Chess Players edited by Damon Murray
3. The Tennis Court by Nick Pachelli
Three great examples of how coffee table books cover the waterfront when it comes to taste.
Bowlarama is ideal for the bowler in your life, those who lived through or love the style of the bygone era when it flourished or just love fun, eye-catching photography.
Chess Players is a really unique book that presents photographs of people playing chess, including everyone from Charlie Chaplin to members of the Wu-Tang Clan. Irresistible.
Awesome images make The Tennis Court perfect for armchair travelers and those still mourning the retirement of Roger Federer and need something to take their mind off of it.
Bowlarama by Chris Nichols with Adriene Biondo ($40; Angel City Press) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Chess Players edited by Damon Murray ($37.95; Fuel) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
The Tennis Court by Nick Pachelli ($40; Artisan) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Related: The 39 Best Horror Books of 2024...So Far
Courtesy of Victoria & Albert Museum, Tate, Chronicle Books
4. Fragile Beauty edited by Duncan Forbes, Newell Harbin and Lydia Caston
5. A World in Common: Contemporary African Photography edited by Osei Bonsu
6. Spacecraft and Rockets by Nirmala Nataraj
Three stunning works of photography. Fragile Beauty presents the best images from the collection of pop star Elton John and his husband David Furnish. A World In Common presents the remarkable work of the best photographers from the continent of Africa. And NASA opened up its archives to share eye-popping images of humanity venturing into space.
Fragile Beauty edited by Duncan Forbes, Newell Harbin and Lydia Caston ($70; Victoria & Albert Museum) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
A World in Common: Contemporary African Photography edited by Osei Bonsu ($45; Tate) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Spacecraft and Rockets by Nirmala Nataraj ($35; Chronicle Books) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Courtesy of National Gallery Washington, Penguin Press, Metropolitan Museum of Art
7. Paris 1874: The Impressionist Moment edited by Sylvie Patry and Anne Robbins
8. The Work of Art by Adam Moss
9. The Harlem Renaissance and Transatlantic Modernism edited by Denise Murrell
When you think of “coffee table books,” most folk immediately flash to high art. So here’s the fancy stuff.
Paris 1874 captures the moment when the rebellious group that came to be known as the Impressionists (a slur turned into a badge of honor) stormed the Bastille of art’s high and mighty.
Former New York magazine editor Adam Moss chatted with a cross-range of major artists to discuss the work of art…and packaged it in an affordable but lavish work that presents the doodles and rough drafts and sketches of art in progress.
And an exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art gives the Harlem Renaissance its due by demonstrating how the artists involved didn’t just captured the ferment of a cultural moment but also deeply influenced 20th century modernism.
Paris 1874: The Impressionist Moment edited by Sylvie Patry and Anne Robbins ($65; National Gallery Washington) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
The Work of Art by Adam Moss ($45; Penguin Press) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
The Harlem Renaissance and Transatlantic Modernism edited by Denise Murrell ($65; Metropolitan Museum of Art) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Courtesy of Yale University Press, Skira, Rizzoli book cover images
10. Yoko Ono: Music of the Mind edited by Juliet Bingham, Connor Monahan and Jon Hendricks
11. David Hockney: Paper Trails edited by Shai Baitel
12. Fashion First by Diane Keaton
You want stars? We’ve got stars.
Yoko Ono was destined to be one of the major, innovative artists of her era even before meeting a Beatle. A new exhibit captures just one facet of her remarkable body of work. This book presents that exhibit in style but surely it will come to NYC?
David Hockney is seen from a different perspective by focusing on his paper-based work, a reflection of the blockbuster artist’s lifelong preoccupation with paper and printing.
Diane Keaton offers a fashion biography of a sorts by looking at her life through the fashion she championed with wry commentary and insight.
Yoko Ono: Music of the Mind edited by Juliet Bingham, Connor Monahan and Jon Hendricks ($50; Yale University Press) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
David Hockney: Paper Trails edited by Shai Baitel ($65; Skira) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Fashion First by Diane Keaton ($55; Rizzoli) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
13. The Tony Awards by Eila Mell
Okay, you love Broadway. You go to live theater all the time. What better way to let people know then The Tony Awards, a coffee table survey of the iconic awards that celebrate the best of Broadway. (Mind you, the pile of Playbills under the coffee table is another dead giveaway.)
The Tony Awards by Eila Mell ($55; Black Dog & Leventhal) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Courtesy of Yale University Press, Batsford, National Geographic
14. The World Atlas of Public Art by Andrew Wasserman
15. Station by Christopher Beanland
16. World From Above by Jeffrey Kerby
Three works that celebrate the art (both found and planned) all around us. The World Atlas of Public Art is one of my favorite books of the year. It devotes a spread to the public art commissioned and on display all over the world. It’s heartening to see the remarkable and varied works offered up for anyone to enjoy. The works themselves are amazing to study. And the book becomes an immediate travel wish list for cities I’d love to visit so I can see these pieces in person.
Station is–as the subtitle states–”a whistlestop tour of 20th and 21st century railroad architecture. Nifty stations, modernist gems, small town finds, sidecars, beautiful trains themselves. They’re all here and not just for trainspotters.
National Geographic’s World From Above is another ideal coffee table book just about anyone will love. As described, it offers images of Earth from above. A filled parking lot becomes abstract art, suburbs become mesmerizing, plowed fields become beauties–you name it, it all looks intriguing and gorgeous and bizarre when viewed from above.
The World Atlas of Public Art by Andrew Wasserman ($50; Yale University Press) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Station by Christopher Beanland ($35; Batsford) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
World From Above by Jeffrey Kerby ($45; National Geographic) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Courtesy of IDW Artist’s Editions, Folio Society
17. David Mazzucchelli’s Batman Year One Artist’s Edition
18. DC: Batman selected and introduced by Jenette Kahn
Batman! Arguably the most complex, intriguing and rich comic book character of them all, the vigilante crime-fighter continues to inspire. David Mazzucchelli’s take in Batman Year One is the latest to get a lavish, detailed presentation in an Artist’s Edition. And the Folio Society offers an overview of every era of Gotham’s Caped Crusader with this lovingly presented overview of every key era from the character’s long and storied history.
David Mazzucchelli’s Batman Year One Artist’s Edition ($150; IDW Artist’s Editions) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
DC: Batman selected and introduced by Jenette Kahn ($100; Folio Society) Buy now from The Folio Society
Courtesy of Yale University Press, National Geographic, Luciamarquand
19. Smithsonian Trees of North America by W. John Kress
20. Infinite Cosmos by Ethan Siegel
21. Fabricating Wilderness edited by Matt Davis
To truly appreciate nature, we need to remember to stop and look and observe and savor. These coffee table books help us do that beautifully. Smithsonian offers an overview of Trees of North America that may quietly stun you with the seemingly endless array of trees on tap throughout this continent.
National Geographic partners with top scientists to look at the revolutionary images captured by the James Webb Space Telescope. You’ll see everything from cosmic dust to galaxies that are billions of years old (just kids, really) in eye-popping detail.
And for the truly offbeat, Fabricating Wilderness is an unexpected celebration of dioramas, those natural history museum displays attempting to recreate scenes from nature all over the world. It focuses on the dioramas of the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, which constitute some of the oldest dioramas in the world. A mix of art and science and history which will appeal to fans of any of these.
Smithsonian Trees of North America by W. John Kress ($75; Yale University Press) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Infinite Cosmos by Ethan Siegel ($50; National Geographic) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Fabricating Wilderness edited by Matt Davis ($49.95; Luciamarquand) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Courtesy of Rizzoli, Chronicle Chroma
22. The Breitling Book of Surfing by Ben Mondy
23. Last Days of Summer by Hugh Holland
A surfing book that travels all over the world to capture the community of board riders, wherever they’re found. And a skateboarding book that zeroes in on the subculture found in LA by acclaimed photographer Hugh Holland from 1975-1978, just as this sport/lifestyle/future Olympic sport was coming into focus. Both will charm anyone who yearns for their youth or the free-spirit, easy-going appeal of these zen-like activities.
The Breitling Book of Surfing by Ben Mondy ($75; Rizzoli) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Last Days of Summer by Hugh Holland ($60; Chronicle Chroma) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Related: The 32 Best Sci-Fi and Fantasy Books of 2024...So Far
Courtesy of Cernunnos, powerHouse Books, Prestel
24. Wonder City of the World: New York City Travel Posters by Nicholas D. Lowry et al
25. The New York Pigeon by Andrew Garn
26. Great Bars of New York City photography by James T. and Karla L. Murray; words by Dan Q. Dao
Ahh, New York City, the wonder city of the world. In a book by the same name, New York City travel posters are celebrated in a survey overseen by Nicholas D. Lowry, the mustachioed impresario and poster expert at Swann Gallery, one of the premiere auction houses in the world focused on paper works like posters, photography, books and other paper-based artwork. It’s a treat.
Photographer Andrew Garn gives the lowly pigeon its surprisingly beautiful moment in the spotlight.
Photographers James T. and Karla L. Murray surely had fun diving into the most iconic bars of the five boroughs. Dan. Q. Dao provides the words, doubtless after soaking up the atmosphere at all of them, the lucky bum.
Wonder City of the World: New York City Travel Posters by Nicholas D. Lowry et al ($50; Cernunnos) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
The New York Pigeon by Andrew Garn ($39.95; powerHouse Books) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Great Bars of New York City photography by James T. and Karla L. Murray; words by Dan Q. Dao ($40; Prestel) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
27. The Art of the Literary Poster by Allison Rudnick
Posters really flourished in the late 1800s thanks to numerous technical innovations. Suddenly posters promoting novels and magazines and journals like Harpers became remarkably bold, eye-catching and innovative in every way: color, typography, layout, you name it. Allison Rudnick dives into this key moment in the art of posters with–happily–a ton of images displaying the posters she’s celebrating.
The Art of the Literary Poster by Allison Rudnick ($50; Metropolitan Museum of Art) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
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