Top 10 Best Presentation Books: Transform Your Public Speaking Skills

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September 21, 2023

Presentation and Pitch Expert. Ex Advertising.

$100mill In Funding. Bald Since 2010.

In an increasingly competitive world, standing out from the crowd can be a daunting challenge.

One critical skill that sets exceptional individuals apart is the ability to deliver powerful and persuasive presentations. However, mastering this art is no easy feat, and many struggle to captivate their audience, effectively convey their message, and leave a lasting impression.

To overcome these hurdles, it’s essential to learn from the masters of the craft. By studying the techniques and strategies of expert presenters, you can unlock the secrets to creating truly engaging and impactful presentations.

They’ve honed their craft through years of experience, discovering secrets that make presentations truly unforgettable. That’s why we’ve curated a list of the top 10 best presentation books these maestros wrote.

Imagine confidently stepping onto the stage, captivating your audience from the very first moment, and leaving them with an unforgettable message. This can become a reality with the right guidance and resources.

Hey there, I’m Viktor, a  pitch deck expert ,  creative strategist  and burger lover. I’ve been a pitch deck expert for the past 10 years and helped clients raise millions and win pitches, with my unique approach to creating pitch decks.

My aim is to guide you through a transformative journey, revealing the books that explain the techniques and strategies employed by the world’s most successful presenters. 

So, dive in and let these masters of communication elevate your presentations to new heights of clarity, engagement, and persuasiveness.

Here are the 10 must-read presentation skills books for anyone standing in front of an audience (even if it’s just your wife and you’re trying to convince her).

Hey , before you read on:

Consider doing what others like you did. Reading how to make presentations will take a-lot of time. You need one today (probably) . Let me help you develop a killer presentation and save 10+ hours of your time for a fraction of the cost. All it takes to start is a free 30 min call with me.

The least you will get is 10 actionable tips & strategies to own that next presentation, worth $599, for free.

great presentation books

Key concepts and techniques

“slide:ology: the art and science of creating great presentations” by nancy duarte.

best presentation books - slideology

900+ Pros like yourself read the book

Nancy Duarte’s book is a comprehensive guide that aims to revolutionize the way people create and deliver presentations.

The book highlights the importance of visual communication and teaches readers how to design slides that effectively convey their message. Duarte provides a step-by-step approach to crafting visually engaging and impactful presentations, with a strong focus on audience needs and preferences.

Drawing from her extensive experience working with some of the world’s top brands, Duarte shares practical tips and techniques for creating visually stunning slides that leave a lasting impression on the audience.

The book covers various aspects of presentation design, including color theory, typography, layout, and storytelling. “Slide:ology” also emphasizes the significance of simplicity and clarity in slide design, guiding readers to eliminate clutter and focus on the essential elements of their message.

By applying the principles and strategies outlined in this book, you can transform your presentations into powerful tools for communication and persuasion.

Nancy Duarte covers several key concepts and techniques that can help readers create effective and visually engaging presentations. Some of these key concepts and techniques include:

  • Audience-centric approach: Understanding the needs, preferences, and expectations of the audience is crucial in crafting a presentation that resonates with them. 
  • Storytelling: Integrating storytelling into presentations makes them more memorable and compelling. 
  • Simplicity and clarity: Effective slide design requires simplicity and clarity. 
  • Visual communication: Slide:ology emphasizes the importance of using visuals to support the message, as images and graphics are often more effective than text alone. 
  • Color theory: The book covers the basics of color theory, explaining how different colors can evoke specific emotions and reactions in the audience. 
  • Typography and layout: Typography and layout play a significant role in making slides readable and visually appealing. 
  • Data visualization: Presenting complex data in a clear and concise manner is a critical skill in effective presentations. 
  • Slide preparation and organization: The book offers strategies for organizing slides and building a coherent flow throughout the presentation. 

“Resonate: Present Visual Stories That Transform Audiences” by Nancy Duarte

best presentation books - resonate

Another one by Nancy Duarte and for a good reason (I always thought I could’ve been her prodigal son) The book she wrote offers a comprehensive guide to creating impactful presentations. Duarte emphasizes the importance of telling a compelling story to engage and persuade an audience, and presents a framework for doing so.

It builds on the concepts introduced in Slide:ology. While Slide:ology focuses on creating effective visual presentations, Resonate takes a more comprehensive approach by emphasizing the importance of storytelling and emotional connection.

The book outlines the five stages of a persuasive presentation, beginning with understanding the audience and their needs, and culminating in a call to action. Along the way, Duarte emphasizes the importance of creating a strong emotional connection with the audience and structuring the presentation to build tension and excitement.

Duarte also offers practical advice on designing effective visual aids, such as slides, diagrams, and charts. She emphasizes the importance of keeping visuals simple and uncluttered, and using them to support and reinforce the key points of the presentation.

Overall, Resonate is a valuable resource for anyone looking to create persuasive and engaging presentations that connect with audiences on a deeper level.

“Presentation Zen: Simple Ideas on Presentation Design and Delivery” by Garr Reynolds

best presentation books - presentation zen

600+ Pros like yourself read the book

Garr’s book is a guide to creating compelling and effective presentations (as are all of the books here!). The book emphasizes the importance of simplicity and clarity in both the design and delivery of presentations.

Reynolds argues that too many presentations rely on cluttered slides, bullet points, and irrelevant details. Instead, he encourages presenters to focus on a simple message and use visuals to support that message. He also stresses the importance of rehearsing and delivering presentations in a natural and engaging manner.

Throughout the book, Reynolds offers practical advice on design principles such as layout, color, and typography, as well as tips for using technology effectively to enhance presentations.

You’ll notice that both Nancy and Garr talk about similar points – that’s because they’re really important in presentation design and delivery.

“The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs: How to Be Insanely Great in Front of Any Audience” by Carmine Gallo

best presentation books - Presentation secrets by Steve Jobs

800+ Pros like yourself read the book

This book with an insanely long name by Carmine Gallo is a guide to improving presentation skills through the example of Steve Jobs, the legendary you know who.

Gallo identifies seven key principles that Jobs used to create engaging and memorable presentations. These principles include simplifying the message, creating a clear and compelling storyline, and using visuals to enhance the message.

The book also offers practical advice on how to apply these principles to one’s own presentations, including tips on using technology, preparing for presentations, and delivering speeches with confidence and enthusiasm.

Throughout the book, Gallo uses examples from Jobs’ presentations to illustrate his points, and includes interviews with other successful presenters who have used these principles to achieve success.

Remember the iPod speech? Well, you could potentially make the same impact if you apply the principles of this book.

“Talk Like TED: The 9 Public-Speaking Secrets of the World’s Top Minds” by Carmine Gallo

best presentation books - talk like ted

4000+ Pros like yourself read the book

Another great book by Carmine Gallo. This is a guide to improving public speaking skills by analyzing the techniques used by some of the most successful TED speakers.

Gallo identifies nine key principles that successful TED speakers use to create compelling and memorable presentations. These principles include storytelling, using humor, and focusing on a clear and compelling message.

The book provides practical advice on how to apply these principles to one’s own presentations, including tips on using body language, using multimedia effectively, and engaging with the audience.

Throughout the book, Gallo uses examples from successful TED talks to illustrate his points, and includes interviews with successful TED speakers to provide additional insights and inspiration.

Overall, Talk Like TED is a valuable resource for anyone looking to improve their public speaking skills and create more engaging and memorable presentations. By focusing on the techniques used by successful TED speakers, Gallo provides a roadmap for creating truly inspiring speeches.

“Show and Tell: How Everybody Can Make Extraordinary Presentations” by Dan Roam

best presentation books - show and tell

300+ Pros like yourself read the book

Show and Tell is a guide to improving presentation skills by using a visual approach to communication.

Roam argues that the most successful presentations are those that use visual aids to tell a compelling story. He introduces a framework for creating effective presentations that focuses on three key elements: the message, the audience, and the medium.

The book provides practical advice on how to use visual aids, such as sketches and diagrams, to support the message and engage the audience. Roam also emphasizes the importance of understanding the audience and tailoring the presentation to their needs and interests.

Throughout the book, Roam uses examples from successful presentations to illustrate his points, and includes exercises and templates to help readers apply his ideas to their own presentations.

By focusing on the visual aspect of communication, Roam provides a fresh perspective on how to create truly effective presentations.

“The Art of Explanation: Making Your Ideas, Products, and Services Easier to Understand” by Lee LeFever

best presentation books - the art of explanation

300 Pros like yourself read the book

Lee wants to show us through this guide how to improve communication skills by mastering the art of explanation. Abit different than the other books and for a good reason.

LeFever argues that the most successful communicators are those who can explain complex ideas in simple and understandable terms. He introduces a framework for creating effective explanations that focuses on three key elements: clarity, brevity, and context.

The book provides practical advice on how to use analogies, metaphors, and storytelling to help audiences understand even the most complex ideas. LeFever also emphasizes the importance of understanding the audience and tailoring the explanation to their needs and interests.

Throughout the book, LeFever uses examples from successful explanations to illustrate his points, and includes exercises and templates to help readers apply his ideas to their own communication challenges.

By focusing on the art of explanation, Lee provides a practical and actionable guide for making even the most complex ideas understandable to others.

“Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die” by Chip Heath & Dan Heath

best presentation books - made to stick

5000+ Pros like yourself read the book

Chip and Dan Heath (or Chip and Dale) explore the elements that make ideas memorable and influential. The authors present six key principles, encapsulated in the acronym SUCCESs:

  • Simplicity : Effective ideas are simple, core messages that are easy to understand and remember.
  • Unexpectedness : Ideas that surprise or challenge expectations are more likely to grab attention and stick in people’s minds.
  • Concreteness : Concrete ideas, with specific examples and tangible details, are more relatable and easier to visualize.
  • Credibility : Ideas backed by credible sources, statistics, or testimonials are more persuasive and memorable.
  • Emotions : Ideas that evoke emotions, either positive or negative, create a stronger connection with the audience.
  • Stories : Telling stories helps to convey ideas in a compelling and engaging way, making them more likely to be remembered and shared.

By applying these principles, individuals and organizations can develop more effective communication strategies and make their ideas stickier.

“Confessions of a Public Speaker” by Scott Berkun

best presentation books - confessions of a public speaker

500+ Pros like yourself read the book

Scott Berkun offers an honest and entertaining look into the world of professional public speaking. Berkun shares his personal experiences and insights to help readers improve their presentation and communication skills. The book covers a wide range of topics, from overcoming stage fright to engaging audiences effectively.

Berkun emphasizes that practice, preparation, and self-awareness are crucial to becoming a successful public speaker. He advises readers to know their material thoroughly, understand the audience, and create a strong opening to capture attention. To keep audiences engaged, he suggests using humor, storytelling, and varying one’s speaking pace and tone.

The book also covers handling difficult situations, such as dealing with technical issues, unresponsive audiences, or hostile questions. Berkun stresses the importance of staying calm, thinking on one’s feet, and learning from every experience. Ultimately, “Confessions of a Public Speaker” provides valuable tips and candid stories to help anyone become a more confident and effective communicator.

“Steal the Show: From Speeches to Job Interviews to Deal-Closing Pitches” by Michael Port

best presentation books - steal the show

Michael Port offers a comprehensive guide to mastering the art of public speaking and persuasive communication in various settings. Port emphasizes the importance of performance in all aspects of life, from delivering speeches to acing job interviews and winning business deals.

The book provides actionable strategies for improving one’s performance skills, such as understanding the audience, crafting compelling stories, and developing a strong stage presence. Port stresses the need to be authentic and genuine, while also being aware of nonverbal communication and vocal dynamics.

“Steal the Show” also covers essential preparation techniques, including extensive research, rehearsal, and mental visualization. Port advises readers to manage their nerves through mindfulness and self-awareness. He also shares tips on handling challenging situations and improvising when things don’t go as planned.

Best Presentation Books Wrap Up

In conclusion, the top 10 best presentation books provide a wealth of knowledge and practical advice for mastering public speaking and persuasive communication.

These books, including “Made to Stick,” “Confessions of a Public Speaker,” and “Steal the Show,” among others, offer valuable insights into various aspects of delivering engaging and effective presentations.

Exploring these resources is highly recommended for anyone looking to improve their public speaking skills, whether they are seasoned professionals or just starting their journey. By learning from the experiences and expertise of these accomplished authors, readers can develop their unique style and confidence in presenting their ideas.

Effective presentations play a crucial role in both personal and professional life, as they help convey ideas, persuade others, and create lasting impressions. By investing time and effort in honing one’s presentation skills, individuals can unlock new opportunities, foster meaningful connections, and make a significant impact on others.

If you got here, then you should reconsider my offer.

Additional Resources

If you’re still looking to improve your presentation skills, check this list on the best books for pitching.

Or explore more resources on presentations and pitches:

Also don’t miss out on my massive presentation specialist guide , last minute presentations and best business projector buyers guide.

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Table of Contents

100 Best Presentation Books of All Time

We've researched and ranked the best presentation books in the world, based on recommendations from world experts, sales data, and millions of reader ratings. Learn more

great presentation books

Presentation Zen

Simple Ideas on Presentation Design and Delivery

Garr Reynolds | 5.00

See more recommendations for this book...

great presentation books

Made to Stick

Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die

Chip Heath, Dan Heath | 4.97

great presentation books

Cristian-Dragos Baciu I highly recommend all the books written by the Heath brothers, especially Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive And Others Die. This one's a must-read for marketers. The reason I enjoyed their work so much is because they offer real-life stories and insights that makes it so much easier for the reader to imprint that information in his mind (Source)

Tudor Mihailescu First thing first, finance people need to be decent communicators, ideally awesome communicators. There is an art in building a case or in delivering a presentation and we need to treat this step as seriously as we have treated the other steps. I do believe this is a top priority for an aspiring or practicing CFO - There are plenty of books on this topic, I would recommend the works of Chip and... (Source)

great presentation books

Steve Lance Made to Stick is about what makes a message memorable. Why is it that we can all say ‘Call me Ishmael’ and remember this opening line to Moby Dick, and yet none of us can say the second sentence. Made to Stick is a thoughtful, fact-based empirical study about this idea of stickiness. (Source)

great presentation books

The Psychology of Persuasion

Robert B. Cialdini | 4.96

great presentation books

Charles T. Munger Robert Cialdini has had a greater impact on my thinking on this topic than any other scientist. (Source)

Dan Ariely It covers a range of ways in which we end up doing things, and how we don’t understand why we’re doing them. (Source)

Max Levchin [Max Levchin recommended this book as an answer to "What business books would you advise young entrepreneurs read?"] (Source)

great presentation books

slide:ology

The Art and Science of Creating Great Presentations

Nancy Duarte | 4.94

great presentation books

Crucial Conversations

Tools for Talking When Stakes Are High

RON MCMILLAN JOSEPH GRENNY, AL SWITZLER, KERRY PATTERSON | 4.75

great presentation books

Max Levchin A now-venerable guide to having tough conversations in a way that engages the debaters. (Source)

Deke Bridges Picked up this great book @Powells to read. Better conversation and listening enables you to get deeper into subjects at hand. When talking with people, this makes your communication skills a very powerful tool. Always be learning. #growth #education #leadership https://t.co/r0ujX9IPqh (Source)

great presentation books

Present Visual Stories that Transform Audiences

Nancy Duarte | 4.75

Brian Burkhart But the book which really hit home was “Resonate: Present Visual Stories that Transform Audiences,” by Nancy Duarte. It’s interesting, I didn’t agree with her methodology or like much of what I read. It was too complex and not realistic for people to use in everyday life. That said, it did help confirm to me that I was onto something. It was a different kind of validation than Godin—that the... (Source)

great presentation books

Start with Why

How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action

Simon Sinek | 4.66

great presentation books

Tony Robbins The basis of this book is so important to anyone looking to increase their influence, profits or impact. People won't truly buy into a product, service, movement, or idea until they understand the WHY behind it. When you start with the why, everything else falls into place. This book is so impactful, I consider it required reading. (Source)

Richard Branson Today is World Book Day, a wonderful opportunity to address this #ChallengeRichard sent in by Mike Gonzalez of New Jersey: Make a list of your top 65 books to read in a lifetime. (Source)

Tony Hsieh Over the years he’s [] recommended well over 20 business books — including his own, the 2010 bestseller Delivering Happiness and you can always find what he’s currently reading atop his cluttered desk. Start with Why is amogst those titles. (Source)

great presentation books

The official TED guide to public speaking

Howard Hughes | 4.65

great presentation books

Chris Anderson In Apollo week, a great book recommendation: this more than a story of a computer--it's about the first shot in the man vs machine battles (should astronauts be pilots or "spam in a can"?) that foreshadowed today's debates about drones & self driving cars https://t.co/CidYughKHz (Source)

great presentation books

Talk Like TED

The 9 Public-Speaking Secrets of the World's Top Minds

Carmine Gallo | 4.63

great presentation books

Emma Wedekind @yannln I love that book! (Source)

Shaen Yeo In the book Talk like TED, there were a few suggestions on how to make my speech better. I tweaked the way I speak using the advice, and produced a speech like never before. I had many people coming up to shake my hands and offer me name cards! (Source)

Radu Marcusu A book that most recently made a difference for me was Talk Like TED: The 9 Public-Speaking Secrets of the World's Top Minds. My IMWorld speech this year benefited tremendously from Carmine Gallo's framing of the nine secrets of all time successful TED presentations. I believe Gallo's step-by-step method makes it possible for anyone to sell their ideas persuasively when delivering a presentation.... (Source)

great presentation books

Walter Isaacson | 4.61

great presentation books

Elon Musk Quite interesting. (Source)

Bill Gates [On Bill Gates's reading list in 2012.] (Source)

Gary Vaynerchuk I've read 3 business books in my life. If you call [this book] a business book. (Source)

Don't have time to read the top Presentation books of all time? Read Shortform summaries.

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  • Interactive exercises: apply the book's ideas to your own life with our educators' guidance.

great presentation books

The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs

Carmine Gallo | 4.59

Jack H. M. Wong Question: What five books would you recommend to young people interested in your career path & why? Answer: Rich Dad Poor Dad - Robert Kiyosaki Second Chance - Robert Kiyosaki Why the Rich Are Getting Richer - Robert Kiyosaki The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs: How to Be Insanely Great in Front of Any Audience - Carmine Gallo The Little Voice Mastery - Blair Singer (Source)

great presentation books

Pitch Anything

An Innovative Method for Presenting, Persuading, and Winning the Deal

Oren Klaff | 4.59

great presentation books

Jeff Gibbard This book single-handedly changed my life. BY learning the principles of "Frame Control" I have had much greater success in sales, public speaking, and in managing my team. (Source)

Michael Herrmann Great book on pitching, and more generally, sales. Funny too. Has some ideas very reminiscent of Thinking Fast and Slow. (Source)

great presentation books

Presentation Zen Design

Simple Design Principles and Techniques to Enhance Your Presentations

Garr Reynolds | 4.59

great presentation books

Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook

How to Tell Your Story in a Noisy Social World

Robert T. Kiyosaki, Tim Wheeler, et al | 4.57

great presentation books

Marvin Liao My list would be (besides the ones I mentioned in answer to the previous question) both business & Fiction/Sci-Fi and ones I personally found helpful to myself. The business books explain just exactly how business, work & investing are in reality & how to think properly & differentiate yourself. On the non-business side, a mix of History & classic fiction to understand people, philosophy to make... (Source)

Bill Widmer In general, I recommend Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki to learn more about assets and liability and how to view money. (Source)

Sa El This book started everything for me and put me on a path to a rich mindset, it helped me understand that dreaming wasn't enough, you had to actually place that dream into reality if you ever want to achieve it. (Source)

great presentation books

Never Split the Difference

Chris Voss, Tahl Raz | 4.57

great presentation books

Dustin Moskovitz [Dustin Moskovitz recommended this book on Twitter.] (Source)

Daniel Pink Emphasizes the importance of emotional intelligence without sacrificing deal-making power. From the pen of a former hostage negotiator—someone who couldn’t take no for an answer—which makes it fascinating reading. But it’s also eminently practical. In these pages, you will find the techniques for getting the deal you want. (Source)

Adam Grant eval(ez_write_tag([[250,250],'theceolibrary_com-large-mobile-banner-2','ezslot_6',164,'0','1'])); This book blew my mind. It’s a riveting read, full of instantly actionable advice—not just for high-stakes negotiations, but also for handling everyday conflicts at work and at home. (Source)

great presentation books

The Visual Display of Quantitative Information

Edward R. Tufte | 4.51

great presentation books

Michael Okuda Edward Tufte's classic book, The Visual Display of Quantitative Information is a fascinating, surprisingly readable treatise for anyone interested in infographics. When I hired artists for the Star Trek graphics dept, I sometimes asked them to read it.https://t.co/cK4GQqBDxp (Source)

great presentation books

The Non-Designer's Presentation Book

Principles for Effective Presentation Design

Robin Williams | 4.44

great presentation books

The Naked Presenter

Delivering Powerful Presentations with or Without Slides

Garr Reynolds | 4.43

great presentation books

Confessions of a Public Speaker

Scott Berkun | 4.43

great presentation books

Storytelling with Data

A Data Visualization Guide for Business Professionals

Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic | 4.43

great presentation books

Roger D. Peng It’s important to think in terms of what your audience needs, and what would be best for them among the many choices you could make when analysing data. (Source)

great presentation books

Envisioning Information

Edward R. Tufte | 4.37

great presentation books

Kevin Rose The master when it comes to taking complicated data and turning it into beautiful charts and graphs that are easy to understand. If you’re into graphic design, print design, web design, you name it, you’re going to get some really good information and how tos out of these books. He has a whole series of these books. (Source)

great presentation books

Where the Sidewalk Ends

The Poems and Drawings of Shel Silverstein

Shel Silverstein | 4.37

great presentation books

On Writing Well

The Classic Guide To Writing Nonfiction

William Zinsser | 4.37

great presentation books

Mark Manson I read a bunch of books on writing before I wrote my first book and the two that stuck with me were Stephen King’s book and “On Writing Well” by Zinsser (which is a bit on the technical side). (Source)

Tim O'Reilly On Writing Well, by William Zinsser. I wouldn't say this book influenced me, since my principles of writing were established long before I read it. However, it does capture many things that I believe about effective writing. (Source)

Derek Sivers Great blunt advice about writing better non-fiction. So inspiring. (Source)

great presentation books

Show and Tell

How Everybody Can Make Extraordinary Presentations

Dan Roam | 4.36

great presentation books

Nonviolent Communication

A Language of Life

Marshall B. Rosenberg, Deepak Chopra | 4.35

great presentation books

Satya Nadella Upon becoming CEO, Nadella confronted Microsoft’s legendarily combative culture by urging his new reports to read this book, which preaches the power of empathy, self-awareness, and authenticity in collaboration in the workplace, at home, and beyond. Like many of his favorites, it was first recommended to him by his wife, Anu: “I’m heavily influenced by the books she reads more than the books I... (Source)

Dustin Moskovitz Seek first to understand. (Source)

Esther Perel I think that this book is a classic for anyone who is thinking relationships. (Source)

great presentation books

Presenting to Win

The Art of Telling Your Story

Jerry Weissman | 4.32

great presentation books

The Back of the Napkin

Solving Problems and Selling Ideas with Pictures

Dan Roam | 4.31

great presentation books

HBR Guide to Persuasive Presentations

Nancy Duarte | 4.28

great presentation books

How to Deliver a Ted Talk

Secrets of the World's Most Inspiring Presentations, Revised and Expanded New Edition, with a Foreword by Richard St. John and an Afterword by Simon Sinek

Jeremey Donovan | 4.28

great presentation books

The Elements of Style

William Jr. Strunk | 4.27

great presentation books

Tobi Lütke [My] most frequently gifted book is [this book] because I like good writing. (Source)

great presentation books

Bill Nye This is my guide. I accept that I’ll never write anything as good as the introductory essay by [the author]. It’s brilliant. (Source)

Jennifer Rock If you are interested in writing and communication, start with reading and understanding the technical aspects of the craft: The Elements of Style. On Writing Well. On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft. (Source)

great presentation books

Presentation Secrets

Do What You Never Thought Possible with Your Presentations

Alexei Kapterev | 4.26

great presentation books

Blah Blah Blah

What To Do When Words Don't Work

Dan Roam | 4.23

great presentation books

The Art of Explanation - Making Your Ideas, Products and Services Easier to Understand

Lee LeFever | 4.22

great presentation books

Everyone Communicates, Few Connect

What the Most Effective People Do Differently

John C. Maxwell | 4.22

great presentation books

The Writer's Journey

Mythic Structure for Writers

Christopher Vogler | 4.22

great presentation books

Darren Aronofsky It’s the Bible for screenwriters. I think it’s the best book on how to write a screenplay ever written. It helped me get through so many roadblocks as a writer. (Source)

great presentation books

Business Model Generation

A Handbook for Visionaries, Game Changers, and Challengers

Alexander Osterwalder and Yves Pigneu | 4.22

great presentation books

Kaci Lambe Kai This was a great book, because it opened up the idea of what a business model is supposed to be vs what it can be. It doesn't have to be a stuffy, boring document. (Source)

Alexandra Stroe [I'd recommend] The Lean Startup by Eric Ries, Business Model Generation by Alexander Osterwalder and Yves Pigneur and Zero to One by Peter Thiel when they are in the starting phase of a business that needs to validate its business model. (Source)

Ashley Hathaway I could probably name a dozen books here, but I’ll point out The Business Model Generation and Value Prop Design from Strategyzer. I steal from these constantly and are engrained in my work process. These books put into practice really taught me how to think. As soon as I saw that everything should have a foundation of empathy, what good user-testing looks like, how to test and iterate it changed... (Source)

great presentation books

Trees, maps, and theorems

Jean-Luc Doumont | 4.20

great presentation books

Beautiful Evidence

Edward R. Tufte | 4.20

great presentation books

The Pyramid Principle

Logical Writing, Thinking and Problem Solving

Barbara Minto | 4.18

great presentation books

Patricia Reed The Minto Pyramid Principle: For would-be consultants, a (very dry) book on how to write effectively for business. (Source)

great presentation books

Unfolding the Napkin

The Hands-On Method for Solving Complex Problems with Simple Pictures

Dan Roam | 4.18

great presentation books

Visual Meetings

How Graphics, Sticky Notes & Idea Mapping Can Transform Group Productivity

David Sibbet | 4.17

great presentation books

Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principles of Screenwriting

Robert McKee | 4.17

Bill Liao The human world occurs in language so best get good at it! (Source)

great presentation books

Culinary Artistry

Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page | 4.17

great presentation books

Better Presentations

A Guide for Scholars, Researchers, and Wonks

Jonathan Schwabish | 4.17

great presentation books

The Sketchnote Handbook

The Illustrated Guide to Visual Note Taking

Mike Rohde | 4.16

great presentation books

Give Your Speech, Change the World

How To Move Your Audience to Action

Nick Morgan | 4.16

great presentation books

Indistractable

How to Control Your Attention and Choose Your Life

Nir Eyal | 4.15

great presentation books

Cal Newport Indistractable is a master class in understanding the root cause of distraction. Recommended for anyone looking to do more deep work. (Source)

Arianna Huffington This is such an important book. Indistractable is the best guide I’ve read for reclaiming our attention, our focus, and our lives. (Source)

Mark Manson Indistractable is the most practical and realistic approach to balancing technology with well-being. A must-read for anyone with a smartphone. (Source)

great presentation books

The Charisma Myth

How Anyone Can Master the Art and Science of Personal Magnetism

Olivia Cabane, Lisa Cordileone | 4.15

great presentation books

Marissa Mayer Proud of our friend and neighbor Olivia Fox Cabane - her book 'The Charisma Myth' launched today and is already #122 of all books on Amazon. It went into its second printing even before launch! (Source)

Laura Lang Olivia Fox Cabane offers hands-on advice and a practical guide to humanizing leaders without comprising integrity or authority. She focused on the ‘it’ factors that can make a real difference. (Source)

Dr. Monali Y. Desai Currently, my favorite business book is The Charisma Myth (Olivia Fox Cabane) because I feel it has so many small but impactful takeaways about improving how you communicate with others, I try to reread it once a year. (Source)

great presentation books

The Non-Designer's Design Book (Non Designer's Design Book)

Robin William | 4.14

great presentation books

Lead with a Story

A Guide to Crafting Business Narratives That Captivate, Convince, and Inspire

Paul Smith | 4.14

great presentation books

Beyond Bullet Points

Using Microsoft PowerPoint to Create Presentations that Inform, Motivate, and Inspire

Cliff Atkinson | 4.13

great presentation books

Bringing Your Boldest Self to Your Biggest Challenges

Amy Cuddy | 4.13

great presentation books

Ryan Foland Finished listening to Presence: Bringing Your Boldest Self to Your Biggest ... by @amyjccuddy via #Audible. Great book 👍👍 Want it? Get it free: https://t.co/Q0kbPqqJuF (Source)

great presentation books

Visual Thinking

Empowering People and Organisations through Visual Collaboration

Williemien Brand | 4.12

great presentation books

Walleye Presentation

#3 Core Techniques

In-Fisherman Staff | 4.12

great presentation books

Show Me the Numbers

Designing Tables and Graphs to Enlighten

Stephen Few | 4.11

great presentation books

The Art of the Pitch

Persuasion and Presentation Skills that Win Business

Peter Coughter | 4.11

great presentation books

Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised, 11th edition

Henry M. Robert III | 4.11

Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised In Brief

Henry M. III Robert | 4.11

great presentation books

The 45 Second Presentation That Will Change Your Life

Don Failla | 4.10

great presentation books

La Sociedad De Santafé Colonial

ENGELMANN ET AL. | 4.10

great presentation books

The Craft of Scientific Presentations

Critical Steps to Succeed and Critical Errors to Avoid

Michael Alley | 4.09

great presentation books

100 Things Every Presenter Needs to Know About People

Susan Weinschenk | 4.09

great presentation books

The Story Factor

Inspiration, Influence, and Persuasion through the Art of Storytelling

Annette Simmons, Doug Lipman | 4.08

great presentation books

Flip the Script

Getting People to Think Your Idea Is Their Idea

Oren Klaff | 4.07

Daymond John In Flip the Script, Oren Klaff gives readers powerful tools that will help them get what they want. Instead of trying to convince people to buy what you’re selling, his techniques will show you how to create an entirely different dynamic. A game changing read (Source)

Jonah Berger Flip the Script is the rare book that shows you how to increase your influence, at work and at home. Oren Klaff's methods are both intuitive and completely actionable. This book is loaded with real-world examples, some radical, some surprising, but all incredibly useful. (Source)

great presentation books

Perfect Pitch

The Art of Selling Ideas and Winning New Business

Jon Steel | 4.07

Bogdana Butnar I thought I might put my money where my mouth is. I keep whining that young people are not in touch with some essential books on advertising that have helped me shape the way I practise my trade today, but I never did anything about it. So I am starting here the ultimate books to read list. I will add to it as I get suggestions and as more good books get written. (Source)

great presentation books

Power Presenter

Jerry Weissman | 4.07

great presentation books

Speak With No Fear

Go from a nervous, nauseated, and sweaty speaker to an excited, energized, and passionate presenter

Mike Acker | 4.07

great presentation books

Good Charts

The HBR Guide to Making Smarter, More Persuasive Data Visualizations

Scott Berinato | 4.07

great presentation books

Presentation Now

Prepare a first rate presentation when you're short of time

Andrew Lighthear | 4.07

great presentation books

Storyworthy

Engage, Teach, Persuade, and Change Your Life through the Power of Storytelling

Matthew Dicks, Dan Kennedy | 4.06

great presentation books

Do You Talk Funny?

7 Comedy Habits to Become a Better (and Funnier) Public Speaker

David Nihill | 4.06

great presentation books

Neal O'Gorman I found when reading a book from my friend David Nihill called "Do You Talk Funny?:7 Comedy Habits to Become a Better (and Funnier) Public Speaker" there were lots of learnings. Not just learnings, but actually simple things I've been able to put into practice when presenting. For example, I'm even more conscious of the rule of three, using stories and reconstructing sentences to leave the final... (Source)

great presentation books

Death by Meeting

A Leadership Fable...about Solving the Most Painful Problem in Business

Patrick Lencioni | 4.06

great presentation books

Css: The Definitive Guide

Visual Presentation for the Web

Eric A. Meyer and Estelle Weyl | 4.06

great presentation books

Just My Type

A Book About Fonts

Simon Garfield | 4.06

Marius Ciuchete Paun Question: What books would you recommend to young people interested in your career path? Answer: “Just My Type” by Simon Garfield “Thinking with Type” by Ellen Lupton “Don't Make Me Think” by Steve Krug “Geometry of Design” by Kimberly Elam “Grid Systems in Graphic Design” by Josef Müller-Brockmann “ReWork” by Jason Fried These titles should be a good start, I think. (Source)

great presentation books

The Functional Art

An Introduction to Information Graphics and Visualization

Alberto Cairo | 4.05

great presentation books

The Wall Street Journal Guide to Information Graphics

The Dos and Don'ts of Presenting Data, Facts, and Figures

Dona M. Wong | 4.05

great presentation books

Communication Skills

A Practical Guide to Improving Your Social Intelligence, Presentation, Persuasion and Public Speaking

Ian Tuhovsky and Wendell Wadsworth | 4.05

great presentation books

The Storyteller's Secret

From TED Speakers to Business Legends, Why Some Ideas Catch On and Others Don't

CARMINE GALLO | 4.05

Julia Enthoven Since Kapwing is still a very young company, The Storyteller’s Secret helps me think about how I can communicate the origin story of Kapwing to our users and other people. I’m enjoying both! (Source)

great presentation books

Craft Your Story, Build the Perfect Pitch Deck, and Launch the Venture of Your Dreams

Evan Baehr, Evan Loomis | 4.05

great presentation books

15 Minutes Including Q & A

A Plan to Save the World from Lousy Presentations

Joey Asher | 4.05

great presentation books

Storytelling Zen

The Art of Using the Power of Story to Create & Deliver Engaging Presentations

Garr Reynolds | 4.04

Evil by Design

Interaction Design to Lead Us Into Temptation

Chris Nodder | 4.04

great presentation books

101 Sample Write-Ups for Documenting Employee Performance Problems

A Guide to Progressive Discipline and Termination

Paul Falcone | 4.04

great presentation books

Ignite Change Through Speeches, Stories, Ceremonies and Symbols

Nancy Duarte, Patti Sanchez | 4.03

Let's Practice!

Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic | 4.02

great presentation books

I Can See You Naked

Ron Hoff | 4.02

great presentation books

TED Talks Storytelling

23 Storytelling Techniques from the Best TED Talks

Akash Karia, Matt Stone, et al | 4.02

great presentation books

The Big Book of Dashboards

Visualizing Your Data Using Real-World Business Scenarios

Steve Wexler, Jeffrey Shaffer, et al. | 4.02

The 3-Minute Rule

Say Less to Get More from Any Pitch or Presentation

Brant Pinvidic | 4.01

great presentation books

How to Make an Impact

Influence, Inform and Impress With Your Reports, Presentations and Business Documents

Jon Moon | 4.01

great presentation books

The Articulate Advocate

Persuasive Skills for Lawyers in Trials, Appeals, Arbitrations, and Motions

Marsha Hunter, Brian K. Johnson, et al. | 4.01

great presentation books

Michael Symon's Carnivore

120 Recipes for Meat Lovers

Michael Symon | 4.01

great presentation books

Gamestorming

A Playbook for Innovators, Rule-breakers, and Changemakers

Dave Gray, Sunni Brown, James Macanufo | 4.01

great presentation books

Ola Olusoga Skimmed in the past, rereading. It has great examples of frameworks that help move you from fuzzy ideas to tangible output. (Source)

great presentation books

Advanced Presentations by Design

Creating Communication That Drives Action

Andrew Abela | 4.01

great presentation books

Largemouth Bass Presentation

Dynamic Lure Trends That Boat Bass Anywhere

In-Fisherman Staff | 4.00

great presentation books

Draw to Win

A Crash Course on How to Lead, Sell, and Innovate With Your Visual Mind

Dan Roam | 4.00

great presentation books

The Art of Rhetoric

Aristotle | 4.00

great presentation books

Presentation Patterns

Techniques for Crafting Better Presentations

Neal Ford, Matthew McCullough, Nathaniel Schutta | 4.00

great presentation books

Stories That Move Mountains

Storytelling and Visual Design for Persuasive Presentations

Martin Sykes, A. Nicklas Malik, Mark D. West | 3.99

must read presentation books hero

  • By Illiya Vjestica
  • - September 30, 2020

What are the Must-Read Essential Presentation Books?

We have put together, six of the best must-read presentation books on everything presenting and PowerPoint design. We began our own journey from these presentation books, and they can teach you too.

We’ve got to hand it to the internet. 

It teaches us a lot of things. On YouTube alone, there are tutorials for everything from doing eerily realistic special effects makeup to building a house. Elsewhere – at just a click of your mouse – you can find forums and websites full of insights across every skill imaginable. 

But there’s some knowledge you can only get from books. 

presentation design books must read

Books have a wealth of knowledge available to you, the feeling of turning the pages in your hand can’t be beaten. 

You can access specific interviews with leading figures in your industry. Learn tips and methodology that have been refined over decades – compiled precisely in the right order, in clear chapters, to help you digest it all. 

With that in mind, we’re always on the lookout for the best presentation books on presenting and presentation design. 

There are some brilliant titles out there that’ll help you to boost your presentation design and public speaking skills to a staggering degree – giving you an edge over your competitors.

The books we have selected will help you to deliver talks that capture hearts as well as minds. 

Here are our six must-read presentation books we’d recommend you add to your home library.

1. Talk Like TED: The 9 Public Speaking Secrets of the World’s Top Minds, Carmine Gallo

In this book, Carmine Gallo puts forward a straightforward step-by-step method for anyone to deliver a presentation that is engaging, persuasive, and most importantly, memorable.

If you’re familiar with us at The Presentation Designer, you’ll already know we’ve created slides for TED talks before. They’re the gold standard when it comes to public speaking… and with this book, you can learn all the tricks of the trade from some of the best TED presenters around. 

carmine gallo presentation book quote

From interviews with popular TED speakers to insights on how to design and deliver your presentation, this handy guide will help you to present like a pro. Are you ready to knock your audience’s socks off?

2. Presentation Zen Design: A simple visual approach to presenting in today’s world, Garr Reynolds

There’s probably nobody better qualified to give presentation advice than Garr Reynolds (other than us, of course!). 

A best-selling author and popular speaker, he’s got wisdom on tap when it comes to delivering terrific talks – and nailing every element of your presentation design. I’ve read every single book Garr has published.

Presentation Zen Design is the book I would recommend to anyone thinking about creating more effective presentation slides.

garr reynolds presentation book quote

Throughout, you’ll find simple design principles and techniques that are guaranteed to enhance your presentations. In Garr’s book you will also gain an insight into Japanese Zen and how you can apply some of its principles to improve engagement with your audience.

It doesn’t matter how smart and a detailed a slide design can be, Garr’s methods prove that ‘keeping it simple is best’.  

Check out his tips on the best ways to use colour, data, mixed mediums (including video) and more to create simple, synergistic and stunning presentations. Check it out. 

3. slide:ology: The Art and Science of Creating Great Presentations: The Art and Science of Presentation Design, Nancy Duarte

In slide:ology, communications expert Nancy Duarte delivers innovative advice around “visual thinking” – helping your audience to understand your key messages through imagery. 

Connect with specific experts, create easy-to-understand graphics and use the power of art to persuade. Using her intriguing insights and step-by-step instructions, you’ll be able to master the craft of presenting. 

There are plenty of case studies to refer too, which demonstrate how some of the world’s leading brands have used Duarte’s visual theories and methods to achieve their goals. 

nacy duarte presentation book quote

Want to learn how to create slides an audience can process? 

Then, this is the book for you, it’s difficult not to also recommend ‘Resonate’, her follow-up, as another must-read book.

Her second book will take your learning further to help you create better stories for your presentation and develop supporting visuals that fit your narrative.

Thank you, Nancy! You have taught me so much! 

4. Confessions of a Public Speaker, Scott Berkun 

Stage fright. Bored audiences. Forgetting your lines. Even the most confident of us have fears when it comes to giving presentations. Fortunately, author and public speaking specialist Scott Berkun is sympathetic to that – and between his practical advice and hilarious, insightful anecdotes, Scott teaches you how to present perfectly… without the panic element. Sounds good to us. 

scott berkun presentation book quote

Through his years of experience speaking to crowds of all different sizes, you’ll gain an insight to:

  • How to work a tough audience
  • The science of not boring people to sleep
  • How to survive the attack of nerves or worry
  • What to do when things go wrong

5. Show and Tell: How Everybody Can Make Extraordinary Presentations, Dan Roam

There are two decades worth of presentation wisdom in Dan Roam’s  Show and Tell . His theory is that we’re all natural-born storytellers.

In his book ‘Show and Tell’ he guides our focus on unlocking our innate presenting abilities in a fun, engaging and informative way. Through fundamental truths (including our personal favourite: “passion = self-confidence”), hand-drawn pictures and simple-to-remember tips, you’ll find a fantastic foundation for both your presentation design and delivery.

There’s a lot of informative content about telling better stories in our presentation and how to structure them to make them engaging. 

Cheers, Dan.

6. Interaction of Color, Josef Albers

At The Presentation Designer, we’re serious when it comes to harnessing the power of colour in presentation design. It’s a good thing, too, as colour theory and psychology play massive roles in the potential impact of your slides. 

Josef Albers’ famous book,  Interaction of Colour , is testament to that fact: a comprehensive guide on the principles of colour theory that’s been in circulation since the 60s. 

Age certainly equals wisdom, here, because Albers’ in-depth manual – which discusses everything from colour relativity to the illusion of transparency – is chockablock with all the information you’ll ever need to know about using colour. You’ll be the Picasso of presentations in no time. 

I’ve included this video from painter Albert van der Zwart who explains the concepts around Josef Albers principles of colour theory well.

There you go, I hope you’ve enjoyed our recommended presentation books. Let us know any you think we’ve missed in the comments.

Other Recommend Reading:

If you have enjoyed this post we’ve also included some helpful links to our blog posts that you might find useful:

  • 5 PowerPoint Tips You Should Know
  • How to Improve Presentation Retention Rates
  • How to Overcome Your Fear of Public Speaking
  • 5 Classic Presentation Fonts

Don’t want to go it alone? We’ve got a  brilliant process in place  to help you build your presentation… and we’ll give you a free quotation, too. Come say hi!

Illiya Vjestica

Illiya Vjestica

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Top 35 Presentation Books: Expert Ratings

Some are bad. Some are good. And some are outstanding!

We want to help you find the outstanding books — books which truly help you build your presentation skills . That’s why we publish book reviews on Six Minutes .

So, when Gonzalo Álvarez invited me to join in a survey of experts to rate a collection of the best presentation books, I was happy to participate.

This article reports the results of this survey: the top 35 books on presentations .

Analysis and Participants

From the analysis summary:

We wondered: “What do the top presentation experts in the world read?” They told us. We asked 7 of the top presentation experts in the world to tell us what books most inspired them to be better presenters. Seven judges, including four published authors, provided feedback to a list of books. We present, for your consideration, their ranked list of the top 35 presentation books.
  • Survey analysis was performed by Gonzalo Álvarez and Bruce Gabrielle. Their methodology and full results can be found in the embedded document later in this article. Thanks to both of them for leading this effort!
  • Nancy Duarte
  • Bruce Gabrielle
  • Dr. Michael Alley
  • Gonzalo Alvarez
  • Nolan Haims
  • Andrew Dlugan  (me)

Summary of the Results

  • It’s very difficult to quantitatively compare speaking books, particularly when those books excel in very different ways.
  • Books were scored according to their presentation focus along several criteria (content, structure, visual design, delivery). The total of the individual scores was used to rank the books overall.
  • These totals can be misleading as they reward books with a very broad focus (books that touch on many speaking skills), and penalize books with a narrow focus. As an example, books like Made to Stick or The Story Factor  (which are both excellent books which focus almost entirely on storytelling) receive low overall scores.
  • Each of these two groups are listed in the tables below.
  • The “Amazon Rating” column in the tables below gives the “stars” ranking and the number of reader reviews.
  • Most books (27 out of 35) are priced between $14 and $28 . Four books are less than $14, and one book is over $28. Three books are no longer carried by amazon, so no price is given.
  • Links to these reviews are given in the tables below.
  • Most of the remaining 21 books are on my personal wishlist, so it’s quite likely you’ll be seeing reviews for some of them in the future.

Books with a Content/Delivery Focus

Books with a focus on visuals, the full ratings data.

If you do not see the embedded document below, please visit the web version of this article .

How about you? Which are your favorites?

How many of these 35 have you read? Which ones do you like most? Why? Which book(s) would you add to the list?

Please share in the comments . I’d love to hear from you.

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14 comments.

The Art of the Explanation is my favorite. It’s written by Lee LeFever. He’s got steps on how to explain complicated things and ideas so NO ONE in the audience gets left behind.

Thanks Jaime.

I love Lee LeFever’s video explanations, and am curious to read his book.

2 Done; 33 to go. Wonderful timing. I was just looking for books to improve on my presentation skills. Andrew, you just handed over me the magic wand. 🙂

Thanks Andrew. Look forward to completing these.

Oh wow, that’s quite the list. I’ll be going over this and determining which ones I need to read NOW and which ones I’ll save for later. Thanks for taking the time to put together such a great list.

The one book I have never seen written is how to develop presentations for others to give. Many times I am faced with developing a corporate or sales presentation for the sales team to give to prospects – what are the best practices for this kind of presentation?

Thank you for providing an extremely useful list. However, it’s hard for anyone to keep up with what else those authors have been doing since the listed books were published. Check before you buy. For example, Stephen M. Kosslyn’s 2010 book Better PowerPoint: Quick Fixes Based on How Your Audience Thinks might be a better choice than the 2007 Clear and to the Point. Also, this year Dave Paradi published Present It So They Get It . I liked his The Visual Slide Revolution enough to post a review of it .

I’d add Dona M. Wong’s The Wall Street Journal Guide to Information Graphics to the list of books about visuals. I reviewed it briefly here .

Thanks for the detailed comments, Richard. I’ll have to check out those books.

considero una parte esencial de la vida el leer y leer pero el decidir cual o cuales libros son los mejores es dificil. por lo que agradezco esta presentacion seis minutos un momento de informacion que engrandece nuestro pensamiento. gracias

Since i am a scientist, my favorite is the craft of scientific presentation. I guess this one was intended for presenting scientific data and conference. For design, I prefer The non designer design book. For story telling, confessions of a public speaker is excellence. I read several other book, like the zen etc, but in my opinion they are for business-type presentation

a great list, but you left out a GEM. Gail Larsen’s Transformational Speaking . Truly, the best speaking book I’ve read.

MUST- ADD ALERT! Transformational Speaking , by Gail Larsen. This book is a comprehensive and unique guide to speaking with the most authentic voice we can bring forth. Gail’s teachings have not only helped me to become a better speaker, but have also helped me name and claim personal attributes that make me a better artist, workshop leader, friend, and mother. As former leader of the National Speaker’s Association, Gail knows the speaking world well. She can give a great speech any day at any time; but what interests her is the special ability we each possess to connect with people on a deeper level, through storytelling. In her book, Gail makes the case that if we don’t honor our unique offerings by sharing them, they will be lost to the world forever. She goes on to explain that this is a critical time in our world, a time we need everyone. Calling all voices! Please add this truly transformational gift to the world to your list of bests. I have never read a book that has changed my life more!

I think this is a great list you and your team have compliled. One I would add would be Jeremy Donovon’s How To Deliver A TED Talk which is a easy read that takes the best Ted Talks and dissects them.

I just read your ratings on the 35 presentation books and I can see I have a lot of reading a head of me.

I’m writing to you to ask if you would like to write a guest blog for our website? In return we can give you access to our PowerPoint Templates database and give you some room to promote your own product.

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Business School Presenting – Especially Powerful Books for 2013! — Jan 17th, 2013

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10 Best Books for Presentation

Nancy Dua rte – Resonate: Present Visual Stories that Transform Audiences

Presentations are meant to inform, inspire, and persuade audiences. So then why do so many audiences leave feeling like they’ve wasted their time? All too often, presentations don’t resonate with the audience and move them to transformative action. Just as the author’s first book helped presenters become visual communicators, Resonate helps you make a strong connection with your audience and lead them to purposeful action. The author’s approach is simple: building a presentation today is a bit like writing a documentary. Using this approach, you’ll convey your content with passion, persuasion, and impact.Author has a proven track record, including having created the slides in Al Gore’s Oscar-winning An Inconvenient TruthFocuses on content development methodologies that are not only fundamental but will move people to actionUpends the usual paradigm by making the audience the hero and the presenter the mentorShows how to use story techniques of conflict and resolutionPresentations don’t have to be boring ordeals. You can make them fun, exciting, and full of meaning. Leave your audiences energized and ready to take action with Resonate.

Henry Boetti nger – Moving mountains: Or the Art and Craft of Letting Others See Things Your Way

The classic text on how to organize your thoughts into a logical and enjoyable presentation.

“Seek this book. I’ve read books on presentations for 40 years and [taught] public speaking across America. This is the most insightful book, in fact the very best book I’ve ever read, period. The psychological savvy into groups, the chapter on graphics and visuals, the hundreds of little tips and techniques is unmatched. His emphasis on meeting the audience’s needs is brilliant. I’ve been using Boettinger’s ideas for more than 20 years they’ve helped me earn more than a million dollars and still no author has matched his fluent style, novel-like descriptions, and breath of knowledge. Search and purchase.” – anonymous user

Kristin Arnold – Boring to Bravo: Proven Presentation Techniques to Engage, Involve, and Inspire Your Audience to Action

This book shows experienced presenters how to transform boring monologues into scintillating dialogues by employing simple yet powerful presentation techniques. It features 90-plus practical techniques for engaging and interacting with an audience. Drawing from her extensive experience as a nationally recognised speaker, the author gives readers tips that apply to any presenter. Readers will be amazed at their ability to attract, involve, and inspire by incorporating just a few of the author’s suggestions. It offers a proven methodology for upgrading any presentation. By taking a collaborative approach to the communication process, the author shows the reader how to care, connect, and converse with the members of any audience. Incoming NSA president with strong promotional platform: as the incoming president of the National Speakers Association, the author will promote the book on a nation-wide tour. An experienced team facilitator and military veteran, the author has a large platform of clients, including the Coast Guard, NASA, and the IRS. 

Chip Heath – Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die – NYT Bestseller

Why do some ideas thrive while others die? And how do we improve the chances of worthy ideas? In  Made to Stick , accomplished educators and idea collectors Chip and Dan Heath tackle head-on these vexing questions. Inside, the brothers Heath reveal the anatomy of ideas that stick and explain ways to make ideas stickier, such as applying the “human scale principle,” using the “Velcro Theory of Memory,” and creating “curiosity gaps.” In this indispensable guide, we discover that sticky messages of all kinds–from the infamous “kidney theft ring” hoax to a coach’s lessons on sportsmanship to a vision for a new product at Sony–draw their power from the same six traits. Made to Stick  is a book that will transform the way you communicate ideas. It’s a fast-paced tour of success stories (and failures)–the Nobel Prize-winning scientist who drank a glass of bacteria to prove a point about stomach ulcers; the charities who make use of “the Mother Teresa Effect”; the elementary-school teacher whose simulation actually prevented racial prejudice. Provocative, eye-opening, and often surprisingly funny,  Made to Stick  shows us the vital principles of winning ideas–and tells us how we can apply these rules to making our own messages stick.

John Medina – Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School 

See how the brain works while using it in the process of reading this book! Most of us have no idea what’s really going on inside our heads. Yet brain scientists have uncovered details every business leader, parent, and teacher should know – like that physical activity boosts your brain power.  How do we learn? What exactly do sleep and stress do to our brains? Why is multi-tasking a myth? Why is it so easy to forget – and so important to repeat new information? Is it true that men and women have different brains?

In  Brain Rules , Dr. John Medina, a molecular biologist, shares his lifelong interest in how the brain sciences might influence the way we teach our children and the way we work. In each chapter, he describes a brain rule – what scientists know for sure about how our brains work – and then offers transformative ideas for our daily lives.  Medina’s fascinating stories and sense of humour breathe life into brain science. You’ll learn why Michael Jordan was no good at baseball. You’ll peer over a surgeon’s shoulder as he proves that we have a Jennifer Aniston neuron. You’ll meet a boy who has an amazing memory for music but can’t tie his own shoes.

Nick Morgan – Give Your Speech, Change the World: How To Move Your Audience to Action

Do you remember the topic of the last speech you heard? If not, you’re not alone. In fact, studies show that audiences remember only 10% to 30% of speech or presentation content. Given those bleak statistics, why do we give speeches at all? We give them, says communications expert Nick Morgan, because they remain the most powerful way of connecting with audiences since ancient Greek times. But as we’ve evolved to a more conversational mode of public speaking, thanks to television, we have forgotten much of what the Greeks taught us about the nonverbal aspects of speech-giving: the physical connection with audiences that can create an almost palpable emotional bond. Morgan says this “kinesthetic connection” comes from truly listening to your audience—not just with your brain but with your body. In this book, he draws from more than 20 years as a speech coach and consultant, combining the best of ancient Greek oratory with modern communications research to offer a new, audience-centered approach to public speaking. Through entertaining and insightful examples, Morgan illustrates a 3 part process—focusing on content development, rehearsal, and delivery—that will enable readers of all experience levels to give more effective, passion-filled speeches that move audiences to action.

Andrew Abele – Advanced Presentations by Design: Creating Communication that Drives Action

Advanced Presentations by Design overturns much of the conventional wisdom and practice for creating presentations. Based on over 200 research studies from the fields of communication, marketing, psychology, multimedia, and law, it provides fact-based answers to critical questions about presentation design, including how to adapt your presentation to different audience personality preferences, what role your data should play and how much of it you need, how to turn your data into a story, and how to design persuasive yet comprehensible visual layouts.

Bert Decker – You’ve Got to Be Believed to Be Heard: The Complete Book of Speaking . . . in Business and in Life! 

Are you uncomfortable—even afraid—about the prospect of speaking before a group of people? Do you have trouble getting your message across? When you speak, do others listen, or can you feel their attention wandering?

Effective communication is essential in business and in everyday life. The most powerful communicators reach not just our minds but our hearts: They win our trust. You can learn to impress and persuade other people by following Bert Decker’s program in  You’ve Got to Be Believed to Be Heard .

In this revised and updated edition of his bestselling book, he distills his expertise into a fresh new approach to speaking, with examples and how-to exercises that anyone can follow. Decker rounds out the behavioral focus of the first edition to include his powerful tool to organize content. Now you can learn to create focused, listener-based messages in half the time. Spend a few evenings with this complete book of speaking, and you will discover how to win the emotional trust of others—the true basis of communicating in any situation.

Garr Reynold s – Presentation Zen: Simple Ideas on Presentation Design and Delivery

Presentation designer and internationally acclaimed communications expert Garr Reynolds, creator of the most popular Web site on presentation design and delivery on the Net — presentationzen.com — shares his experience in a provocative mix of illumination, inspiration, education, and guidance that will change the way you think about making presentations with PowerPoint or Keynote. Presentation Zen challenges the conventional wisdom of making “slide presentations” in today’s world and encourages you to think differently and more creatively about the preparation, design, and delivery of your presentations. Garr shares lessons and perspectives that draw upon practical advice from the fields of communication and business. Combining solid principles of design with the tenets of Zen simplicity, this book will help you along the path to simpler, more effective presentations.

Scott Berkun – Confessions of a Public Speaker

In this hilarious and highly practical book, author and professional speaker Scott Berkun reveals the techniques behind what great communicators do, and shows how anyone can learn to use them well. For managers and teachers — and anyone else who talks and expects someone to listen —  Confessions of a Public Speaker  provides an insider’s perspective on how to effectively present ideas to anyone. It’s a unique, entertaining, and instructional romp through the embarrassments and triumphs Scott has experienced over 15 years of speaking to crowds of all sizes.

With lively lessons and surprising confessions, you’ll get new insights into the art of persuasion — as well as teaching, learning, and performance — directly from a master of the trade.

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Top 9 Presentation Design Books (2023)

Tom Tran

Hey there, slide slayer! 🦸‍♂️ Looking for the perfect resource to level up your presentation design game? Look no further! I've compiled a list of the best (and my favorite) presentation design books that will turn your slides from 'meh' to 'WOW.' Say goodbye to boring presentations and hello to captivating, engaging visuals. Let's dive in!

What Are the Best Presentation Design Books?

I've handpicked these amazing books, packed with insights, tips, and techniques to help you create stunning presentations. Whether you're a new grad or a working professional, these books have got you covered. Let's explore them one by one.

Slide:ology: The Art and Science of Creating Great Presentations

great presentation books

Written by presentation expert Nancy Duarte, Slide:ology is a must-read for anyone looking to improve their slide design skills. This comprehensive guide covers everything from storytelling to slide layout and design principles.

What I Liked

  • Step-by-step guidance on designing effective presentations
  • Beautiful visuals and examples from well-known companies
  • Great case studies highlighting the people
  • Clear authority in the field since she designed Al Gore's famous climate change slide deck that was the basis for an Inconvenient Truth film
  • Clear explanations of design concepts
  • Focus on storytelling and audience engagement
  • Good focus on timeless ideas
  • The print book is beautifully designed
  • More hands-on exercises and activities

Bottom Line

This book is perfect for anyone looking to master the art of creating visually stunning and impactful presentations, regardless of their design background.

Resonate: Present Visual Stories that Transform Audiences

great presentation books

Another gem from Nancy Duarte, Resonate focuses on the power of storytelling to create memorable and persuasive presentations. Learn how to connect with your audience and leave a lasting impact.

  • Unique approach to visual storytelling
  • Incorporation of narrative structure in presentations
  • Emphasis on audience engagement and connection
  • Variety of case studies from different fields
  • Tips for effective slide design and layout
  • Expanded section on slide design tools and resources

If you want to learn the art of storytelling in presentations and captivate your audience, this book is a fantastic choice.

DataStory: Explain Data and Inspire Action Through Story

great presentation books

DataStory, also by Nancy Duarte, is a valuable guide for those looking to effectively communicate complex data through storytelling. Discover how to turn numbers into compelling narratives that drive action.

What I Liked:

  • Clear explanations of data visualization concepts
  • Practical tips for transforming data into stories
  • Examples from various industries
  • Focus on audience understanding and decision-making
  • Techniques for creating persuasive data-driven presentations
  • More detailed guidance on data visualization tools
  • Expanded coverage of data analysis techniques

Ideal for professionals working with data, this book will help you present complex information in a clear, engaging, and persuasive manner.

Everyday Business Storytelling: Create, Simplify, and Adapt A Visual Narrative for Any Audience

great presentation books

Authors Janine Kurnoff and Lee Lazarus provide practical guidance on using visual storytelling to create effective business presentations. Learn how to simplify complex ideas and adapt your message for any audience.

  • Step-by-step process for crafting visual narratives
  • Emphasis on audience-centered communication
  • Real-world examples and case studies
  • Tips for adapting messages to different audiences and contexts
  • Techniques for simplifying complex information
  • Plenty of examples with before and afters
  • The section about email communication because not everything has to be a presentation
  • Even more examples at the end

This book is perfect for business professionals who want to create engaging and persuasive visual narratives that resonate with any audience.

Storytelling with Data: A Data Visualization Guide for Business Professionals

great presentation books

Written by Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic, Storytelling with Data teaches readers how to present data in a clear and compelling way. Gain valuable insights on data visualization techniques and best practices for business professionals.

  • In-depth coverage of data visualization best practices
  • Focus on audience-centric presentation design
  • Strategies for simplifying complex data
  • Tips for selecting the most effective chart types
  • Guidance on using color and design elements effectively
  • Additional exercises and activities for hands-on practice

This book is ideal for business professionals who want to master data visualization and deliver clear, compelling data-driven presentations.

Good Charts: The HBR Guide to Making Smarter, More Persuasive Data Visualizations

great presentation books

Authored by Scott Berinato, Good Charts is a comprehensive guide to creating data visualizations that effectively communicate complex information. Learn best practices and techniques for creating persuasive and informative charts and graphs.

  • Practical guidance for creating effective charts and graphs
  • Harvard Business Review's credibility and expertise
  • Tips for improving existing data visualizations
  • Strategies for engaging and persuading audiences with data
  • Expanded coverage of advanced visualization techniques

This book is perfect for professionals seeking to improve their data visualization skills and create more persuasive presentations using data.

Good Charts Workbook: Tips, Tools, and Exercises for Making Better Data Visualizations

great presentation books

A companion to Good Charts, the Good Charts Workbook by Scott Berinato offers hands-on exercises and practical tools to help you create better data visualizations. Improve your skills with engaging activities and real-world examples.

  • Interactive exercises and activities
  • Focus on hands-on learning and skill development
  • Complements the concepts covered in Good Charts
  • Tips for refining and improving existing visualizations
  • Greater variety of data visualization tools covered
  • Inclusion of digital resources and templates

Ideal for those looking to practice and improve their data visualization skills, this workbook is a valuable resource for creating more effective and persuasive data-driven presentations.

The Elegant Pitch: Create a Compelling Recommendation, Build Broad Support, and Get It Approved

great presentation books

Written by Mike Figliuolo, The Elegant Pitch provides a structured approach to crafting persuasive business recommendations. Learn how to build support and get your ideas approved with a clear, compelling pitch.

  • Step-by-step process for creating persuasive pitches
  • Focus on clarity and simplicity in communication
  • Tips for overcoming objections and building support
  • Techniques for tailoring your pitch to different audiences
  • Well written book with very actionable advice
  • More of a hidden gem that isn't talked about as much
  • Greater emphasis on visual presentation techniques

This book is perfect for professionals who want to learn how to create compelling recommendations and get their ideas approved in a business setting.

Presentation Zen Design: Simple Design Principles and Techniques to Enhance Your Presentations

great presentation books

In Presentation Zen Design, Garr Reynolds shares his expertise on creating visually stunning and engaging presentations. Discover simple design principles and techniques to transform your slides and captivate your audience.

  • Focus on clean, minimalist design principles
  • Practical tips for improving slide design
  • Real-world examples from various industries
  • Strategies for incorporating visuals effectively
  • Techniques for engaging and connecting with audiences
  • Very culturally sensitive
  • Eastern cultural themes and analogies
  • An updated edition is needed because, visually, some of the examples feel very out of date

great presentation books

This book is ideal for those looking to enhance their presentation design skills and create visually engaging slides that resonate with their audience.

So there you have it, my top picks for the best presentation design books. Whether you're just starting or want to polish your skills, these books will help you create captivating, engaging slides that leave a lasting impression.

Ready to get started? Grab one of these books and watch your presentations transform! 🚀

Decktopus AI Review 2023

Decktopus AI Review 2023

Best AI Presentation Software 2023

Best AI Presentation Software 2023

Best PowerPoint Tool for Creating Charts 2023: Think Cell

Best PowerPoint Tool for Creating Charts 2023: Think Cell

Business School Presentations

Business School Presentations

great presentation books

Great Presentation Books

Great Presentation Book

To recommend books chock full of presentation wisdom to hone our skill set!

Great advice to lift our presentation to what we all sometimes refer to as “the next level.”

And then the equally obvious thought occurred to me – that list already exists.

The List of Great Presentation Books

In fact, I’m certain that several lists are already out there making the rounds.

And so I do the next best thing in this space . . .

I offer you a list of the 35 best presentation books compiled and judged by giants in the field.  And another list of recent great presentation books offered by presentation guru Garr Reynolds.

I offer my own view of what I consider to be the top three presentation books.  Yes, you can learn something about business presenting from a book.

Quite a bit, actually.

The trick is to find the right book.

My Top Three Great Presentation Books

My personal favorites are Presenting to Win , by Jerry Weissman and Slide:ology , by Nancy Duarte, The Story Factor , by Annette Simmons.

These three books, for me, capture the spirit, the art, and the craft of especially powerful business presenting.

They advocate change .

You must change how your deliver your presentations in ways that, at first, you may find discomfiting.  But they are changes that you must accept to become an especially powerful business presenter.

Great Presentation Books for 2014

A fourth book does not appear on the list.  Actually, it does , but only in a modified form.

This powerful tome is Dale Carnegie’s The Quick and Easy Way to Effective Speaking .  This is an “updated” version of his classic from mid-way the last century Public Speaking and Influencing Men in Business .  In my view, the update strips much useful material from the book, and so I prefer the original.

You can find dozens of copies of the original classic for sale on ebay.  This, in my opinion, is the most useful public speaking book ever penned.

Great Presentation books

And My Book?

My own book, The Complete Guide to Business School Presenting , does not appear on this superb list of 35 books.  And so here I offer the most generous and self-aggrandizing interpretation possible . . . it just hasn’t circulated among the cognoscenti nearly enough to have created a buzz-worthy impact.

I know that you, as do I, eagerly await its appearance on next year’s “Best of” list.

Until then, enjoy the creme-de-la-creme of great presentation books as exemplified on the lists here!

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For Especially Powerful Business Presentations

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20 Books about Presentation Design

Nurma Febriana

Nurma Febriana

  • Published on April 7, 2022

books presentation design

Table of Contents

Books about presentation design to read

You’re not a professional designer, but you want your slides to look professional. What are you doing?

We need to improve your presentation design skills to improve the final result. One way is to read books about presentation design. There is some knowledge that you can only get from books. To produce a good presentation, we have to read some books about presentation design.

The book has a lot of knowledge available. We are always looking for some books on presentation design with that in mind. Some brilliant titles will  help you improve your presentation design skills.

Some books about presentation design help you deliver a lecture that captivates the heart and mind. One of the books about presentation design is also for tips and techniques – everything you need to make your next presentation more engaging and persuasive. 

Twenty books about presentation design

Here are twenty books about presentation design that we should read. We suggest you add them to your home library.

1. The Non-Designer’s Presentation Book: Principles for Effective Presentation Design by Robin Williams

Robin Williams wrote a book on the principles of effective presentation design. He tried to help many non-designers find their presentation mojo. By applying four design principles, he guides the reader in making a presentation from beginning to end and adds four more principles specifically for clear communication with slides. This book has also taught an entire generation the basics of design and typography.

Robin guides you through the entire presentation creation process in his signature lighthearted style — from using the right software to organizing your ideas to designing effective, beautiful slides that won’t bore your audience.

In general, you will learn:

What makes a good or bad presentation?

  • How to plan, organize, and outline a presentation?
  • The four principles of designing effective presentations.
  • Four principles for designing beautiful slides that communicate clearly.

There are more than 850,000 copies of this Robin Williams book in print. The downside, this book is a bit difficult for us to master. Then, this next title is worth a look.

2. The Non-Designer’s Design Book by Robin Williams

For almost 20 years, author Robin Williams designers have introduced non-designers to the basic principles of design. Robin has taught her how to make a design look professional using four simple principles through her straightforward and lightweight style. In its fourth edition, in The Non-Designer’s Design Book, Robin offers more practical design advice, including a new chapter on the basics of typography. 

In this book, we will learn:

  • The four design principles that underlie any design project
  • Color of design 
  • Type of design
  • Combine typography for maximum effect
  • Special tips for creating newsletters, brochures, pamphlets, and other projects

This book covers everything from colors to font, giving you many professional design tips to apply to PowerPoint or Google Slide creations. You will find instruction and inspiration to approach any design project with confidence.

3. Presentation Zen Design: Simple Design Principles and Techniques to Enhance Your Presentations by Garr Reynolds

Garr Reynolds delivered simple design principles and techniques to improve presentation. These books about presentation design will teach you how to keep things simple, improve your communication and connect with your audience. The Zen Design presentation (2nd Edition) focuses on teaching non-designers basic design principles and techniques.

The context is a visual presentation that we can apply more broadly to other forms of visual communication. The 2nd edition is not much different from the first edition. The first edition remains a textbook or supplementary book in communication-related classes at colleges and universities. There is an additional chapter on making an Impact with Video Garr’s presentation design techniques that can help improve presentation slides in the second edition.

4. Slide:ology: The Art and Science of Creating Great Presentations by Nancy Duarte

Nancy Duarte’s book helps you become a visual thinker, just like learning about visual story development. This book includes some books about presentation design, which we must-read.

5. Storytelling with Data: A Data Visualization Guide for Business Professionals by Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic

In this book, we can learn how to create attractive data slides and graphs that we will use in certain situations. We should read books about presentation design to make data not easily lost to the audience.

6. Storytelling with Data: Let’s Practice! by Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic

The storytelling book is one of the books about presentation design.  Specifically, we will learn how to:

  • Understand the importance of context
  • Determine the appropriate type of graph
  • Direct your audience’s attention
  • Visualize data like a designer
  • Harness the power of storytelling to help your message resonate with your audience

This book contains the basics of data visualization and communicating effectively with data.

7. Good Charts: The HBR Guide to Making Smarter, More Persuasive Data Visualizations by Scott Berinato

Books about presentation design are a great guide to how data visualization works and how to use it to impress and persuade an audience. This book covers research on visual perception, neuroscience, and visualization science. This book includes some books about presentation design, which we must-read.

8. Envisioning Information by Edward R. Tufte

In this extraordinary book by Edward R. Tufte, you’ll find lots of beautiful and original ideas for visually presenting information and lots of practical advice. So we have to read books about presentation design.

9. Killer Visual Strategies: Engage Any Audience, Improve Comprehension, and Get Amazing Results Using Visual Communication by Amy Balliett

Killer Visual Strategies examines what brands are doing today to create great visual content in this book about presentation design. The book Killer Visual Strategies provides actionable rules for aspiring designers and sees the latest trends.

10. How to Design TED Worthy Presentation Slides: Presentation Design Principles from the Best TED Talks by Akash Karia

This book about presentation design aims to answer that question by looking at some of the best speakers and presentation slides to grace the TED stage.

11. The Art of Presentation by Tom Nixon

This book about presentation design aims to improve presentation skills with Tom Nixon’s tips and tricks. This book includes some books about presentation design, which we must-read. He wrote down how to align slide texts to find presentation inspiration.

12. Advanced Presentations by Design: Creating Communication that Drives Action by Andrew Abela

Microsoft, ExxonMobil, and PayPal have tested one of the books about presentation design that we should read.

This book focuses on story structure and the use of data charts. The guides in this book will teach us about results-based presentation design.

13. Encyclopedia of Slide Layouts: Inspiration for Visual Communication by Andrew V Abela Ph.D. and Paul J Radich

This book provides slide layouts to inspire your presentation designs. You’ll understand the purpose of each form and the problems they solve, so there are plenty of design lessons to learn along the way. So this book is included as the books about presentation design that we must read.

14. Designing Science Presentations: A Visual Guide to Figures, Papers, Slides, Posters, and More by Matt Carter

We should read books about presentation design. This book includes visual guides for numbers, handouts, slides, posters, etc. It also teaches you to publish your findings, get funding, or advance your career and introduces the best scientific presentations and techniques. 

15. Get Backed: Craft Your Story, Build the Perfect Pitch Deck, and Launch the Venture of Your Dreams by Evan Baehr and Evan Loomis

Evan Baehr and Evan Loomis wrote a book called “GET BACKED” to build a start-up business, the Perfect Pitch Deck. They raised $45 million for their efforts in just three years. So this book is included as books about presentation design that we must read.

16. Better Presentations: A Guide for Scholars, Researchers, and Wonks by Jonathan Schwabish

We should read this book on presentation design because it contains a guide for scholars, researchers, and wonks.

Better Presentations offers expert advice for creating scientific or data-intensive presentations. In this book, you’ll learn how to impress and engage your audience with great visuals and content. So this book is included as books about presentation design that we must read.

17. Design for How People Learn by Julie Dirksen

This book can help your audience acquire and retain the information or skills you want them to know by following the advice in this book. So we should read books about presentation design.

This book will design educational presentations that help your students engage with a topic. 

18. Talk Like TED by Carmine Gallo

This book includes some books about presentation design, which we must-read. There are nine secrets of how to speak in public.

Carmine Gallo’s book puts forward a step-by-step method to deliver attractive, persuasive, and easy presentations for the audience to remember. Outline,

Carmine Gallo’s book quote explains how to design and deliver presentations professionally.

19. Color Interaction by Josef Albers

Color theory plays a huge role in the potential impact of your slides. This book on presentation design contains a guide to harnessing the power of color in presentation design. The book provides a comprehensive guide to the principles of color theory that have been around since the 60s. This book also covers everything from the relativity of color to the illusion of transparency – jam-packed with all the information you need to know about using color. So this book is included as books about presentation design that we must read.

20. Now You See It by Stephen Few

The book Now You See It teaches the concepts, principles, and practices of creating good visual data. The skills in this book rely on something most of us have—vision—interactively using graphics. This book also teaches these essential skills comprehensively.

So this book is included as books about presentation design that we must read.

See also: Brand Consistency: Make Your Brand Stand Out In Every Presentation Want to Create a Sophisticated PowerPoint Presentation Like Professional PowerPoint Design Agency? Try These Free Resources

There you go; I hope you’ve enjoyed our recommended presentation books

This book on presentation design will make the presentation more attractive and engage the audience. But if time is limited or you prefer templates from the experts, browse the extensive library of professional presentation templates available at rrgraphdesign.com .

With one of our templates, you’ll get the visual tools and data you need to present your content in a truly connected way.

Let’s visit RRSlide to download free PowerPoint templates . But wait, don’t go anywhere and stay here with our Blog to keep up-to-date on all the best pitch deck template collections and design advice from our PowerPoint experts !

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Best Books on Presentation Design

Best Books on Presentation Design (Updated 2023)

Sven Woltmann

Discover the best presentation design books: tips, inspiration, and expert advice for effective and visually appealing presentations.

In line with the topic, I can also recommend you some  books on the psychology of persuation .

Resonate: Present Visual Stories that Transform Audiences

resonate nancy - duarte

by Nancy Duarte

Link to the book at Amazon

Nancy Duarte, an expert in the field of presentation design, demonstrates how to create impressive and impactful presentations that not only inform the audience but also inspire and move them to take action. Presentations whose ideas stick, causing the audience to reflect on and talk about them long after they are over.

The underlying idea is to develop a story around the information and then use storytelling principles (as employed in film and literature) to evoke emotions in the audience. The hero of the story is not the presenter but the audience itself. The presenter plays the role of a mentor, inspiring and encouraging the audience to take action.

The author explains these principles through speeches and presentations by well-known speakers and presenters such as Steve Jobs, Martin Luther King Jr., and Ronald Reagan and shows how to incorporate their techniques into your presentations.

A recommendation for anyone who wants to turn their presentations into captivating and impactful experiences, leaving a lasting impression on their audience.

About the Kindle version: Due to numerous graphical contents and partly colored text, I advise against buying "resonate" in the Kindle edition. It does contain the graphics, but in poor resolution, so you cannot read them well even after tediously zooming in.

Suitable as an audiobook? The title is unavailable as an audiobook and would not be suitable as such.

Slide:ology: The Art and Science of Creating Great Presentations

Slide:ology - Nancy Duarte

Many presentation slides serve primarily as a teleprompter: the presenter, having their back turned to the audience, meanders along countless bullet points. And the audience quickly gets bored because they can read faster than the presenter can talk.

Good presentations, on the other hand, focus on the presenter and their ideas and visions. Slides help the audience grasp those ideas through memorable images and graphics (and occasionally words) – rather than distracting from them.

Nancy Duarte, founder of Duarte Design, has designed presentations for world-renowned brands such as Adobe, Cisco, Google, Hewlett-Packard, and Al Gore’s Oscar-winning film “An Inconvenient Truth.” In “Slide:ology,” she takes you through the presentation development process, from brainstorming to designing powerful and visually appealing slides to eventually delivering the talk.

The book’s focus is on the content and design of the slides. It covers how to present insights rather than data; how to arrange elements and space them properly; how to display numbers, dimensions, and words; how to create diagrams; how to select images; how to choose colors, backgrounds, and fonts; and how to create animations and slide transitions.

The book is excellently structured and designed with great attention to detail. Numerous before-and-after case studies in all chapters help to understand the visualization strategies presented. Even without having studied graphic design, you will be able to implement many of the principles. A recommendation for anyone who wants their next presentation to stand out from the crowd of standard talks.

About the Kindle version: Do yourself a favor and buy the printed book. The many graphics have a poor resolution in the digital version and are, on top of that, black and white on the Kindle.

Presentation Zen: Simple Ideas on Presentation Design and Delivery

presentation zen - garr reynolds

by Garr Reynolds

Who doesn't know them? Boring presentations, full of slides cluttered with bullet points, where you are unsure whether to listen to the presenter or read the text.

In “Presentation Zen,” you'll learn how to create presentations that engage the audience, inspire them, and have a lasting impact on them.

You do this, firstly, by using stories, metaphors, and compelling storytelling to build an emotional connection with your audience. And secondly, by using minimalist, visually appealing slides that support the presenter's message with images and graphics rather than confusing the audience with textual clutter.

The book offers numerous design examples, understandable explanations, and practical advice. For example, the author recommends planning a presentation with a whiteboard and sticky notes and only after this “analog” phase creating the slides on the computer. And if a presentation document is required that non-participants can read, we should design it as a separate handout instead of placing all the information as text on the slides.

I highly recommend “Presentation Zen” to anyone who wants to give an effective presentation – whether at university, in the office, or at a conference.

Suitable as an audiobook? The title is unavailable as an audiobook and would not be suitable as such due to numerous illustrations.

The Tall Lady With the Iceberg: The Power of Metaphor to Sell, Persuade & Explain Anything to Anyone

the tall lady with the iceberg anne miller

by Anne Miller

People are generally not won over by facts alone. Salespeople cannot sell on facts alone, and speakers cannot inspire anyone with facts alone. Only when facts are accompanied by emotional messages, for example, in the form of images, stories, or metaphors, can people be persuaded.

In “The Tall Lady With The Iceberg,” Anne Miller, a presentation and communication coach, explains what metaphors are, how to develop them, and how to use them effectively as a salesperson, speaker, or presenter to communicate more effectively, explain complex ideas understandably, and captivate and convince the audience.

Numerous real-life stories and over two hundred example metaphors for various situations make the book an informative and entertaining read. Exercises at the end of the chapters help to consolidate the learned material and allow the reader to develop metaphors for their own messages.

This is a recommendation for all who want to use convincing language to stand out from the crowd of speakers and salespeople or simply in everyday conversations.

Suitable as an audiobook? Yes.

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What It Takes to Give a Great Presentation

  • Carmine Gallo

great presentation books

Five tips to set yourself apart.

Never underestimate the power of great communication. It can help you land the job of your dreams, attract investors to back your idea, or elevate your stature within your organization. But while there are plenty of good speakers in the world, you can set yourself apart out by being the person who can deliver something great over and over. Here are a few tips for business professionals who want to move from being good speakers to great ones: be concise (the fewer words, the better); never use bullet points (photos and images paired together are more memorable); don’t underestimate the power of your voice (raise and lower it for emphasis); give your audience something extra (unexpected moments will grab their attention); rehearse (the best speakers are the best because they practice — a lot).

I was sitting across the table from a Silicon Valley CEO who had pioneered a technology that touches many of our lives — the flash memory that stores data on smartphones, digital cameras, and computers. He was a frequent guest on CNBC and had been delivering business presentations for at least 20 years before we met. And yet, the CEO wanted to sharpen his public speaking skills.

great presentation books

  • Carmine Gallo is a Harvard University instructor, keynote speaker, and author of 10 books translated into 40 languages. Gallo is the author of The Bezos Blueprint: Communication Secrets of the World’s Greatest Salesman  (St. Martin’s Press).

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In this photo-illustration, a child sits on a seesaw set in a field of emerald green grass. On the other side of the seesaw is a giant smartphone.

Coddling Plus Devices? Unequivocal Disaster for Our Kids.

In “The Anxious Generation,” Jonathan Haidt says we’re failing children — and takes a firm stand against tech.

Credit... Alex Merto

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By Tracy Dennis-Tiwary

Tracy A. Dennis-Tiwary is a professor of psychology and neuroscience, director of the Emotion Regulation Lab at Hunter College.

  • Published March 26, 2024 Updated March 27, 2024
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THE ANXIOUS GENERATION: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness , by Jonathan Haidt

Imagine that your 10-year-old daughter gets chosen to join the first human settlement on Mars. She’s ready to blast off but needs your permission.

You learn that the billionaire architect of the mission hasn’t considered the risks posed by the red planet’s toxic environment, including kids developing “deformities in their skeletons, hearts, eyes and brains.”

Would you let her go?

The cover of “The Anxious Generation,” by Jonathan Haidt, portrays a child in a pit of yellow balls, immersed in the screen of her phone. The text is white.

It’s with this “Black Mirror”-esque morality play that Jonathan Haidt sets the tone for everything that follows in his erudite, engaging, combative, crusading new book, “The Anxious Generation.” Mars is a stand-in for the noxious world of social media. If we’d say no to that perilous planet, we should of course say no to this other alien universe.

Instead, we hem and haw about the risks, failing to keep our kids safely grounded in nondigital reality. The result can no longer be ignored: deformities of the brain and heart — anxiety, depression, suicidality — plaguing our youth.

Haidt, a social psychologist, is a man on a mission to correct this collective failure. His first step is to convince us that youth are experiencing a “tidal wave” of suffering. In a single chapter and with a dozen carefully curated graphs, he depicts increases in mental illness and distress beginning around 2012. Young adolescent girls are hit hardest, but boys are in pain, too, as are older teens.

The timing of this is key because it coincides with the rise of what he terms phone-based childhood. From the late 2000s to the early 2010s, smartphones, bristling with social media apps and fueled by high-speed internet, became ubiquitous. Their siren call, addictive by design and perpetually distracting, quickly spirited kids to worlds beyond our control.

It wasn’t phones alone. A second phenomenon coincided with the rise of the machines: the decline of play-based childhood. This change started in the 1980s, with kidnapping fears and stranger danger driving parents toward fear-based overparenting. This decimated children’s unsupervised, self-directed playtime and restricted their freedom of movement.

With parents and children alike stuck in “Defend mode,” kids were in turn blocked from discovery mode, where they face challenges, take risks and explore — the building blocks of anti-fragility, or the ability to grow stronger through adversity. Compared to a generation ago, our children are spending more time on their phones and less on, well, sex, drugs and rock n’ roll. While fewer hospital visits and teen pregnancies are obvious wins, less risk-taking overall could stunt independence.

That’s why parents, he argues, should become more like gardeners (to use Alison Gopnik’s formulation) who cultivate conditions for children to independently grow and flourish, and less like carpenters, who work obsessively to control, design and shape their offspring. We’ve overprotected our kids in the real world while underprotecting them in the virtual one, leaving them too much to their own devices, literally and figuratively.

It’s this one-two punch of smartphones plus overprotective parenting, Haidt posits, that led to the great rewiring of childhood and the associated harms driving mental illness: social deprivation, sleep deprivation, attention fragmentation and addiction. He has a lot to say about each of these.

Here is where his ideas and interpretation of research become contentious. Few would disagree that unhealthy use of social media contributes to psychological problems, or that parenting plays a role. But mental illness is complex: a multidetermined synergy between risk and resilience. Clinical scientists don’t look for magic-bullet explanations. They seek to understand how, for whom and in what contexts psychological problems and resilience emerge.

Haidt does recognize that nuance complicates the issue. Online — but not in the book — he and colleagues report that adolescent girls from “wealthy, individualistic and secular nations” who are “less tightly bound into strong communities” are accounting for much of the crisis. So perhaps smartphones alone haven’t destroyed an entire generation. And maybe context matters. But this rarely comes through in the book.

The final sections offer advice for reducing harmful, predatory aspects of technology and helping parents, educators and communities become more gardener and less carpenter. Some tips will be familiar (ban phones from school; give kids more independence). Other advice might give readers pause (no smartphones before high school; no social media before 16). Yet, taken together, it’s a reasonable list.

Still, Haidt is a digital absolutist, skeptical that healthy relationships between youth and social media are possible. On this point, he even rebuffs the U.S. Surgeon General’s more measured position. We’re better off banning phones in schools altogether, he asserts. Because, as he quotes a middle school principal, schools without phone bans are like a “zombie apocalypse” with “all these kids in the hallways not talking to each other.”

Whether or not you agree with the zombie apocalypse diagnosis, it’s worth considering the failure of prior absolutist stances. Nancy Reagan’s Just Say No drug campaign? A public health case study in what not to do. During the AIDS crisis, fear mongering and abstinence demands didn’t prevent unsafe sex. Remember the pandemic? Telling Americans to wear masks at all times undermined public health officials’ ability to convince them to wear masks when it really mattered.

Digital absolutism also risks blinding us to other causes — and solutions. In 1960s Britain, annual suicide rates plummeted. Many believed the drop was due to improved antidepressant medications or life just getting better. They weren’t looking in the right place. The phaseout of coal-based gas for household stoves blocked the most common method of suicide: gas poisoning. Means restriction, because it gives the despairing one less opportunity for self-harm, has since become a key strategy for suicide prevention.

“I’ve been struggling to figure out,” Haidt writes, “what is happening to us? How is technology changing us?” His answer: “The phone-based life produces spiritual degradation, not just in adolescents, but in all of us.” In other words: Choose human purity and sanctity over the repugnant forces of technology. This dialectic is compelling, but the moral matrix of the problem — and the scientific foundations — are more complex.

Yes, digital absolutism might convince policymakers to change laws and increase regulation. It might be a wake-up call for some parents. But it also might backfire, plunging us into defense mode and blocking our path of discovery toward healthy and empowered digital citizenship.

THE ANXIOUS GENERATION : How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness | By Jonathan Haidt | Penguin Press | 385 pp. | $30

Inside the World of Gen Z

The generation of people born between 1997 and 2012 is changing fashion, culture, politics, the workplace and more..

For many Gen-Zers without much disposable income, Facebook isn’t a place to socialize online — it’s where they can get deals on items  they wouldn’t normally be able to afford.

Dating apps are struggling to live up to investors’ expectations . Blame the members of Generation Z, who are often not willing to shell out for paid subscriptions.

Young people tend to lean more liberal on issues pertaining to relationship norms. But when it comes to dating, the idea that men should pay in heterosexual courtships  still prevails among Gen Z-ers .

We asked Gen Z-ers to tell us about their living situations and the challenges of keeping a roof over their heads. Here’s what they said .

What is it like to be part of the group that has been called the most diverse generation in U.S. history? Here is what 900 Gen Z-ers had to say .

Young people coming of age around the world are finding community in all sorts of places. Our “Where We Are” series takes you to some of them .

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Cholera prevention and control in refugee settings: Successes and continued challenges

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  • Other Affiliation: Johns Hopkins Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
  • Other Affiliation: Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Department of Epidemiology, Baltimore, MD, United States
  • Other Affiliation: World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland
  • Affiliation: Gillings School of Global Public Health, Department of Epidemiology
  • Cholera has long been viewed as a serious threat for refugee populations. In the 1980s and 90s, refugee camps proliferated in Africa and Asia as a result of large civil wars and environmental disasters. These camps experienced large-scale cholera outbreaks with regularity because of overcrowding, scarce clean water, and poor sanitation and hygiene practices. Death rates were often high because of preexisting malnutrition, comorbidities, and limited access to medical care. With appropriate clinical management, cholera mortality can be well below 1%, but it can be as high as 50%–60% without proper care. During this time, humanitarian organizations developed a variety of guidelines and standards to reduce morbidity and mortality during cholera outbreaks in these populations. Mobilization around these issues was greatly accelerated in 1994, when a particularly massive outbreak occurred among Rwandan refugees in the Lake Kivu region of Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo), and approximately 42,000 people died. In response to this unprecedented tragedy, the humanitarian community developed and adopted the Sphere standards for the minimumacceptable living conditions and availability of health services in refugee camps and other humanitarian responses.
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  • https://doi.org/10.17615/2kxb-4041
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Room for everyone: 10 picture books that encourage kindness

An undated photo shows a collage of books that explores kindness, compassion and empathy for children.

One reason I love Sesame Street – and why it continues to delight audiences 48-years after its debut — is this: On Sesame Street , there is room for everyone.

Humans, animals, and monsters of different ages, colors, backgrounds, and personalities live together in harmony. Characters don’t always get along. Like all friends and neighbors, they deal with misunderstandings, challenges, and hurt feelings. But in these moments, they model how to bounce back: how to listen, how to apologize, and how to show a little extra kindness to someone who needs it.

As parents, we can build on these strong messages by reading books to our children that explore empathy, celebrate diversity, and encourage kindness. Here are ten books to get you started.

Chrysanthemum

The book cover for "Chrysanthemum" by Kevin Henkes is shown in this undated photo.

Chrysanthemum thinks her name is “absolutely perfect.” That is until she starts school and classmates begin to tease her about it. But with some help from her parents, and an extraordinary teacher, Chrysanthemum and her classmates find a way to look at the situation from a different point of view.

It’s Okay to Be Different

The book cover for "It's Okay to be Different" by Todd Parr is shown in this undated photo.

This bright, colorful book shares a simple message: It’s okay to be different. It’s okay to be who you are. Concepts range from the silly (“It’s okay to be missing a tooth, or two or three”) to the serious “(It’s okay to talk need some help.”)

The Monster Who Lost His Mean

The book cover for "The Monster Who Lost His Mean" by Tiffany Strelitz Haber is shown in this undated photo.

The M in “monster” stands for “Mean,” right? But one little monster loses his “M” — and now he feels different from his monster pals. He tries to get his “mean” back, but some new friends help him see that he doesn’t need that “M” to be special.

The Invisible Boy

The book cover for "The Invisible Boy" by Patrice Barton is shown in this undated photo.

Brian feels invisible — nobody seems to notice him or invites him to play. But when he teams up with a new kid in class to work on a project, this new friendship helps them both step into the light.

The book cover for "How Kind!" by Mary Murphy is shown in this undated photo.

Kindness is contagious! In this animal tale, one act of kindness has a ripple effect through the barnyard, with one good deed leading to another.

A Chair for My Mother

The book cover for "A Chair for My Mother" by Vera B. Williams is shown in this undated photo.

After their belongings are destroyed in a fire, a grandmother, mother, and young daughter save up for a soft chair for snuggling and resting at the end of the day. The family is helped along the way by kind neighbors, relatives, and co-workers — highlighting the importance of extending love and support to those in need.

Good People Everywhere

The book cover for "Good People Everywhere" by Lynea Gillen is shown in this undated photo.

Giraffes Can’t Dance

The book cover for "Giraffes Can't Dance" by Giles Andrae is shown in this undated photo.

Gerald the Giraffe wants to dance, but his gangly limbs provoke more laughs than applause. But a little cricket helps him realize that he just has to find how own beat, his own moves, and his own music.

Last Stop on Market Street

The book cover for "Last Stop on Market Street" by Matt de la Pena is shown in this undated photo.

This award-winning book follows a boy and his grandmother as they take a public bus across town. His grandmother’s interest in and compassion for the people they encounter on their trip leaves a lasting impression on her grandson — and the reader.

Have You Filled a Bucket Today?

The book cover for "Have You Filled a Bucket Today>" by Todd Parr is shown in this undated photo.

“All day long, everyone in the world walks around carrying an invisible bucket ... You feel happy and good when your bucket is full, and you feel sad and lonely when your bucket is empty.” Using this simple metaphor, the author encourages children to be “bucket fillers” by showing kindness and love to others.

Copyright 2017 PBS Kids for Parents. Click here to see the original story

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An effective descriptor for the screen of electrolyte additives for the stabilization of zn metal anodes.

Introduction of additives into aqueous electrolyte holds great potential in suppressing dendrite growth and improving the stability of Zn anode. However, no relevant theory or descriptor could effectively support the screen and design of suitable additives. Herein, desolvation activation energy was proposed as a critical descriptor for the screen of electrolyte additives. The effectiveness of this descriptor was proved by anionic polysaccharides additives with low desolvation barrier. Anionic polysaccharides could spontaneously form a protective layer on the Zn anode due to the good Zn affinity, promoting the desolvation behavior through hydrogen bonding and elevating the energy barrier of H2O dissociation. Consequently, the interfacial polarization was effectively decreased and the hydrogen evolution was inhibited, contributing to the enhanced stability of Zn anode. As a proof of concept, pectin, one type of anionic polysaccharide was selected as the electrolyte additive for the systematic electrochemical performance studies. Significantly improved cycling stability with high reversibility, suppressed dendrite growth and low overpotential was achieved in the symmetric Zn cells.

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L. Hong, J. Guan, Y. Tan, Y. Chen, Y. Liu, W. Huang, C. Yu, Y. Zhou, J. Chen and K. Wang, Energy Environ. Sci. , 2024, Accepted Manuscript , DOI: 10.1039/D4EE00199K

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Trump promotes Lee Greenwood's 'God Bless The USA Bible': What to know about the book and its long journey

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  • Former president Donald Trump encourages supporters to buy Lee Greenwood's "God Bless The USA Bible," a project inspired by Nashville country musician's hit song.
  • Resurgent version of Greenwood's Bible project a modified version from original concept, a change that likely followed 2021 shake-up in publishers.

After years with few updates about Lee Greenwood’s controversial Bible, the project is again resurgent with a recent promotion by former President Donald Trump.

“All Americans need to have a Bible in their home and I have many. It’s my favorite book,” Trump said in a video posted to social media Tuesday, encouraging supporters to purchase the “God Bless The USA Bible.” “Religion is so important and so missing, but it’s going to come back.”

Greenwood — the Nashville area country musician whose hit song “God Bless the USA” inspired the Bible with a similar namesake — has long been allies with Trump and other prominent Republicans, many of whom are featured in promotional material for the “God Bless The USA Bible.” But that reputational clout in conservative circles hasn’t necessarily translated to business success in the past, largely due to a major change in the book’s publishing plan.

Here's what to know about the Bible project’s journey so far and why it’s significant it’s back in the conservative limelight.

An unordinary Bible, a fiery debate

The “God Bless The USA Bible” received heightened attention since the outset due to its overt political features.

The text includes the U.S. Constitution, Bill of Rights, Declaration of Independence, Pledge of Allegiance, and the lyrics to the chorus to Greenwood’s “God Bless The USA.” Critics saw it as a symbol of Christian nationalism, a right-wing movement that believes the U.S. was founded as a Christian nation.

A petition emerged in 2021 calling Greenwood’s Bible “a toxic mix that will exacerbate the challenges to American evangelicalism.” From there, a broader conversation ensued about the standards by which publishers print Bibles.

Gatekeeping in Bible publishing

Greenwood’s early business partner on the project, a Hermitage-based marketing firm called Elite Source Pro, initially reached a manufacturing agreement with the Nashville-based HarperCollins Christian Publishing to print the “God Bless The USA Bible.”  

As part of that agreement, HarperCollins would publish the book but not sell or endorse it. But then HarperCollins reversed course , a major setback for Greenwood’s Bible.

The reversal by HarperCollins followed a decision by Zondervan — a publishing group under HarperCollins Christian Publishing and an official North American licensor for Bibles printed in the New International Version translation — to pass on the project. HarperCollins said the decision was unrelated to the petition or other public denunciations against Greenwood’s Bible.

The full backstory: Lee Greenwood's 'God Bless the USA Bible' finds new printer after HarperCollins Christian passes

A new translation and mystery publisher

The resurgent “God Bless The USA Bible” featured in Trump’s recent ad is an altered version of the original concept, a modification that likely followed the publishing shake-up.

Greenwood’s Bible is now printed in the King James Version, a different translation from the original pitch to HarperCollins.

Perhaps the biggest mystery is the new publisher. That manufacturer is producing a limited quantity of copies, leading to a delayed four-to-six weeks for a copy to ship.  

It’s also unclear which business partners are still involved in the project. Hugh Kirkman, who led Elite Service Pro, the firm that originally partnered with Greenwood for the project, responded to a request for comment by referring media inquiries to Greenwood’s publicist.

The publicist said Elite Source Pro is not a partner on the project and the Bible has always been printed in the King James Version.

"Several years ago, the Bible was going to be printed with the NIV translation, but something happened with the then licensor and the then potential publisher. As a result, this God Bless The USA Bible has always been printed with the King James Version translation," publicist Jeremy Westby said in a statement.

Westby did not have the name of the new licensee who is manufacturing the Bible.

Trump’s plug for the “God Bless The USA Bible” recycled language the former president is using to appeal to a conservative Christian base.

“Our founding fathers did a tremendous thing when they built America on Judeo-Christian values,” Trump said in his video on social media. “Now that foundation is under attack perhaps as never before.”

'Bring back our religion’: Trump vows to support Christians during Nashville speech

Liam Adams covers religion for The Tennessean. Reach him at [email protected] or on social media @liamsadams.

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