The Visual Display of Quantitative Information vs What If?: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: Statistics, Science
The Visual Display of Quantitative Information
“Excellence in statistical graphics consists of complex ideas communicated with clarity, precision, and efficiency.”
The classic book on statistical graphics, charts, tables. Theory and practice in the design of data graphics, 250 illustrations of the best (and a few of the worst) statistical graphics, with detailed analysis of how to…
vs
What If?
Millions of people visit xkcd.com each week to read Randall Munroe's iconic webcomic. His stick-figure drawings about science, technology, language, and love have a large and passionate following. Fans of xkcd ask…
The verdict
- Ratings are close across the board — any is a safe pick by score.
- The Visual Display of Quantitative Information is the quickest read — about 3 hours vs 5 for What If?.
- What If? has the widest readership — 10757 ratings behind its score.
How to choose
Scores by source
| The Visual Display of Quantitative Information | What If? | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | — | 4.2 (10757) |
| Hardcover | 4.5 (78) | 4.8 (2) |
| Google Books | — | 4.0 (9) |
| Apple Books | — | 4.5 (132) |
Reception
| The Visual Display of Quantitative Information | What If? | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 78 | 10757 |
| Editions | 14 | 37 |
| Film adaptations | — | 1 |
| Wikipedia attention | 3958 | 1621 |
| Pages | 197 | 306 |