On Creating Things Aesthetic

The chapter on how he breaks down the gap between function and beauty really made me see my own workspace differently, and the personal reflection bits feel like a quiet conversation rather than a lecture. I've already reread the design thinking sections twice.

Koren’s blend of philosophy and design thinking made me slow down and actually re-examine why some objects in my home feel right and others just exist. The personal reflection bits read like a conversation, not a lecture, which is rare for this kind of architecture writing.

It’s rare for a book on design to actually make you pause and rethink, but Koren’s blend of philosophy and personal reflection does just that—the chapter on separating the functional from the beautiful hit me harder than I expected. I found myself rereading passages just to let the ideas settle, and