Building a WordPress Blog People Want to Read

Building a WordPress Blog People Want to Read by Scott McNulty

Paperback: 272 pages
Publisher: Peachpit Press; 1 edition (November 21, 2008; copyright 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0321591933
ISBN-13: 978-0321591937
Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 0.6 inches

MSRP: $29.99
Amazon.com price (affiliate link): $19.79

I checked this book out of the library last week because I hadn’t had a chance to read it when it first came out. The screenshots of WordPress 2.6 are a reminder of how much, and how fast, WordPress has changed, yet much of the content remains relevant.

The book is beautifully designed and typeset—kudos to WolfsonDesign—and entertainingly written, a combination that makes for rapid readability. And while it doesn’t go into immense detail, it covers pretty much everything. (“Oh,” I found myself thinking. “Is that how you were supposed to use the original gallery feature? I never could get it to work.) It even provides tips on what to do if your blog has been hacked.

One thing I found a bit peculiar was the order of the subjects: McNulty leads readers through all the details of creating content and adding media before tackling themes and plugins. I almost always choose a theme and install the most critical plugins before I start working on the content, and I think most people paint their houses before they furnish them. On the other hand, many people really do just use the Kubrick theme for their blogs.

Peachpit seems to be producing other WordPress books rather than asking McNulty to update this one, which I think is too bad. It would be worth bringing out a new version covering WordPress 3.0. Meanwhile, read this one for what’s still relevant.