13. WILLOUGHBY DESIGN GROUP
Through the lessons he learned on the playground, Kevin Carroll uses his personal story to inspire others to find meaning in sports and play in Rules of the Red Rubber Ball. “Kevin always leaves his audiences with something to remind them to live their dreams. The book was a perfect object to reinforce his message,” according to Ann Willoughby of Willoughby Design Group. “Our strategy was very simple: Self-publish the book without compromising the design quality and start a grand swell of demand.”

This first-person story is not only a moving tale, but also full of practical advice about how to “find and sustain your life’s work.” Willoughby says, “We wanted to take the story of Kevin’s life, as he tells it, and evoke the emotions and meaning through design.” They did so with a collection of drawings, images, photos of Carroll, illustrative treatments, even pages lined like a child’s Big Chief tablet. There’s also a piece of real red rubber ball material embedded in the cover. “Our strategy worked,” says Willoughby. “Kevin’s book caught the attention of ESPN, and now they are publishing it to a much wider audience.”
Laurel Saville