Tools
Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe InDesign

Challenge
Translate an audio-based narrative into a physical, interactive book while visually and structurally representing the unconventional and rule-breaking nature of Olympic figure skater Surya Bonaly’s performances.

Goal
Design a podcast book that transforms the RadioLab story into an immersive reading experience, using physical interaction and layout to mirror Bonaly’s illegal moves and challenge traditional storytelling formats.

Approach
Structured the book to require rotation and flipping while reading, reflecting Bonaly’s backflips and handstands on the ice. Developed a frosty visual language inspired by ice and the delicacy of figure skating, using skate trail imagery as a grid system to guide typography and layout. Intentional page orientation and text placement created both physical and mental engagement for the reader.

Solution
Produced an interactive book that reimagines a podcast as a tactile storytelling experience. The final design combines motion, structure, and visual restraint to honor Bonaly’s defiance of convention while immersing the reader in the physicality and elegance of figure skating.