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When we first heard about the upcoming release of DataStory, we thought back to Duarte's first, powerfully influential work, Slide:ology, which remains the best book ever written on how to make PowerPoints work for you and not against your audience. We imagined something like a modernized and simplified version Edward Tufte's classic, Visual Evidence. But DataStory turns out to be a great deal more. Ms. Duarte is, above all things, a master storyteller. DataStory is a guide to turning data into action by transforming what it reveals into clear, compelling stories. The book applies many of the tools and strategies she articulated in Resonate, in this case to use information gleaned from numbers to move decision-makers in the right direction. Though DataStory focuses on empowering consultants and middle managers presenting to executive management, it can easily be applied to anyone working to use data to communicate clearly and persuade their audience. Asking an analyst to transform the data they uncovered into a meaningful story is no small task; the kind of people behind data research are not, traditionally, seasoned storytellers. In fact, they may see the task of creating a story as a sort of mysterious dark art (probably much like writers and storytellers visualize the undertaking of data research). Fortunately, Ms. Duarte is not only a expert communicator, as she proved in her previous works, she is a very gifted teacher with the ability to effectively articulate some very abstract concepts in ways that are most consistently enlightening and absorbing. Like her earlier book, Resonate, DataStory leverages the power and simplicity of the story arc. And why not? Whether you're conscious of it or not, the story arc has been a powerful influence since childhood. (The idea itself dates back to Aristotle.) We learn that ever y story has three par ts, or "acts," if you prefer. The Situation (where we are now, and why we need to take some action); the Complication (the possible solutions are complex and risky); and the Resolution (this is how our research shows we can turn this around). DataStory is, in part, a guide to choosing the best words and structure for the story (a great help for readers who are more comfortable with algorithms than adjectives). A good story will contain both logical and persuasive writing. Durarte clarifies where each have the best effect and how they work best together. The end result is a book that makes the reader not only comfortable with putting data into words but feeling confident that they've done it in the most effective way. As with any good book on communication, there's a smattering of psychology involved, so throughout the book, Duarte stresses the value of knowing your audience and how a presentation can be structured in a way that is most meaningful to them. No presentation can be all verbal. To be effective, they still need those valuable, word- gobbling illustrations to be persuasive. Though she does outline what kind of graphs and graphics work best for certain kinds of data, she spends most of her time on the importance of titling, labels and annotations. In this fast-moving, information- dense age, you may have only a matter of seconds to pique someone's interest or focus their attention on a key idea. For this, DataStory speaks to the importance of visually presenting those words in the best light, explaining how to make the most important ideas stand out and leading the viewer or reader to the key details in the most effective ways. She does this best when she links this approach to another of her own creations, SlideDocs (duarte.com/ slidedocs). This is a technique she developed for using programs like PowerPoint or Keynote as a powerful and accessible publishing tool for the background details that support your verbal pitch. DataStor y describes how the structure of a SlideDoc presented as a preamble or postscript to a presentation, can enhance and support the structure of your argument in a way that is both visually and conceptually consistent (another component that adds to its effectiveness. Needless to say that as a writer, you will likely find Nancy Duarte's communication style the best you ever encountered. DataStory is effectively illustrated as well as clearly written. When it comes to holding our attention while leading up to an important idea, she is a a consummate pro. We find her books to always be a pleasure to read, with strategies you'll remember and techniques you will frequently refer back to. At the risk of exhuming another platitude, DataStory will show you that it's not only pictures that tell a story, numbers can be just as powerful when they're in the right hands. duarte.com DataStory by Nancy Duarte; 34.95, IdeaPress Publishing (ideapresspublishing.com) 2019; 224 pages, ISBN: 9781940858982