Typologia presents more or less graphically Frederic Goudy's work in type design and describes his own methods of type production. His remarks on type legibility and fine printing, as presented in the body of the book, present the conclusions of a craftsman intensely interested in every phase of typography.

The book itself, which Goudy was asked by the University of California Press to write, plan, and supervise, has been set in a type designed by Goudy and and first employed for the exclusive use of the University–University of California Old Style.