I don't own a copy, but I have looked through it. ( http://gdbasics.com/ )

It was obviously written by an educator instead of a working professional. The whole book is about the basics of lines, hierarchy, color, texture, etc..

I remember learning all the various elements of design way back in my undergraduate design classes, but as a working professional, I don't often consciously think about these things. It's good to learn them, though, and really, on a subconscious level, I deal with them all the time, every day. When somebody asks me to explain why I designed something the way I did, my explanation usually contains a good dose of these design concepts, like hierarchy, background/foreground, emotion, rhythm, dominance and all the other elements of design that subconsciously kick around in my head as I'm deciding what goes where and how it should look.

As for it being a good book, yeah, it seems okay, but it's awfully basic and seemingly incomplete. I remember a lot of others like it — despite the authors' statements that they haven't seen a book like theirs. Over the years, I've likely invented my own list of design elements that have blended and merged with those I learned in school. Maybe I should write a book, or maybe not.