The Book is a free, open-source Jekyll theme for building clean, responsive personal blogs and landing pages, distributed as a GitHub repository with two live demos and documentation.
What is The Book?
The Book is a Jekyll template that turns Markdown content into a static blog with a clean, responsive layout. It takes standard Jekyll posts and pages as input and outputs a static website containing a home page, a blog list area, and a content area for individual posts. The template runs on any standard Jekyll setup, including GitHub Pages, and is published by the developer behind HockeyComputindo.com and the 'axcora' Buy Me a Coffee page.
Key Features
- Clean responsive design — The layout adapts to mobile and desktop screens, as demonstrated in the live demo at thebook.pages.dev.
- Jekyll framework — Built on the Jekyll static site generator, so it works with GitHub Pages and standard Jekyll workflows.
- Configurable menu — Change the design menu by editing
_config.yml; the readme explicitly states this is how to modify the menu. - Landing page demo — The demo at swalayan.web.app shows a full landing page layout.
- Blog list area — A dedicated section for displaying a list of blog posts, visible in the thebook2.png screenshot.
- Content area — A clean reading layout for individual posts, shown in the thebook3.png screenshot.
- Two live demos — Both a landing page and a blog demo are linked in the repository readme.
- Documentation — Setup and customization instructions are provided at hockeycomputindo.com/2022/03/github-pages-jekyll-template-themes.
Who is it for?
- Personal bloggers — Publish cleanly styled articles and essays without configuring a complex CMS.
- Jekyll beginners — Learn how Jekyll themes are structured and how
_config.ymlcontrols site appearance. - Developers and small creators — Set up a free blog or landing page on GitHub Pages quickly, using the included demos as reference.
Use cases
- Technical writers: Host documentation or tutorials on GitHub Pages with a clean, readable layout.
- Portfolio bloggers: Display writing samples and project updates in a simple static site.
- Indie webmasters: Build a landing page and blog with no hosting costs by deploying to GitHub Pages or Cloudflare Pages.
How does The Book work?
The template is customized by opening the _config.yml file and changing the design menu settings. Posts and pages are added in standard Jekyll Markdown format, then the site is rebuilt and deployed. No other code edits are described in the readme.
Pricing
The template is free to use. It is distributed as a public GitHub repository, and the author invites optional support through the Buy Me a Coffee link.
FAQ
Is The Book free?
Yes, The Book is a public GitHub repository, so you can clone and use it at no cost. The author provides a Buy Me a Coffee link for optional donations.
How do I change the design display?
Open the _config.yml file in the repository root and edit the menu configuration. The readme states that you can change the design menu there without touching other files.
Can I use The Book with GitHub Pages?
Yes, since it is a Jekyll theme, it is compatible with GitHub Pages. The repository metadata includes the topic jekyll-site, and the demo is hosted at thebook.pages.dev, which is a Pages domain.
What does the template include?
The template includes a home page, a blog list area, and a content area for posts. Screenshots in the repository display all three sections, and two live demos are linked for preview.
