Of the 7-8 books on homebuilt paddle boats I’ve read, Horton’s is the easiest to understand.  He assumes the reader knows how to build in general (and before you begin on something that separates you from death you should), and doesn’t clutter the text down w details.  He does however, warn against many pitfalls which may occur along the way.
Horton’s background is in engineering, and it shows.  The designs are spare and modern.  The plans are simple, the instructions clear. It’s a step by step erector set explained at least as well as any lego kit.  The back of the book quotes a teacher as saying Horton doesn’t have much talent at writing, well, Horton has by this point gained enough skill to overcome the deficit.
If you want to design your own boat, I’d steer you towards Robert Morris’ Building Skin on Frame Boats. Morris leans towards ancient ways and directs the builder to making a boat w scrounged materials around their own body w no specific dimensions at all.  If you don’t know much about shop I’d steer you towards Hilary Russel’s Building Skin on Frame Double Paddle Canoes.  Russel's background is teaching High School shop classes, and directs the reader to ‘do this right here.'  An individual could end with a beautiful canoe even if they did not know what the project was intended to be.  Horton’s background is teaching others to understand instructions on a deadline.  With Horton’s you can read fast, see the process in your head, and jump right into making one of his many included boats.
I say get them all.  If you’re gonna spend a few hundred on materials, using a couple thousand dollars worth of tools: buy four to five $20 books.  The wisest man on earth, Solomon, said "plans succeed with many councelors.”  Even if you only get one good tip from a book, it might be the one that keeps you from death by drowning.

Jeff has a way of explaining the lofting process in such a fashion that it is easily understandable. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in building skin craft, no matter what type.

This book is exactly what I needed to start my first Kayak. I'm building the Curlew from the plans in the book.  The plans are easy to follow, but more importantly, Jeff has done a great job explaining how to avoid common pratfalls during the construction process. Building my boat from the plans in this book has been a fun and rewarding experience!

this book is great! very clearly written and easy to understand. i would definitely recommend it.

Wonderful book, very descriptive and makes me look forward to getting my boat in the water this spring.

I used the Poca Barta intructions to build my first skin boat. Easy to follow with great tips especially on the coaming