5 comments about Thrown Pottery Techniques Revealed: The Secrets of Perfect Throwing Shown in Unique Cutaway Photography.

1. 
   Gt to get a copy of mary chappelhow's book - very helpful to get help a budding potter.



2. this replaces the same book that i mysteriously lost. it's a great book for a beginner, which is what i am. easy to understand with good photography and projects. it's the book i use the most when hand building.



3. This is an excellent book to have, if you enjoy and want to learn more about hand-building with clay. It has projects connected with all three approaches to handbuilding: coiling, pinching and slabbing. It also teaches how to make plaster molds, including 2-part molds. This is a great skill to learn if you want to be able to make reproductions of your own clay pieces. I've been working with clay for about 2 years and I found lot of tips and tricks that I didn't know. Definitely a worthwhile book to own.



4. it doesn't contain glaze recipes of the finished pieces that are pictured in the book. that's the only complaint i have. it was given to me when i first started throwing and i've found myself going back to it even as i advance.



5. If I could only have one book on throwing pottery this would be it, hands down! I've gone through alot of books and found this one to be far and above the best for addressing all of the steps to easier learning and is presented in the most effective way. It is much more detailed than most of the other books. These details of advice and the cutaway photography make all the difference. Having this book as a supplement to my pottery teacher's instruction has been so beneficial. The book covered details that my teacher didn't think to give me and the cutaway photography gave me the visual tools that can't be demonstrated as easily in a live class. Having this book to refer back to often during the learning process continues to be of great value.

5 comments about The Card: Collectors, Con Men, and the True Story of History's Most Desired Baseball Card.

1. The story of the world's most expensive baseball card, the T206 Honus Wagner PSA 8 NM-MT, isn't very complicated. Unearthed in 1985, it has changed owners a handful of times, netting each one a tidy profit. Its whereabouts for its first 75 years of existence are unknown. The reasons for its rarity have been speculated on, but are ultimately unknown. Whether the card has been trimmed somewhere along the way, a big no-no in the card collecting world and, if ever determined to be true, would permanently mar the hobby, is unknown. While O'Keeffe and Thompson perform an admirable job of attempting to answer these unknowns in The Card, the reader is ultimately left unfulfilled.
   
   What the authors do accomplish, however, is the painting of a vivid picture of the high end of sports card and memorabilia collecting. From the eccentric personalities involved to the back-room dealings to the heinous manipulation of items considered by some to be national or historic treasures, The Card lays it all out in unflinching detail. The king of the hill is Bill Mastro, the uber-dealer whose involvement has touched just about every sale of the Wagner. Surrounding him are other prominent collectors and dealers, some on his side, others attempting to dethrone him. While the authors exhibit a bias in who is "good" and "evil" in this fight, astute readers will recognize universal themes in this battle and be able to make their own judgments on motives. Like the question of whether the Wagner has been trimmed, the heroes and villains in this story are not clear-cut. What is clear, however, is that what used to be a fun hobby for boys and men with a touch of OCD has become commoditized by skyrocketing prices. Along with this commoditization comes all of its associated evils: all-encompassing greed, hubris, the destruction of national treasures. Ultimately, this unfortunate revelation will be The Card's final legacy.
   
   Written in a light journalistic style, The Card is easy leisure time reading and can be finished in a single sitting. While a bit erratic in detail -- the sections on Wagner's life as a player seem scant, while too much time is spent on the purported Wagner card owned by Ray Edwards and John Cobb -- the narration nonetheless flows easily from one topic to the next. Longtime hobbyists will probably find very little new information in The Card, though, and may even be distracted by easily quashable errors such as Alan Ray's assertion that the red printer's mark present when he owned the Wagner is now missing. However, this book was more than likely not written for hardcore collectors; its target audience being laymen with a passing interest in the hobby and its most expensive artifact. That being said, though, The Card does provide a decent aggregation of many of the tidbits of information on the Wagner that have been scattered amongst Internet message boards and whisper-filled back rooms. Advanced hobbyists may find it useful for that reason, although the lack of an index may at the same time hinder it. All in all, The Card is a decent book for card collectors' reference shelves, and as an exciting read for everyday folks.



2. First, let me say that this is, by far, the single greatest book ever written about the history of collecting. Even if you're not into cards, this book is a fast read which you absolutely will not be able to put down.
   
   THAT BEING SAID, I strongly disagree with the very premise that a card which was hand-cut from a production sheet is somehow worthless.
   
   THE Card is supposed to be "fake" or "worthless" because it has been "altered" or "trimmed". This is because it is designated PSA 8 NM-MT when PSA normally refuses to grade hand-cut cards.
   
   In other words, PSA violates their own rules. I submit that it's not THE Card which is fake. It's PSA's RULES. They should get over their bias against hand-cut cards from production sheets and start grading them, the way they grade strip cards from the 1920's and 1930's.
   
   99% of the vintage trading cards in existence were cut by machine at the factory. However, there were some cards which still existed as uncut sheets when collectors started getting into old cardboard back in the 1970's and 1980's.
   
   Some cards were distributed to the public as uncut sheets only. This was mostly in the 1920's through the 1940's. These cards are called "strip cards". You can see examples if you search eBay for "w551". Once in a while, you'll even see an intact uncut sheet from the 1920's in collector's circles.
   
   PSA will grade a strip card which was hand cut, no problem. If the margins are fully intact, they'll give it a numeric grade. If the card has been cut into the margins, they'll give it the dreaded "authentic". Either way, PSA provides a valuable service by doing so. Either way, a strip card is not considered to be a "Fake" or "Altered" in any way.
   
   What PSA refuses to do is this: let's say a card like a T206 or 1933 Goudey was distributed to the public in machine-cut form. If you happen to run across an uncut sheet of those cards and cut them out of the sheet, no matter how neatly, no matter how perfectly, PSA will refuse to grade your card.
   
   Well, I'm sorry, but that's just wrong. I've seen some absolutely beautiful hand-cut cards in my time. The cards are just as old, just as rare, just as desirable. The pictures are the same. They came off the same printing press. They are REAL, genuine, authentic, historically significant, and any true collector should be proud to own one.
   
   A good example is the 1944 American Beauties trading card set. This was a non-sports series of World War II pin-up cards by famed artist Gil Elvgren. Most were distributed in packs of 12 cards. There were only 24 cards in the set, so each pack contained 1/2 the set.
   
   HOWEVER, they were also distributed as strips of 6. You'll sometimes run across uncut sheets on the internet, and you'll sometimes run across neatly hand-trimmed examples of the cards. Genuine cards. From 1944. Identical in every respect to the cards from the packs, except for the trimming.
   
   Submit one of these cards to PSA, and they'll return the card. Mind you, they keep the $15 or $25 grading fee. But your card will be treated with about the same amount of respect usually reserved for those who murder puppies.
   
   In my opinion, that's just wrong. PSA makes the rules and PSA enforces the rules. The author of this book makes a compelling case that the most famous baseball card in the world was hand-cut from a production sheet. And he says it's "artificial" because that violates PSA's rules. The card isn't artificial. The RULES are artificial. So change the rules.



3. A person may have never collected one baseball card, but the T206 Wagner transcends that industry. And with any item worth millions of dollars, the pop culture publicity surrounding it has been a curse and a blessing.
   
   Authors Michael O'Keeffe and Teri Thompson take the reader on a wild ride of the history of the Honus Wagner tobacco card through the fiction that has oftentimes shuffled the facts to the clubhouse and the legacy of "The Card," the ultimate T206 that is worth at least $2 million.
   
   From cards as fake as the slimy smiles of a con-man to the high-stakes game in the art of the deal to obtain the ultimate collectible, the story is a home run that is hammered out of the stadium.



4. Wow! What a page-turner! Finished this in roughly 24 hours, something I haven't done in a long time.
   
   I haven't been interested in baseball cards since I was about 13, and I haven't been interested in baseball too much in the past ten years, but this book brought me right back to where I was in my youth.
   
   The book reads like a murder mystery that keeps you hooked, and tells all sorts of history about old time baseball cards, card collectors, Honus Wagner himself, and unfortunately all the card crooks found within the hobby.
   
   Highly recommended!!



5. I spent most of the 1980s collecting baseball cards. I started with the complete 1977 - 1979 Topps sets, collected for me by my dad as a failed attempt at giving me an inheritance. Most of what I bought and traded for later I stored in shoeboxes (the 1980 Topps set is in the cigar box that originally heralded my sister's birth). My mother never threw my cards away; I still have them all, many creased from having been transported to summer camp in my pockets.
   
   "The Card" is a fast, revealing read, and having lived the collector's life (in a penny-ante kind of way) I can say this is a must-read book for those of us over a certain age. It seizes on a single surviving 1909 T206 Honus Wagner card that recently re-sold at private auction for nearly $3 million, and how, through years of investigative journalism, the authors have fairly well proven that the card is not exactly what it purports to be.
   
   Apart from the hours I wasted cataloguing and re-cataloguing my meager collections (I once traded the 1977 Chris Chambliss for a 1983 tandem of Ed Lynch and Dave LaRoche; dumb, dumb move) I've never spent a million bucks on a card of dubious provenance. I once laid down $10 for a 1957 Topps Luis Aparicio, too big to fit into the 9-card-per-page collector sheets that housed lots of 1987 Mark McGwires and Garbage Pail Kids at the time.
   
   "The Card" is a terrific look at the dark side of the hobby. Since many of those noted as "villains" by the author declined to be profiled, the book mostly features interviews with collectors who've left the hobby out of heartbreak, or those who run honorable and transparent businesses trying to clean it back up. It's not just about baseball cards: it also touches on the grey market for "game-used" bats, autographs, jerseys and gloves. Billy Crystal makes a poignant cameo late in the story: he spent a quarter of a million collars on an item that isn't what he thought it was.
   
   At a card show last year I got autographs on two memorable cards: Bake McBride signed his afro on the '80s Topps card, and Alvin Dark signed for me his 1955 Bowman TV-set image. I will not be selling these items. Neither card is in near-mint to mint condition, as is the profiled T206 Wagner; neither card is particularly rare; and I got them signed for sentimental value, not for investment purposes.
   
   Confession, however: I did once trim a baseball card. This is part of a run of dubious practices, made easier with the advent of newer technology, where dog-eared cards are made crisp, and where aging borders are pared back to their original white and pristine state. In early 1983 a Junior Scholastic-type magazine I got in the mail came with an uncut partial sheet of eight 1982 Topps cards (I do have a mis-cut, from-the-pack 1980 Topps John Candelaria that's probably worth nothing). Being nine and having never seen an uncut sheet before, I promptly grabbed my safety scissors and got to work liberating the cards from their unified tyranny. Mangled all the cards in the process. Including the Orioles Future Stars card. With Cal Ripken, Jr. on it. To be fair, at the time I couldn't have known I was cutting up a card that, thanks to the hobby's implosion, probably isn't worth more than 20 bucks today, if that.
   
   One final note: the story of the T206 Wagner and its dubious rise to 7-figure investment property, opens in 1985 in a baseball card shop in Hicksville, New York. This is the same Long Island town that for 20 years unknowingly housed the Gospel of Judas. My mother (and all my baseball cards) currently reside in Hicksville. I'm going back to my collection one day and maybe see if I don't have a T206 Wagner myself sitting somewhere in that fated locale.

5 comments about Barbie Fashion: Vol. 1, 1959-1967 (Barbie Doll Fashion).

1. I must admit, I'm not as crazy about this book like everyone else seems to be. I gave it four stars for the beautiful photos, and descriptions.
   But I think some things could be improved. The index lists everything by page number, which is fine if you're just leisurely looking through the book. But if you're looking for one particular outfit, it would be much more convenient to have an alphebetical listing. I wouldn't mind seeing the price guide broken down to include each individual accessory, since many people put together a complete set, piece by piece. But the thing that REALLY bugs me is that she almost always adds the word 'doll' after their names. For example, 'On weekends, Ken doll liked to take Barbie doll for a drive...', or 'Francie doll was excited about...'. Very annoying, to me, anyway. But, overall, it's a very good book to have.



2. To say something about this book is so so easy - this is THE Barbie collection book. Great photos, great describtions of all the outfits year by year.
   You don't need any other book besides this



3. Great book - a must for any Barbie collector-great pictures with accessories that originally went with each outfit- easy to look up values-great fun to wander through!!



4. A great reference book with great photos and descriptions to keep track of your dolls clothes and your investment.



5. For any serious collector of vintage Barbie doll, this book is the best resource available. I have many other books on early Barbie and her fashions, but this volume is the one that I consistently use. It is an accurate, comprehensive chronology of Barbie doll, her family and friends from 1959 through 1967. The photographs alone are worth purchasing the book. The colors are vibrant and crisp. Each fashion is pictured with all of its original components. This is of great value to the collector in putting together an outfit. I keep this book by my computer for reference when making vintage Barbie doll purchases or bidding on online auctions. I cannot imagine collecting Barbie doll items without it!

4 comments about Beckett Price Guide to Hot Wheels, 1st Edition.

1. I purchased this book thinking it was inclusive of ALL Hot Wheels, only to find it only covered 2006, 2007 and some of 2008. The entries that were covered were very good, but I was expecting cobverage from the begining of Hot Wheels in 1968.
   I returned the book. Beckett Price Guide to Hot Wheels, 1st Edition



2. I just wanted to know the new models of first editions of 2008 but there are not in the guide, there are the last 2007 models, but I really liked the guide because there are pictures of our club cars in mexico. Thanks.



3. I purchased this book thinking that it was a collection of all the hot wheels from the beginning. The fine print of 2006-2008 was difficult to see on the cover.For those who are only interested in those years the book was filled with great pictures and information,but for the vintage collector, this is not helpful!



4. It's good if you started collect in the last few years, If you have older cars I would recommend Lee's Toy Review. Lee's put's out Toy price guide every month.

5 comments about Jewels of the Tsars: The Romanovs and Imperial Russia.

1. If you like books about royal jewels like me then this book is for you. The pictures are beautiful and the book is full of great information.



2. While the subject of the Imperial Crown Jewels has not yet been exhausted, and this book assembles for the first time a large portion of the former collections, Prince Michael of Greece is not an Historian, gemologist, or specialist in decorative arts.
   
   While this book, like his others, has a romantic and lyric chronology enhanced by the ruthless dropping in of uncorroborated family lore, these personal titbits are less interesting that the pieces themselves who have been done a disservice by inadequate research and fact-checking.
   
   Page after page of this book are riddled with errors, inconsistencies and projections. Aigrettes are called brooches, diadems called chokers, the immense value of colored diamonds emphasized, which the actual stones shown are foiled to impart color. Members of the family are misidentified, the structure of the Diamond Fund misstated, and recreations misrepresented.
   
   Do buy this books for the marvelous photographs, many taken orginially for inclusion in the "Jewels of the Romanovs" Show catalogue at the Corcoran Gallery, but which was never published in full.



3. Very beautiful and well written. Lots of information on Russia's history and beautiful pictures of the families and jewels. If you are interested in Russian history and gem stones, this is a very good book.



4. This is an excellent look at the jewels and other fine objects of the Tsars and their families. The quality of the paper and the feel of the book is rich too. A pleasure to read and enjoy.



5. I have not seen the book but wanted to comment on the editorial comments.
   Prince Michael's Grandmother was Queen Olga of Greece, born a Grand Duchess of Russia but she was not a sister of Nicholas II. Olga's father and Nicholas II's grandfather were brothers. Thus Olga was a cousin to Nicholas II's father, Alexander III and therefore Olga and Nicholas II were second cousins. Prince Michael is a Prince of Greece and Denmark as his grandfather, King George I of Greece (Olga's husband) was born in Denmark as the second son of King Christian IX of Denmark and was elected King of Greece in March of 1863, thus becoming the King of Greece as a 17 year old prior to his father becoming King of Denmark in November of the same year, 1863. The Great Powers of Europe were looking for a new King for Greece when Vilhelm (his Danish name) was noticed at the March 1863 wedding of his older sister, Alexandra, when she married the Prince of Wales, son of Queen Victoria, and later King Edward VII. King George also had a sister (born Dagmar in Denmark) who married Alexander III of Russia, and were the parents of Nicholas II. This Michael's father Christopher was a first cousin to King George as well, making Michael a second cousin to Tsar Nicholas II through his father. Obviously one needs a "score card" to keep track of European Royalty as most of them are related to each other one way or another as in the past royalty was only allowed to marry royalty. Fortunately that has changed over the last several generations and it would appear that ALL of the heirs to the crowns of Europe have indeed married for love, and almost all of them have married commoners.

5 comments about Florence's Glassware Pattern Identification Guide: Easy Identification for Glassware from the 1920s Through the 1960s.

1. I have many pieces of depression glass and didn't know any of the pattern names. i ordered the book to help identify them. it is helping with that but i thought the book also contained info on estimated value.



2. Was a good book, but if you already have guide 1,2, or 3 it was mostly repeats with different picture views. If this is your first guide it is a great one!!



3. For a collector, this book lacks many of the patterns, needed to know, in pricing a product. Some of the patterns pictured are not defined enough. A
   magnifying glass may be needed for a closer look. For beginners, it is a respected book, written by two experts.



4. I was a bit disappointed in this book mainly because of the way in which it was set up. I am used to their other books such as: "Collectible Glassware from the 40s, 50, 60s". I didn't find it as easy to navigate. The pictures are great though.



5. The book was very helpful, great photos, nicely laid out. Buyers should definately know, however, that it is a book of more rare pieces.

5 comments about Coin Collecting For Dummies (For Dummies (Sports & Hobbies)).

1. I'm still consulting it, but it's a great book. It say what your dealers don't want, or takes you a lot of time to investigate. I'm from Mexico, and mexican coins amateur collector, i have catalogs but this book has been to useful.



2. I landed the job of cataloging my Father-in-law's coin collection. I didn't know a thing about coins. I got this book to help point me in the right direction. It is extremely helpful in giving me the terms used and explaining the DO's and Dont's (DO NOT CLEAN THE COINS) of collecting coins.



3. Hello , Covers all the basics quite nicely , easy to read and understand. I would strongly suggest you read this book and at least one other on your specific interest before you spend a dime on coins.



4. Good information for someone like myself who is just getting started in coin collecting. Would be too general for someone who is a bit more experienced. No buyer's remorse here!



5. This is a great book if you want to learn the ins and outs of a big time coin dealer/collector...mostly buying and selling.. I'm more into Collecting and learning about diffrent error coins.
   
   
   "TR"

1 comments about Jefferson Nickels Folder Starting 1996 (Official Whitman Coin Folder).

1. This item works like you would expect it to: it holds onto your money. It's quite difficult at times to get the coins into the spots, but they won't fall out!

5 comments about The Hemi in the Barn: More Great Stories of Automotive Archaeology.

1. I have the first book, "The Cobra in the Barn", this book is as good if not better, worth the price!



2. If you are into old cars then its a good book written is chapeters you can easily pick up and put down .



3. A good read and there are interesting search methods which others have employed to make their barn finds a reality. Many of the stories point out how dedicated and diligent people have gotten in finding these more unique barn finds. This is a good compilation of the story behind the car, or more specifically a set of stories which can complete the car enthusiasts education.



4. awesome!!! if i could write as an author- this would be my life long story! it made me feel like i was 21 and hunting again--in fact i may start again. a real treasure for classic car lovers!!!



5. Tom Cotter is a good writer, a good editor (some of these pieces were written by others or with others) and above all, a knowledgeable and enthusiastic car collector. Both this book and its' predecessor, "The Cobra In The Barn" are great bedside reading; the stories are just short enough that you can enjoy a few before you drop off. They are also great for those times that you come in from the garage needing a rest after struggling with ONE bolt for two hours. They help you remember why we love automobiles, why we work on them and try to bring them back to what they were when new, and why there are really only two kinds of people in the world: those who can't resist looking in old barns, behind doors, and under tarps- and those who couldn't care less. These books are for those of us who look, and dream.

5 comments about 2008 Standard Catalog of Baseball Cards.

1. WORTH EVERY CENT, ...AFTER PURCHASING ALOT OF OTHER BOOKS WHICH GOT ME NO WHERE, I JUST PURCHASED THIS ONE, THIS LISTS ALL SUB CATERGORIES WHICH IS EXCELLENT..MOST BOOKS DON'T..........REAL GOOD INVESTMENT.....THIS IS LIKE THE BIBLE OF BASEBALL CARDS...BECKETT BOOK IS A WASTE OF MONEY!!!!!!!! SHIPPING WAS FANTASTIC.!!!!!!



2. This is "almost excellent" Encyclopedia of Baseball cards and price guide. Its physical size and the enormous volume of information gathered and updated every year makes this book indispensable it's a must and certainly has its place in my/our/your library.
   The total number of pages 1848 and the number of entries is Ginormous. Due to the scope of researched necessary to put this fantastic guide book the "Standard Catalog Of Baseball Cards" year after year by professionals the best in the field is one the reasons amateurs and expert professionals in the field use this as their primary tool for research and investigation about anything concerning Baseball Cards throughout history.
   If you are a beginner buy it soon, before it is divided into separate volumes as KRAUSE has done with other guide books.
   The reason I gave [4] ]FOUR STARS instead of five is simple, although better than "The Official Beckett Price Guide to Baseball Cards" it has similar shortcomings as their other Krause guides, complete sections of information are missing and generally not fixed by the following year guide, incorrect or missing a few details, some description, and does pesky prices.
   Regarding prices use this and any other price guide must be used with the understanding that prices in all collectible items, specially does that investors and speculators are involved fluctuate daily, if you have followed any kind of auction you probably have noticed when 2, 3, or more of the same items and condition sell for different prices sometimes with significant differences. Collecting Antiques, Sport Cards, or Coins among others is a fine hobie worthy of the best help when available. Good luck.
   
   See my other guides.
   
   The Official Beckett Price Guide to Baseball Cards 2007, Edition #27 (Official Price Guide to Baseball Cards)
   The Official Beckett Price Guide to Football Cards 2008, 27th Edition (Official Price Guide to Football Cards)
   The Official 2008 Beckett Price Guide to Basketball Cards, 17th Edition (Official Price Guide to Basketball Cards)
   The Official Beckett Price Guide to Baseball Cards 2008, Edition #28 (Official Price Guide to Baseball Cards)
   The Official Beckett Price Guide to Football Cards 2009, Edition #28 (Official Price Guide to Football Cards)
   Baseball and American Culture: Across the Diamond (Contemporary Sports Issues) (Contemporary Sports Issues)



3. As I stated in my incipit this is a monster guide for me! it's a huge helping hand for me, as I am new in collecting trading cards on baseball! I began some months ago and till today I own 10,000 cards circa; and day by day I begin to understand what I have in my hands...a piece of American sport history and this thanks to Don Flukinger and his guide!
   I will for sure continue to follow from this side of world (I'm italian by the way) this great American sport!



4. It's difficult to locate cards in this guide and not as complete as I expected.



5. Very fast shipping, product arrive in excellent shape, and complete. I will shop this vendor again.