3 comments about The Official Beckett Price Guide to Baseball Cards 2008, Edition #28 (Official Price Guide to Baseball Cards).

1. This book is not worth the price. The only cards listed were regular print cards. There were no inserts listed whatsoever. This book is good if you have alot of old cards.



2. the print is so small the book is basically useless. no insert listings! a waste of money



3. Like the Football Card price list I bought it is sometimes very hard to locate the cards. The simple $.05 cards are easy to find, but if you want to find the upscale cards they can be difficult if not impossible to locate. Maybe if your a dealer or have several years worth of experience looking for cards its not so hard.

5 comments about Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1801-1900 (Standard Catalog of World Coins 19th Century Edition 1801-1900).

1. If you collect Modern Foreign this book is a MUST HAVE, I have looked up 100 or more coins and have yet not to locate the coin I am looking for. It is comprehensive, has good pictures most of the Obverse and Reverse some just of the Obverse.
   I highly recommend this book, its great.
   David Jackson



2. This is a book that every collector whose interests exceed his backyard and go beyond his birthdate must have at home. There is no better help to start expanding your collection beyond 1901.
   There is no better does not mean that there cannot be a better one. Some remarks must be taken into consideration
   - this is an American catalog so prices in your country (if you're not American that is) are most certainly different and there is no point to waste your time to prove Krause wrong. E.g. prices of German states' coins in Germany are 50 to 100% higher than in Krause. They are which means that if you are looking for them you move to eBay and look for them elsewhere but not in Germany. Foreign dealers treat Krause prices of foreign coins seriously.
   - this is an American catalog which has a soft spot for American coins. Most foreign readers will be mildly amused by eighteen pages of remarkably uninspired designs of the US patterns (fortunately most of them are not shown) or twelve pages of "territorial gold".
   - this is an American catalog so you may find some of coins from your country missing completely or missing a picture.
   If you can accept all this, you will be happy with your purchase. If you can't, you should think if you won't be much happier with a more specific coin catalog but be sure that no other can give the kind of general view you find in this one.



3. This publication is essential for anyone buying, selling or evaluating coins.



4. This is the most comprehensive coin catalogue and when put together with Catalogue of World Coins 1901 - 2006, it really gives you an accurate picture and value report of what you have in your collection or are thinking about adding to it.



5. Material is horribly dated. Publication date apparently 2004, using 2001-2003 price date. Effectively useless.
   
   You MUST show date of publication in description of item.
   
   Not likely to buy again.

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.

5 comments about Kovels' New Dictionary of Marks: Pottery and Porcelain, 1850 to the Present.

1. If you collect this type of pottery, you will have to get this book sooner or later as it provides an outstanding reference to marks found on these items and so permits you to assess the age of the item. But the lack of any real advice, wisdom, guidance, explanations, etc. about the subject of collecting these pieces, knowing when marks are real or fake, and assessing the quality of the pieces is essentially nil. So you will have to learn pretty much everything you need to know from other sources. A real disappointment given that the authors are almost certainly know a lot more about the subject matter than they put into these books. M Pezim



2. This is a good resource book. It has it's limitations, but I use it almost daily. I look up alot of ceramics marks, and I find the large majority of them in this Kovels book. It is great if you are looking for a specific makers mark, or decoratoras mark. The limitation is that there is no way to comprehensively view all marks from one particular maker. If you have a few treasures that you want to accurately identify, then it is very good. Don't get me wrong, I haven't found every mark I look for. But I haven't found a Marks reference that I do. This book provides a good clean and easy format to locate the mark I need, and quickly.
   
   Also, if you are looking for back ground info on the company, this isn't the book for you. While the Kovel's do an excellent job of showing literal thousands of easy to find marks, thats all they show. All in all a highly recommended resource. Any serious ceramics collector, dealer, or dedicated flea market/yard saler should have a copy.



3. Bought this as a gift for my daughter and she has really enjoyed it's contents. Now she can see if the "Junk and/or Antiques" she has purchased has any real value!!



4. I haven't been happy with this book since I purchased it. Haven't found one mark from any of the pottery or china I have from this book. Only one or maybe two examples of the companies which made the pottery but not the marks. For example I can't even find the simple "Anchor" from Anchor Hawking Co.(There are plenty of other anchors). I have a very nice Blue "Old Fashion"/juice glass fron A.H. but I have never seen one in blue. Looked it up and could not find MARK in this book. I was very surprised. I've been thinking about purchasing the Second Edition of Kovels' book, but been holding back... Can anyone tell me if it is better or if it's just me, I hope..Mary, techmom@usamedia.tv (No Solicitors Please! Only those wanting to talk about this book please reply. NO SPAMMERS!!)



5. Marks on pottery have always been of interest to me. Some are obvious and well-known and others obscure. Couldn't find all the marks I was looking for. Still a good book to have.

3 comments about Brooches: Timeless Adornment.

1. For a Rizzoli book the photography of the brooches is terrible. The pieces chosen for the book are interesting and beautiful. When I opened the book, the binding broke. It is printed in China so I suppose that explains the overall poor quality. I returned this book.



2. Page 56 begins in the middle of the sentence. It might be that this book was printed in China.
   Great photos for people interested in this type of jewelry. Some nice information.



3. A concise, informative, well-researched book on brooches with wonderful photographs by David Behl. Ms. Gross has certainly authored a book which gives a broad historical overview of brooches. The book includes many fabulous, meaningful, and accurately categorized pieces as illustrations. Obviously, Ms. Gross spent much time in selecting the appropriate pieces to be illustrated and much research in preparing the corresponding information with the pieces. The book covers the history of brooches to the care of brooches, and is one of the best overviews of this very important jewelry form that has been published. Also, I might add, that the Rizzoli Publishing Company, as always, did a masterful job in publishing the book.

5 comments about The Urban Treasure Hunter: A Practical Handbook for Beginners.

1. I was hoping for a little more technical stuff with this book. It talks
   about old buildings, privies, new construction sites, and etc. to look for
   things. I wanted techniques in the handling of the detector. Not so much as
   where to go. To me, it's a book about common sense. Overall, I would
   recommend it. It is helpful in a few areas.



2. No matter what your treasure, be it coins, bottles, or somethisg else, this book has great tips on where and how to find it. I originally bought a copy for my son and was so impressed that I bought another copy for myself.



3. I am just beginning my hobby with a metal detector. I purchased several books on treasure hunting and this is by far the best. It has a broad range of extremely useful information. By all means start with this book if you too are a beginner. Most of the other books I bought had a lot of fluff. This book has a ton of useful information and guidance.



4. This book is an invaluable resource for the beginner and even the intermediate detectorist. It has filled me with new ideas of where and how to search for lost valuables and coins. The tidbits on history and archeology were most interesting.



5. This book has a lot of information about treasures all over the country. Tells you where to look, how to go about hunting and what equipment you need and what to do when you find your treasures.

5 comments about The Official Overstreet Identification and Price Guide to Indian Arrowheads 10th Edition (Official Overstreet Indian Arrowhead Identification and Price Guide).

1. I am not a professional arrowhead collector by any means but I enjoy learning about them and have been fortunate once in awhile to come across one. This book is excellent for the purpose of learning about the different kinds of arrowheads, lance points, knives, hand axes etc. It includes history of points. There is a choronological gallery of color points in the front, the rest of the photos are in black & white and the book is sectioned into regions to make it easier to learn what is most likely to be found in your area. For those inclined, it also includes what to look for as a collector and the estimated value of your point/s etc. I like this book!



2. A new update from the 7th, 8th, and 9th Editions about Native North American Points which I have in my library. By having the most recent edition (the 10th) you can compare how items have increased in value.
   A host of new material, including new points, geographic area renaming, etc.
   A must for the beginning and advanced collector.



3. Year after year these books are published with the same poor quality binding and paper. Even more disappointing is the same pictures and descriptions are reprinted in each volume. It appears that a variant point or two are added to "justify" a new printing. Don't waste your money. It's 98 percent old and 2 percent "new".



4. 10th edition is like the last 9 editions. But it does have an array of every type variant, albeit many, many variants that really are subjective at best. But as many collectors know. the book has ridiculous price estimates. And as a long time collector/dealer my biggest beef about many of the editions, and I can personally 100% say/witnessed that many of the points are not authentic and only make it into the book to increase their "provenance" and individual value. But that said, the book is on type variations for you and not whether the specimens are actually authentic or not. So its really a catch 22. Many people have made it a popular arrowhead book, unfortunately are the same people that think they have a dozen authentic Clovis points(a rare Paleo, high valued arrowhead) they bought at their local flea market.



5. Outstanding book for those (like me) who do not authenticate points but want to learn about the various types. Includes informative articles on the archaeology of certain points. Lots of beautiful color panels of points arranged by age, in addition to the B&W photos in the identification pages.

5 comments about 2008 Standard Catalog of World Coins 1901-2000 (Standard Catalog of World Coins).

1. I ORDERED A "USED" BOOK (I YEAR OLD) ON COINS OF THE WORLD AND IT MORE THAN SUIT MY NEEDS...BY ORDERING A USED BOOK, I PROBABLY SAVED AT LEAST 90% OFF THE NEWEST EDITION...BY SUBSTITUING NEWER VALUES, ONE CAN GET A PRETTY GOOD IDEA WITHOUT A NEWER BOOK...THANKS



2. The paper quality is very low and papers are very thin so the print images are not clear like they should be... Cheap high-quantity production obviously. Telephone books are better...



3. The 2008 Standard Catalog of World Coins has everything that any coin dealer or collector could want. This edition covers the era from 1901 - 2000 and includes all legal tender regular and commemorative issues of almost all countries and territories.
   An invaluable resource for anyone interested in selling, buying or collecting coins from any country in the world. I utilize my copy almost each and every day.



4. Very good book for reference. Has all the coins in it with actual sizes of the coins for easy reference.



5. Probably the best on world coins, and rather comprehensive. However, it takes some getting used to the cataloging system, and not all coins are listed per country, especially some commemorative coins are missing.

5 comments about Sea Glass Chronicles.

1. Considering there was only one other book on sea glass that I knew of, I absolutely HAD to have another-being the avid sea glass fan that I am. However, upon receiving the book, I was greatly unimpressed with not only the images, but also the lack of magnificent specimens. The book tells more about ceramic shards than it does actual glass. In my opinion, I find actual glass to be much more attractive than any kind of pottery shard.
   
   Furthermore, the book had hardly any information on where to find glass, how to look for it, or even when to go and look... absolutely nothing about actually collecting. Or what about the weathering process of the shards? Nope. I was very disappointed in the lack of information. For those craving explanations of the possible origins, when and where to find glass, and just general information regarding anything one can think of about sea glass, get the book Pure Sea Glass. It's an amazing reference whenever I come home with new and interesting pieces.



2. Last night I opened Sea Glass Chronicles to read a few pages, but found I couldn't put it down! This lovely book is a treasure, just like the "treasures" it describes in each chapter. After a few pages, I realized that Pat Hanbery's photographs were amazing as well! Enjoyable on several levels, it's a "coffee table" book that any age would enjoy simply for the browsing, but the writing and research by C.S. Lambert will take you much, much deeper into this hobby enjoyed by nearly everyone: beachcombing! It is an educational trip through the archaeology of beach glass, pottery, and doll fragments, caught in time before they were all altered by water's relentless task of reducing them into sand particles on a beach. Although there is a great deal of information, it is presented in quickly-readable short stories. This is a real "keeper" as well as a good gift idea.



3. so much information about seaglass...
   and the photos allow you to compare what you have already found or looking for.



4. 
   
   Fabulous book for anyone who loves beachcombing and collecting sea treasures - highly recommended!



5. Nice book with some pretty pictures but does not really contain much useful information about sea glass. The book "Pure Sea Glass: Discovering Nature's Vanishing Gems" contains much more information about the possible origins of sea glass for the novice collector.

5 comments about A General History of the Pyrates.

1. A General History of the Pyrates is good reading! Great history on famous pirates!



2. This book is written in a different kind of English than we what are used to. As such, this book is amazing. Filled to the brim with pirate information, boat information, etc, this is a good book for anyone who really is interested in pirates.
   For those who are interested in pirates purely at a humorous level, this isn't the book you should go with. This is packed with real information in older English, and is really intended for those who wish to know more about pirates and how they lived.
   
   This book helped my understanding of pirates greatly! I recommend to anyone who is interested in trying to know more about those scalawags of the sea.



3. I compared this book with the pirate history published by Captain Charles Johnson. Daniel Defoe is definitely Captain Johnson. The one dissimilarity in the History of the pirate Gow is Johnson says he is John Smith alias Gow, while Daniel Defoe calls him the pirate Gow aka Smith. Gow is derived from the Erse name Gobha which translates to Blacksmith or Smith. So both version are in fact correct. But why the difference? Maybe editorial?



4. "Under the Black Flag", and all the rest of the pirate history books used this one as their basic reference. It's a lot of material, and took me several months to read as I'd read single captain's history before turning the lights out for the night. The stories are not watered down, there is enough murder, mayhem, robbery, thuggery, and general bad treatment of one person against another to fill years of "Pirates of the XXXX" movies with Johnny Depp scripts.
   
   I did like this book, even though after about the 200th captain's adventure its sort of repetitive narrative. The other interesting thing was that amid this culture of mayhem there was a strong democratic theme. Captains and bosun's are elected positions on most of the boats! Colonies elect a "governor", they have jury trials to settle disputes and yet the economy revolves around ripping off passing merchant boats.
   
   As for whether "Captain Johnson" or "Daniel Defoe" wrote the text, I can't tell. But it doesn't matter, there are no copyright royalties to be paid to the author at this point. The stories are just as good. Anyone who is really interested in Pirates would enjoy this book. (Although I got my copy from the public library.) I especially found the history of Annie Bonny and Mary Reed to be absolute soap opera story. History is stranger than fiction.
   
   (Oh and read Richard Zack's book on Captain Kidd, Defoe got it wrong, and Zack's found the original documents to explain what really happened.) Zack's book is easier to read too.



5. The dearth of primary sources have encouraged "scholars" to grasp onto the Furbanks / Owens short de-atrribution, which is basically an ad hominem attack against the preeminent 20th century Defoe scholar Moore. The tales in this book are wild and outlandish, much like Defoe's life. Full of get-rich quick schemes, bankruptcy, and being pilloried, he did not lack for his own source material. So enjoy the tales, picture a proto-democracy where illiterate desperate men create "articles" of piracy that would make a modern day attorney proud, read some more Defoe and make up your own mind. Clear sailing!