2 comments about Official Price Guide to Action Figures: 2nd Edition (Official Price Guide to Action Figures).

1. This was a very informative book. I liked the fact it went back a while to older figures I am missing, as well as all the hints and thips along the way. Kudos to Amazon for featuring this book!!



2. This book had all black and white pictures, and almost all of them showed the item in its package. I needed a book to help me IDENTIFY individual figures, which this book DEFINATELY DID NOT DO. I immediately returned the book.

1 comments about Platform Shoes: A Big Step in Fashion (Schiffer Book for Collectors).

1. Absolutely fantastic book! Perfect for the platform shoe lover - especially me! Features the author's collection of platform shoes - including non-wearable novelties - leaving you wanting to own every pair on the pages! Divided into 8 chapters including "Novelties", "Sling backs" and my favourite - "Ankle straps". There are shoes with sculpted heels, beaded uppers, springs, wheels and every kind of fabric available. Also shown are the rare and hard to find products with pictures of platform shoes printed on such as record covers and even a jacket. Brilliant pictures, little text, not very informative but a good read all the same.

5 comments about Once a thief.

1. Excellent book, suspenseful, a definite page turner. This is another one of a series of "Thief" books by Kay Hooper. This book draws you into the world of the paranormal, delivers mystery, and a bit of romance. I certainly didn't guess who the culprit was, and I'm usually good at doing so. Highly recommend her books. Received in perfect condition, and quick and easy transaction.



2. I was so disappointed with this novel. I have many Kay Hooper novels but this just didn't work as it doesn't stand alone. It is not a story about Quinn and Morgan (as the back blurb states), it's a story about Storm and Wolfe (two secondary characters), and the story isn't complete. The author builds a lot of suspense but there is no pay off since this novel is a set up for another and then another. Had I known that, I might not have purchased this one because I would have to buy 2 more to get the whole story and Morgan and Quinn simply were not that interesting for me to shell out 15 more bucks. If you are a die hard fan and plan on purchasing all the books, then go for it, but otherwise save your money.



3. I have to laugh at the preceeding reviews. Sorry guys, but I gotta. This isn't a 'new' installment. It's a reprint of four books Ms. Hooper wrote for Loveswept back in the 90's. No, not what you've come to expect from her as a suspense novelist, but for her die-hard fans from back in the day? It's a very welcome surprise to see these stories back in print. For series romance, they're absolutely fabulous stories - but if you don't like the short-story format of series romance, they're likely to throw you.



4. other reviewers have covered the storyline well, so I'll add just a few points.
   
   1-almost no storyline-just jumping between the TWO couples interacting, or fighting, with each other. There was not enough story for one couple, much less two. Even with that, none of the characters worked together-they just argued, and then made out, of course.
   
   2-inconsistencies-for supposedly modern, intelligent characters, the author has them doing implausible, immature actions. The biggest wrong move-the heroine-whose the exhibit curator, who says she'll do anything to protect the exhibit, but she immediately falls for the thief who plainly states he's going to ransack the exhibit? Save me from stupid heroines!
   
   not recommended-1.5 stars.



5. First book I've read by this author. Enjoyed the book and story line. Also read the sequel, but didn't care for it as much as this book. Will diffinetly read more Kay Hooper books.

5 comments about Fair Warning: A Novel.

1. I think this is one of those books that will appeal more to women than to men. It is the story of a forty-year-old New York auctioneer who seems to think an awful lot of herself. She has the usual romantic complications, including a banal liaison with a cliched Frenchman, whose "secret," when we find out what it is, is pretty silly. This is not an offensive book; just not very interesting. There are some lines of dialogue here that will make you roll your eyes and groan.



2. There are some great passages in this book, and some interesting dialogue between the main characters. Unfortunately the plot doesn't hold up and the conclusion of the book is pretty unsatisfying.



3. Butler is a writer that seems to enjoy taking challenges, and Fair Warning is no exception. Francis Ford Coppola hired him to write a story about a female auctioneer for a magazine. Later, Butler expanded the story into 225 pages. He does an amazing job writing from a female perspective.
   The main character, Amy Dickinson, is the star auctioneer at Nichols and Gray. We follow her as her company is in the process of being sold, and as she begins a relationship with the French businessman who is purchasing the company. Also, at the same time her life seems to be coming together, the lives of her sister and her mother are falling apart. Her sister, who has a picture perfect family, is getting a divorce, and her mother is still dealing with the death of her husband.
   But between the development of the plot, Amy describes lots of things. Things she's auctioning, things in her apartment, hands of her lovers, and even cities. (Houston, New York, and Paris.) Butler's description technique is perfect. It's never too over the top, and he uses amazing imagery.
   Amy also reflects on what it means to collect things, what it means to own things, what it means to be owned, and what it takes to own yourself.
   Fair Warning is definitely a book that will make you think, and perhaps even make you look at your life in a different way.



4. Of the three Butler books I've read, this is the weakest rendering. The writing, as always, is artistic and nuanced. The characters, as always, are full-blooded and dimensional. What fails to measure up to Butler's talent is the story. We read and expect more -- more resolution, more understanding, more growth. Nonetheless, it bears the stamp of intelligence that we've come to expect from his work and is worth reading.



5. In this book Butler paints a truly extraordinary picture of a female auctioneer from Texas, working in New York City at the 3rd biggest auction house. She is in fact the star of the house. She has an ability to auction like very few others. And as this is the case, when the auction house decides to sell to a French investor, her continued employment is a significant issue in that purchase.
   
   But as usual, Butler takes on the role of a female character for his protagonist. In this impressive and interesting stream of consciousness presentation Butler reveals the innermost mental meanderings of a lady who is in a wonderful position in life, all she has to do is figure out who she wants to marry.
   
   As an auctioneer, she is obsessed with collectors and valuation. This predilection would be most natural for a person who does such activity every day of her life. But what she had not thought much about is that people can also be collectors of people and memories. In a sense, all people are collectors of memories. And this concept is highly relevant to her when she is making certain life-impacting decisions.
   
   Truly a fine modern novel, it is recommended to all those who are interested in the inner workings of the female mind, as Butler sees it. Since this is often his authorial position and since he has some incredible insight into the workings of the human mind, his book comes as no surprise.
   
   The book is recommended for all readers of classic literature, particularly those interested in gender analysis. Once again, this book is a fine offering from Mr. Olen Butler.

No comments about Establishing Dress History (Studies in Design).

2 comments about Distinctive Limoges Porcelain: Objets d'Art, Boxes, and Dinnerware.

1. This book has too many new and common pieces.



2. I love Schiffer, but I prefer Debby DuBay's books Antique Limoges at Home and Living With Limoges.

5 comments about Dressing Up Vintage.

1. This book starts only at around 1940 and just gives a few glossy pictures for each decade. Models and model-lovers should love it, but it's really more about the culture of buying couture and outrageously priced clothing than it is about vintage. A big ho-hum, and a little bit of a ripoff for the money. Shallow, shallow, shallow.



2. What a wonderful find! This is a book that does everything it says on the tin and then some. Freely and beautifully illustrated with both period and commisioned photographs, it offers a cornucopia of images that cleverly demonstrates fashion, documenting & reflecting much of the past century.
   The writing is witty and wise: intelligent & informative without being patronising & it is infectious in its enthusiasm. For someone like me, with alot more interest than knowledge in vintage clothing, what I really loved about it was its accessibility and how helpful it was with information- there are handy tips on the where's and how's of vintage shopping and dressing nestling in every corner. Because of the way that it integrates socio-economic and historical detail, it even makes for good reading if you're not that interested in the clothes themselves, as it offers a rich visual history, through clothing, of the century that was. It often seems that every other book is "the definitive guide to..." but this one is the genuine article. No cheap imitation this, it offers an assured overview of vintage style and an indispensible source list of web-sites and stores that sell vintage clothing. And it is so much fun to read.



3. I think this is the best book that I've ever bought on vintage clothes. I love it and I've learned so much. A real find!



4. Although filled with beautiful photography of period styles, I found this book to be ultimately a disappointment--short on substance.

   The introduction, where she states that "Basing a collection around thrift-store bargins is not only unrealistic, it can take days, weeks, literally years of your time." is the your first clue. The rest of the book is then devoted to extolling the virutes of couture and its designers. Fine for a small amount of those who can afford it, but unrealistic for the rest of the population.

   Tolkien has a mere two pages to fashions of the 1940's (which she calls "simple" and "utilitarian" before moving on to the rest of the 20th century. She divides the various decades into the trends that defined them, but then lets the pictures do the work for her. Tolkien also devotes a part of the book to 90's fashion--a decade which most vintage wearers would not even consider to be "vintage" in the first place.

   If you are looking for a very brief overview of late 20th century designer fashion, you might enjoy this book. If not, Amazon has plenty of other books on the subject that do a much better job.




5. This is not a book for grungy secondhand roses raking around the fleamarkets for funky bargain clothes but for the serious connoisseur of fine vintage this book is indispensable.

No comments about My Highest Pleasures: William Hunter's Art Collection (The Huntarian Museum, Glasgow).

No comments about Original Comic Art: Identification and Price Guide (The confident collector).

5 comments about McDonald's Collectibles: Happy Meal Toys and Memorabilia 1970 to 1997.

1. This book is for all, not just those who collect McDonald's memorabilia. My son loves to look at all the pictures and it is excellent to see all the different sets of toys, cause you can never usually get all the happy meal toys of a series. I highly recommend it!!!



2. Good book, although they could devote a whole volume to Grimace



3. I love this book. I looked at this book in a bookstore. This books has all the toys from 1970 to 1997. I aslo love eating at McDonalds.



4. This is one of the best McDonald's collectibles books I've seen! This book includes detailed color pictures, very accurate descriptions, release dates, and an estimated value for a wide variety of McDonald's figures including premuims released in the United States and Internationally. A very thorough and informative guide to McDonald's fast food toys!



5. I purchased this book in hopes of finding many of the toys that I collected when I was a child. Many of the toys I have are from the early 1980's. A cursory glance did not show many toys before 1988. Astrosniks weren't even included, and they were quite popular! I'll be searching for a book that focuses on toys from the 1980's. If you're looking for a book that has toys from the early days, this is not the book for you.