No comments about INDIANA JONES AND JAMES BOND Action Figures book.

5 comments about Dollhouse Living.

1. The photography is aweome, very artistic and beautiful. The writing kept me flipping the pages, the wit is fabulous! Dollhouse Living is one of the most interesting and captivating books I have ever read. I look forward to more books from Beauregard Houston-Montgomery in the future. Bravo to a great book!

   Kyle Bradford




2. An amazing book set up to reflect the era itself. A true collectors collectible. Beautifully produced photographs that a doll house lover can truly appreciate along with the writer's own first-hand impressions and thoughts. A must have!



3. I am amazed at the other reviews of this book. The reviewers must be close personal friends of the author. My conscience won't even let me give this book away.



4. The photography is beautiful. But understand that this book is a
   sort of bio of emotions about growing up gay, not about building and decorating dollhouses.



5. This book is a bio of emotions on growing up gay. It is not a book about decorating dollhouses. The photography is blurred as it is only a back drop to accent the feelings that the writter is expressing.Buy it if you are a book collector, but not as an instruction manual. Ha

No comments about Antique Trader's Guide to Games & Puzzles.

No comments about World Encyclopedia of Model Soldiers.

1 comments about The Complete Book of Hot Wheels: With Price Guide (A Schiffer Book for Collectors).

1. I have been collecting Hot Wheels cars since they first came out back in the fall of 1967. I was just a 9 year old youngster at the time, but I can still remember the excitement of seeing a new car, or a different color on the pegs at the WoolWorths store in downtown New Britain. I would save as much of my allowance, and also any money I had earned by helping my neighbor's take in the groceries, so that I could get a new Hot Wheel, the next time my friends and I took our weekly trek downtown.

   Now that I am in my late 30's, I have every single book ever printed about collecting Hot Wheels. I have read all of them from cover to cover at least twice. I can say with certainty that Bob Parkers books are a much better resource for the serious Hot Wheels collector, than all of the others combined. I am not saying that I do not use the other books, such as Tomarts, and some of the other literature written by Strauss, but when I want accurate information, I always reach for Parkers books. I have found too many errors and inaccuracies in Mike Strauss' books, that I can just not rely on them for any serious information. I use the Tomarts mainly to aid in identifying some Hot Wheels via the photographs. I use the Parkers books to answer some of the more detailed questions that I get from collectors that visit my web site, The Virtual Hot Wheels Collection. (http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/5820)

   I am currently waiting for Mr. Parkers latest book, which I just ordered from Amazon.com today. Look for my review of his latest work about 2 months after I receive it. If his newest book is even half as good as his previous books, we are all in for a real wealth of important information and data on the hobby of collecting Hot Wheels.

   written by
   Kurt Kemmling
   9/29/97

1 comments about 12 INCH FALSHIRMJAGER: In Action Figures (Action Figures & Toys).

1. This book is more a history of the Axis airborne forces then a how to guide for 1/6 action figures. The text describes airborne operations not the figures, the figures are described in the photo captions. They don't give much info on how the figures were made or what parts were used. The figures are well done and include Italian and Japanese paras.It's well worth the modest price for the figures alone.

4 comments about The Harmony Kingdom Reference Guide.

1. This book is alive with information and color. There's an interesting summary of the history of Harmony Ball Company followed by a step-by-step (with pictures) rendition of how Harmony Kingdom Treasure Jests are made. I loved reading about all the pieces and their hidden meanings and secrets, each with a lovely full-color photo. The index will help me manage my GROWING Harmony Kindgom collection! Wonderful book, well worth the price.



2. Anyone who collects Harmony Kingdom will find this book interesting and extremely helpful. The author provides a wealth of information on the company and the artists, an explanation of how the boxes are made, and a listing for each piece. The listing for each piece includes a picture, a description, information on variations, and the secrets to be found on the piece. A really handy book to have with you when you go out hunting for HK!

   Even if you have the first edition of this book, I think you will want this edition too. It includes all the pieces released through 1999 and more background information on the artists and the company than appeared in the first edition.




3. The second edition of the Harmony Kingdom reference guide provides even more fascinating background on the company than the first, and provides even more useful data on the collection.

   If you're an HK collector, this second edition is indispensible. If you're not one, reading this book will make you one.

   There was a large group of retirements immediately before the publication of the first edition, so the second edition provides production figures for thirty pieces whose true rarity may be a surprise to HK collectors.

   The background information in the first volume is not completely repeated, which prevents the first edition from becoming truly obsolete.




4. Excellent Guide. The book is organized in a manner that makes it easy to find individual pieces. The information is both informative and entertaining (to a collector of HK anyway). I was surprised to find so many of the new pieces in the book, Leanna must have worked up to the last second including them. This is a must for any Harmony Kingdom collector.

2 comments about Standard Catalog of Farm Toys: Identification and Price Guide.

1. A brand new year 2001, 448 page reference volume with more than 6,000 very clear, black and white photos and a 16 page full color section. Year 2001 values are provided. A complete index facilitates item location. There is a nice, informative introductory section, and a section detailing the toy makers. Enthusiasts will love looking at the huge variety of photos. If you're interested in these toys, you'll find it of real value.



2. Either there is a major error on page 256 and 263 or everyone and their brother happens to perceive it incorrectly. The photo and caption are of a John Deere 30 series (2030, 2630, etc.) and it states it is showing a 2010. Two completely different machines! Accuracy and definition are critical in a book like this.

3 comments about Baby Boomer Toys and Collectibles (Schiffer Book for Collectors).

1. The book has some great photos of old toys but, they are not the type of toys I remember from my childhood. I was born in 1950. Maybe I just never had these toys in my toy box. As a collector of Boomer and 50's era toys..I was disappointed in the content of this book.



2. Forget the criticism - this is a great book stuffed with monsters, space toys plastics, kits - all the CLASSIC boomer stuff that the collectors go nuts for.



3. A great trip down memory lane! Two chapters deal with my own fields of interest and still has a nice cross-section of different items for everyone. Great pics, good descriptions. I can't call it a coffee table book because it never gets to stay on the table. Every visitor picks it up and can't put down. Thanks for the memories!

4 comments about David Levinthal: Small Wonders (American Scene (Washington, D.C.), 4,).

1. If you recall with fondness the great old Louis Marx & Co. playsets of the 1950's & '60s then this book is a must. David Levinthal's color photographs are superb, bringing life to these little plastic people and animals at their eye-level, much as we saw and remember them when we were kids.

   The color photographic layouts of various playsets are divided into three chapters. "Our World" contains great shots of the Marx Dollhouse, Skyscraper, Schoolhouse, Boyscouts, Jetport, Service Station, and "The Untouchables" playsets. The "World of War" chapter highlights the various Marx WWII, Civil War, Revolutionary War, Alamo, Frontier and Western playsets. "Other Worlds" concludes the book with images from the "Ben-Hur," Robin Hood, Jungle and Circus playsets. This is one of the most imaginative coffee-table photography books I've seen in ages.

   Now comes my only negative comment which robbed this otherwise superb book of one star. David Corey's introduction leaves a lot to be desired. While it provides some historical information on Louis Marx and his company there really isn't enough info to satisfy the knowledge-seeking reader. The overblow and pretentious text contrasts sharply with Levinthal's photos injecting cynasism and misplaced intellectualism with photographs of a child's world where that kind of drivel has no place.

   Corey's self-serving intro is a bit bizarre to say the least. He writes, "The service-station attendant in my playset was in some ways as tragic as Oedipus, as confined by time, place and action to his inescapable destiny, while I, like the Athenian spectator - or better still, the demiurge - could contemplate the conditions of..." What the heck is he talking about? This book celebrates children's playsets for crying out loud! Buy the book for the pictures and enjoy the great memories it brings back.




2. This book was intended to be a critical, artistic examination of the traditional American society of the 50's and 60's as viewed from children's playsets of that period. Ironically, it has become immensely popular among toyset collectors who either ignore, or disagree with, the critical introduction.
   It is the marvelously posed and photographed Marx playsets that steal the show (Roman, western, Civil War, circus, jungle, WW2, space, etc.) The social comentary has been totally eclipsed by the pure nostalgia value. I know that is why I bought it....



3. The only flaw with Small Wonder is that the text is about toys, which gives toy collectors the idea that Levinthal is an illustrator of books on toys. If you bought this book just to compliment your toy collection, you need to go through the book again, ignoring the text, and really look at the photographs.

   I would have given Small Wonder 5 stars, were it not for David Corey's text. However, the book only grants around 25 pages to Corey's text, out of the 160 total, and it is still well worth buying. I've had the book for a few months, and I still pick it up to see a certain few photos over and over.




4. If you're reading this, you likely know Levinthal's formidable talent. It's on display here, of course, but the book's design, assembly instructions superimposed next to, behind and even over the photos, distracts from his work. Self-consciously clever, the design so irritated me it was a genuinely unpleasant experience to look through this book--hardly the reaction one expects from Levinthal. Look for another introduction to his work. I am.