No comments about The 1912 Bing Toy Catalogue (The Bing toy catalogues).

1 comments about Beast Wars Transformers: The Unofficial Guide with Price Guide (A Schiffer Book for Collectors).

1. Transformers are back. Jobie Alvarez is back! This book is a Beast (no transformers pun intended)! The Quadrilogy is complete! It's this book story about these two Beast Transformers who fall in love with one another. They want to have a baby Transformer but can't conceive on earth do to The Dreadknocks. So they adopt this baby girl Transformer from the Planet Naboo but they are kind of pensive since the baby is missing a converter and can't change from a Chevy Malibo into robot form. So all the baby girls' friends think she's mentally challenged and is banished to the retarded transformer school with the rest of the challenged. Professor Xavier uses his mind meld to melt cheese and turn the Transformer family into cheese. But they stop him and enroll their adopted girl Transformer child into regular school where like Lindsay Lohan in Mean Girls finds that life as a teenager has it's ups and downs. And the girl Transformer is really hot and just needs a makeover to become Queen of the High School prom. So that's just what happens and she becomes Queen and gets a new Chevy Malibu as a graduation gift from her parents which is odd because essentially she's a Chevy Malibu forced to ride in a Chevy Malibu. Is Jobie Alvarez a good writer or what. He rocks and so does this book!
   
   Jobie Alvarez knows how to create a story in the Beast Transformers universe and again melts your pupils with exquisite words and adjectives. I highly recommend this book. I recommend all 4 of them. I stack all 4 up and put chairs on them. They make me feel taller. Sometimes I take chucks of the books and stuff them in my shoes. It's like a 3 for 1 offer when you buy this book. And if Jobie signs it for you one day you can sell it on Ebay for half it's value! It's hot. It's Transformers. It's now. It's Jobie. It's most Alvarezie!

No comments about Dinky Toys (Shire Library).

2 comments about Shirley Temple Dolls and Fashions: A Collector's Guide to the World's Darling (Schiffer Book for Collectors).

1. This book contains excellent photos and realistic prices for Shirley Temple dolls from the early composition dolls to the 1972 vinyl dolls. Also included are photos and prices for doll outfits, paperdolls, books, the sapphire blue breakfast set, and salts. If a collector wants photos and prices for other types of Shirley Temple items then I would suggest one of Patricia R. Smith's "Shirley Temple Dolls and Collectibles" books.



2. This is a must have for anyone collecting dolls. I use it all of the time and have learned so much.

1 comments about Penny-in-the-Slot Automata and the Working Model.

1. The inspiration for the book was the machines the author played at British seaside resorts in the early 1970's. Examples of many of these machines are now preserved in museums and theme parks. Covering the period from the 1860's to the 1970's but with an emphasis on the more recent machines, this book describes and illustrates many different coin-operated mechanical devices. Some of these machines were purely for entertainment while others were marketing tools. Most of them were built on an individual basis - there was no mass market for most of them.
   
   The main focus of the book is on machines that were purely intended for entertainment and were generally found at seaside resorts and other tourist locations. They are based on many different themes including haunted houses, churchyards, drunkard scenes, executions, fire fighters, clowns, sailors and puppet shows among others. You put a penny in the slot and a scene based on one of these themes would be enacted. Given that these machines were entirely mechanical, it required highly skilled engineering to make them although the scenes were basically quite simple. Even the still pictures (all in color) of these machines are impressive.
   
   While this book is primarily about British machines, American machines are also covered. In America, the public didn't seem to go for the variety of themes that the British public liked - however, they were particularly keen on fortune telling. A chapter is devoted to these machines and how they worked.
   
   Entertainment, however, was something that evolved from working models set up by business as marketing tools. As an example, rail and shipping companies sometimes built scale models that stood in glass cases in prominent places in their headquarters offices or other important locations such as stations and ports. Often built by the same engineers who built the full-sized locomotives and ships, these working models demonstrated their skills to potential customers. Coin-operated locomotives in glass cases could be seen as recently as the 1960's at British stations, providing money for charity. I remember putting a penny in the slot to see the locomotive spring into life - its wheels would turn but of course it couldn't actually go anywhere.
   
   Vending machines are also covered in the book, though prior to the widespread use of electricity, their use was largely limited to products such as matches, gum and chocolate. It is right that examples of them are included but the early vending machines are somewhat less exciting than some of the other machines covered in this book.
   
   The book also covers mechanical music machines from their origins through to the early jukeboxes, though later developments are outside the scope of this book as they are powered by electricity. It is fascinating to see pictures of the early music machines, which were large, elegant pieces of furniture. Some were located in British pubs, so fulfilling much the same role as a modern jukebox. Before auto-changing mechanisms were developed, machines only played one disc, which staff had to change at regular intervals to allow customers to hear different tunes.
   
   In February 1971, Britain switched to decimal currency. While the pound remained as the major unit of currency, the old pennies were replaced by new pennies with a different size and value (2.4 old pennies). Millions of slot machines needed conversion if they were to remain usable. For many of the machines described in this book, it just wasn't worth the effort. If they were converted to accept a new penny instead of an old penny, the owner would be accused of exploitation. Although a halfpenny coin was initially available, everybody knew it wouldn't survive more than a few years (it didn't). So decimal currency killed off many of these old machines. Subsequent changing tastes in entertainment, as well as the increasing appeal of foreign holidays, killed of the rest - or so it seemed.
   
   Taken for granted by British people while they were always there, the disappearance of these machines from their traditional locations created a new wave of interest in them. Some have been preserved and such examples provide the material for this book. And some companies have produced reproduction models for collectors, providing further material for the book.
   
   The author acknowledges that he cannot guarantee the complete accuracy of all the information - some is based on a balance of opinion among various experts - but this is the first book to seriously cover this hitherto neglected aspect of British (and a little American) cultural heritage.

3 comments about Cybertronian Index Unofficial Recognition Guide.

1. Credit to the authors for listing all the Transformers. I was hoping that the book would contain detailed pictures and perhaps some backdrop, biography or other interesting information. The only information is what season the particular Transformer first appeared in and what size it is. I say "size" because the pictures are all pictures of the TOYS made in the USA. No artwork. Again, credit to the authors for their thoroughness, but I was hoping for a little more.



2. Before I decided to purchase this book sight-unseen, I had in my possession a different TransFormers recognition guide that one of the co-authors of this guide (Harold Tietjiens) and the same publishing company (Antarctic Press) had put out some time ago. This prior publication featured both color photos and info on several offerings from the first couple series of US-release Gen One TransFormers toys, as well as their technical specifications, various power & skill ratings, and brief description from each figure's original packaging. Also given were pics of the various parts and accessories that came with each toy as well as brief discussions of each toy's Japanese roots, and synopses of the US TV series' first 29 episodes, the US Marvel comic series' first 20 issues, and the four-part G.I. Joe/Transformers crossover comic.
   
   As you might have guessed, I decided to buy this book with the expectation that it would be laid out in pretty much the same manner as the other guide, only expanded and tweaked a bit. Unfortunately, when it finally arrived I found myself highly disappointed-- all this offered were various color photos (in robot & vehicle mode) of every known TransFormer ever released in the US, from Generation One all the way through to Robots in Disguise. Each toy's name was listed in alpha order along with the series it hailed from (Gen One, Gen Two, Beast Wars, etc), the subgroup it belonged to (Constructicon, Dinobot, Headmaster, etc) and its allegiance (Autobot, Decepticon, etc). Other than that, however, there was no further information given, save for the introduction that discusses how the toys were indexed by scale and sub-indexed alphabetically, and a quick-reference table in the back. No Japanese back story, tech specs, or TV show/comic book synopses are given.
   
   Needless to say, the reality was something of a letdown when compared to my expectations. Even my having bought it through an Amazon marketplace dealer at a little over half the original cover price did little to ease my disappointment. And speaking of prices, I found the thirty US smackers they were askin' for this thing to be pretty steep. Even though it's chock-full of color photos and printed on glossy paper stock, it's just not worth that much to me. Perhaps if it were a hardcover rather than a glorified magazine, then it'd likely be a different story. Otherwise, your money would be better spent on a few of the TransFormers toys that are listed in this guide...
   
   `Late



3. This book was meant to be an INDEX to the Cybertronian Manuals. It's an amazing book and is extremely helpful as an INDEX! If you want details on each of the individual TF's, buy the Cybertronian MANUALS! That's what those are for. This book is great for identifying and indexing your Transformers - which it was made to do. I love this book and reference it almost daily because, sadly, I sometimes forget the names of my 2000+ [two thousand plus] Transformer collection. I keep a copy with me at all times. This book is well worth the price and is a great buy - you won't regret this one if you know what it's for. [INDEX!]

3 comments about Collecting Corgi Toys.

1. Great pictures,good descriptions,BUT...no numerical or alphabetical order.Makes it hard to pinpoint a specific vehicle.



2. First,The good news:this is a good quality book,printed on high quality glossy paper.Great colour photos of some Corgi toys.Plenty of reference material.The bad news:not an idea book if you are looking for a book showing photos of all the models.Overall,a reasonable book though.Its worth adding to your diecast book collection.



3. Very confusing book starting with a short presentation of Corgi. Then comes many pages listing short notes about models, these are listed partially by vehicles number but not always chronological, totally confusing and frustrating. No listing of variants, so you would not be helped if you need information about this. (Which is a popular subject among collectors.) Then comes a picture section, that does not match the listing, and also very short description under the pictures. I have used hours to work my way through this booklet just because of this weird non matching listing. In the end, it starts listing up cars again, this section should have been together with the first one and not been split up by the picture section. The pictures was too small and did not show good enough details of details, decals and stickers, as I would expect from a book specializing on Corgi. I cannot recommend this book to anyone, and I regret I bought it.

1 comments about The Mini Rubber Duckie Kit (Mega Mini Kits).

1. Not what I ordered! I did not receive what was pictured! When asked for a refund they didn't respond.

1 comments about Cartoon Figural Toys (Schiffer Book for Collectors).

1. You can buy and read all the other cartoon collectible toy books ever published, but you won't find as many characters or as many figural toys represented in this guide. It is an excellent collection of so many obscure characters, as well as all the major ones. If you collect cartoon toys, especially figural ones, don't pass this one up. It also includes nearly every vinyl figure the company Dakin has every produced. A must for the Dakin collector.

No comments about TV and Film Toys (Crowood Collectors' Series).