Collectibles Books

Jock Elliott captures and relates all of the building blocks that went into making our Christmas holiday what it is--in terms of the way in which we celebrate.

As an ad man, he's got a unique perspective.

Fascinating reading.

This book is such an amazing find! It tells the whole celebration of the Christmas holiday, from it's pre-Christian pagan celebrations, through the 20th century. Particularly interesting is how it became a Christian Holiday a few hundred years after the birth of Christ. But the book also covers how Santa Claus came to be, the history of the Christmas Tree, carols, and a pretty extensive article on Charles Dickens 'A Christmas Carol.'
The author, Jock Elliott, is probably the foremost collector of Christmas memorabelia, and through many color photos has shared some of his extensive collection with us. The man even has his letters to Santa from the 1920's! But, most impressive of all (to me!) is his 'A Christmas Carol' collection. He has a copy of the original first edition from 1843, as well as the original newspaper advertisement for the book from that same year! And, yes, Mr. Elliott shares this with us, too.
I've compared his history of the holiday with other books I own and I feel I can safely say that Mr. Elliott has done his research. His writing style is very entertaining and easy to follow, so the younger set can enjoy this book, too.
All in all, this is one of the most entertaining books I've read on the Christmas holiday. I guess if I had one complaint it would be for Mr. Elliott to maybe add a bit about the Reason for the Season - Jesus Christ.
Very highly recommended.

Saw this book when it was listed with a book I wanted to buy about Christmas and the history of our American traditions. It is a beautiful book with lots of pictures- not alot of written information. Still find it interesting and informative.

Almost all Americans celebrate Christmas but so few of us really know its deep-rooted and ancient origins as well as the origins of so many of the traditions we hold so dear.

In his wonderful book called, Jock Elliott has charted all of this story (and more) with care and good cheer. He reminds us of how recent the Christmas "tradition" is, and how ancient. He tells us, for example, that the Christmas tree is basically a product of the second half of the American 19th century, and can be traced to England. The British royal family - themselves imports from Germany - first pitched such trees in their palatial homes. But the trees, and the rituals of winter celebrations, could themselves be traced all the way back to pagan times and the celebrations of the winter solstice.

We learn about the men who defined Santa claus Including Clement Moore who wrote the "Night Before Christmas", and Thomas nast. Nast was the greatest political cartoonist of the 19th century, perhaps of any American century. During the holiday season of 1862-63, Nast put visual flesh on the poetic bones provided by Moore. In the Jan. 3, 1863, issue of Harper's Weekly, he showed Santa Claus cheering up the battered Union troops. He's wearing striped pants and a shirt spangled with stars. Nast would do a year-end drawing of Santa Claus for each of the following 25 years.

From giving gifts to misletoe, Elliots great book fills us in on the origins of Everything Christmas. Highly Recommended

So far it is a good read,for I have not finished it as of yet

Jade (Fred Ward Gem Book)The pictures in this book are magnificent and show jade--and jade carving at its best! In fact, it is difficult to take your eyes off the pictures long enough to read the text. Readable, not pedantic--the book definitely shows the carvers skill and how the jade speaks to them about what to carve. This book truly shows the one stone that responds to a person's "chi." If you don't believe me, get the book--then buy some really good--not dyed or infused--jade and wear it next to your skin. See . . . I told you.

There are not too many books on Jade, so I'm glad I found this one. It was pretty informative and had very nice photographs illustrating the author's points. It's worth it if you're in the jewelry business and want to know more about jade, and it's good for any jade collector. I found the information to be accurate.

Like all of the Fred Ward Gem Books Series, this is an instant classic. It features National Geographic quality photos, no surprise since Ward has photographed/authored a number of articles for that magazine. My favorite section deals with the jade from Meso-America, used by the Olmec, Mayan and Aztec civilizations. But it also contains much on Burmese and Chinese jade. This is simply an outstanding book. Buy it.

This book is the best Japanese reference book you can own! It identifies swords, dirks, tassels, belt buckles, civilian swords, and pretty much anything else you can think of. This book is a must have for any Japanese sword collector! In fact this book itself is very hard to find and is skyrocking in value. Whatever you have to pay for this book it is worth it, I know I made up for the price with the first purchase I made.

Excellent book for the new or advanced collector. lots of good photos never published info. Clear and concise info on anything you may find at estate sales flea markets or antique shops

This book is very comprehensive and has more information than most books of a similar topic. Great reference material as well as some nice closeup details of rare swords. A MUST HAVE item for anybody that wants to collect Military swords and such. Information of the type included within this book will assist newcomers to buy swords with confidence. Well worth $50 price!!

This is an excellent reference for anyone interested in Japanese swords. The authors have made not only a great handbook, but also one that is easily readable. It is an excellent buying guide in terms of identification, authentication, and evaluation. It also provides great information on sword knots, sword belts, and hangers as well as collecting tips and period photos. Don't go to a show without it! It gives you a knowledge advantage over 90% of the folks selling Japanese military swords. Easily pays for itself with your first treasure find.

I happen to collect various art and photographs of entertainment from the early 1900's to modern times and I've always been interested in others collections of art or photography.

"Japanese Movie Posters" is a book that features posters from various genres such as yakuza, sci-fi and monster, samurai, pink, horror, animation and new cinema and goes further by allowing the reader to have a chance to purchase the book.

Similar to other Cocoro Books (DHP Publishing) releases, this book can be seen as a photobook but you do get commentary for each poster and its respective genre. Also, unlike other recent releases from Cocoro Books, this book is about 8×12 and quite large, featuring large full color photos and more.

The book was written by Chuck Stephens, a contributing editor from "Film Comment" and Jinema Junpo", Masuda Tetsuya, a prdocuer and runs the cinema section at the bookstore @wonder and the final person featured is Kairakutei Black, known as a walking encyclopedia on Japanese films of all genres.

The pages feature a large image of the poster and below the image is the title of the film (in English and Japanese), the film studio and year it was made, the director and how much the poster costs. Then a brief information on the film.

So, an example would bey "Return of the Tokyo Drifter" (Zoku: Tokyo Nagaremono" which was releasd in 1966. It was great to see classic posters like this, that go back in the 60's and the same can be said for other genres featured. Especially for the Sci-Fi films such as Godzilla, Mothra, Gamera and Ultra Man films. Great to see those posters.

As much as the book features straight up movie posters, this book is not for the young as it does contain nudity.

Once you get to the chapter of "Pink" (adult films produced by indie productions), then you do get to see quite a bit of the nudity featured on the posters and it's not full frontal nudity but a lot of the movie posters featured a lot of women nude from the the torso up.

I'm sure one of the biggest attractions of this book will be those who are enamored by anime films. Posters from the 1978 "Farewell Space Battleship Yamamoto", 1979's "The Castle of Cagliostro", 1984 "Urusei Yatsura 2: Beautiful Dreamer" and many Miyazaki film posters are featured. But unfortunately, anime posters are limited to only nine pages and I admit that I was hoping to see posters from the late 70's "Gundam" films, the 1982 "Cobra" film, a few other Miyazaki films and more.

Also, another attraction is the "samurai" posters which seem to be the most expensive in terms of collectability. But if there was one thing I was hoping was that there would be Kurosawa Akira posters featured. I know that the book features films from 1960's and up but I would have loved to see the posters for "Yojimbo" or even "Ran".

As for the category "New Cinema", you get newer films such as Kitano Takeshi films and films that I watched in Japan such as "Odoru Daisousassen" have their posters featured.

And featured at the end of the book is an index in both English and Japanese for those looking for a film poster in this book which was cool to see both featured. And as mentioned, a way for fans to purchase the posters online.

"Japanese Movie Posters" is definitely another welcomed niche book from Cocoro Books. The fact that this company continues to bring niche books that appeal to fans worldwide is great and as much as one can see many film or TV drama posters on the train stations or high above buildings, and many around the Odaiba Fuji TV area, for me, it's always cool to see artwork, photography or posters from a film, especially if it was created before I was born.

I did feel that I wish there were as equal amount of coverage for other genres, especially for the coverage of anime films and wished there were posters for Kurosawa-related films. That would have been awesome to see.

But all in all, the guys did a great job featuring the posters and giving information on the films. And as much as it serves as a visual reference for fans interested in purchasing the posters, it also works as a great entertainment book covering Japanese entertainment within the last 40 years.

Japanese Movie Posters: Yakuza, Monster, Pink And Horror is an eye-opening, full-color presentation of movie posters representational of the best and the worst of Japan's cinema. From lurid and graphic horror to yakuza movies to posters of Hayao Miyazaki's wondrous words of animation, Japanese Movie Posters offers an unforgettable slice of Japanese popular culture in the twentieth century. Brief yet erudite and scholarly commentaries by Chuck Stephens (contributing editor to "Film Comment", a columnist for "Kinema Junpo, and a freelance specialist in Asian cinema for publications worldwide), Tetsuya Masuda (vintage poster expert and head of the cinema section of wonder antiquarian books), and Kairakutei Black (a Japanese film critic and traditional "rakugo" comic storyteller) offer informed and informative insights into the psychology and media background of the individual posters round out this impressive collection. A unique compendium of cinematic poster art, Japanese Movie Posters is a welcome and highly recommended addition to any personal or academic Cinematic Studies reference collection.

I discovered this new book put out by Tokyo-based DH Publishing by accident. And am glad I did. Chock full of full-page full-color posters of the most wonderfully wackiest of Japan's classic movie posters. There's everything from Horror and Monster to Samurai and Ninja, Pink (what they call soft porn) to Anime, and even some new posters thrown in. My best is easily the Sci-Fi genre, which includes the ultimate Ultraman. Also, you gotta check out some of the Monster posters, like Godzilla and some huge Ice Man creature. I bought two of these, as I knew it would make that perfect present when you've run out of ideas what to buy someone. DH Publishing arigato! I'm going to check out their other books. I hope they're as good!

If you buy one book on Japanese cinema this year, this is it. They have done a terrific job of laying out the history of Japanese film in poster format, in correct color no less, with
a lot of useful information for the Japanese film buff, and collector since many of the posters are available to order right from this publication. My only comment is when will their next
book be issued? Enjoy!

This book had exactly what I was looking for. Many beautiful designs of animals from simple to really extravagant. I highly recommend this book to anyone in the jewelry business or who has an interest in gems.

This is a wonderful resource for high end, modern animal jewelry pieces. These are not designs you will find at your local jewelers, and it is probably of limited use to crafts people, but as eye candy it can't be beat.

While brief mention is made of historical pieces, this is really a book about Victorian jewelry to the present. It is a shame that there is not more information about the wonderful animal jewelry of antiquity, but perhaps that will come in another volume.

If you are interested in contemporary and 19th-20th century jewelry design, this book is a steal at the Amazon price.

I FIRST SAW THIS BOOK @ MY LOCAL LIBRARY & BOUGHT IT THE SAME DAY. FULL OF ORIGINAL & MASTERFULLY CRAFTED JEWELRY THIS BOOK IS A MUST FOR ANYONE WHO APPRECIATES ORIGINALITY & ARTISTRY IN JEWELRY DESIGN. I WOULD HAVE PAID MORE FOR IT!

This book is crammed with page after page after page of the most breathtaking animal jewelry by the world's elite designers, such as Verdura. It is amazing to me that the book, printed on high quality paper, retails [at a low price]. The authors have compiled a comprehensive review of jewelry history and photos and if you are a fan of whimsical but elegant design, you'll love this book.

I adore this book! It's an oversize publication which increases the beauty of the photography. The photos of the Duchess'jewelry are breathtaking, and it also provides a full account of the famed auction, including the amounts paid for the jewelry. There are great pictures of celebrities who purchased some of the pieces. There's even a stunning photo of Liz Taylor wearing the Prince of Wales Plume Pin for which she paid over $500,000. It also recounts the story of their lives along with pictures, including copies of newspaper clippings during the abdication. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in Duke and Duchess or the forthcoming auction of the Windsor's household possessions at Sothebys. This book is the jewel in my collection of royal books!

This is a great book on one of the great private jewelry collections of all time. The images in this book are the benchmark for this kind of book and the text is highly informative. The Duchess had impeccable taste and the Duke indulged her at every turn. Not a piece this woman owned was anything but the epitomy of elan and elegance, it was no wonder that her jewel auction brought out royals and the famous, I especially appreciated the breathtaking Prince of Wales feather's broach bought by Elizabeth Taylor, no surprise that this woman of singular taste would buy the best piece from the collection of a lady with dare I say even better taste. Great book, highly recommended.

THE JEWELS OF THE DUCHESS OF WINDSOR 1st edition,is a lush vicarious view of the golden age of royalty. The illustrations are breathtaking, done by some of the world's most famous photographers including Lord Snowdon..a marvelous addition to any collection.

THE JEWELS OF THE DUCHESS OF WINDSOR 1st edition,is a lush vicarious view of the golden age of royalty. The illustrations are breathtaking, done by some of the world's most famous photographers including Lord Snowdon..a marvelous addition to any collection.

From the infamous ant farm to Wooly Willy, this book covers all the hokey and cool toys you probably had if you grew up in the 60s, 70s or even later. The author does a nice job of providing an interesting synopsis of each toy, including its invention, popularity, and success (or lack thereof). There are dozens of obscure facts and stories behind the creation and evolution of these toys, and this book culls them all for us, making it a fun and enjoyable read.

The great thing about this book is that the toys featured include those that most of us had as kids (or at least had a friend who had them): Magic 8 Ball, Slinky (my personal favorite), Mr. Potato Head, Tinkertoys....and the list goes on. This book is great for the kid who never grew up.

This book brings back wonderful memories. As a child it was wonderful playing and experiencing these wonderful toys. As an adult it is wonderful to find out why and how these classic toys came to be. This book is sure to bring a smile to all who read it.

One way in which the thinking processes of successful inventors and entrepreneurs differs from the average person is that they often see a potential masker that others fail to see. Many demonstrations of this ability may be found when reading this delightful little book, Kid Stuff. David Hoffman has assembled the histories of the most familiar toys of our childhood. From the Ant Farm to the Whiffle Ball, he details how they were conceived, perfected, and promoted.

Consider the Slinky. If Richard James, in 1945, had not been intrigued by how a spring he accidentally dropped "walked" across the floor, the story could have ended right there. But be did see a potential. He perfected it, named it, and packaged it. It then died on the vine at the local retail outlet. Again, the story could have ended right there. However, he realized this was a new item and that it had to be demonstrated. When he demonstrated it at Gimbels, he sold 400 in minutes. In the 50 years since, 250 million have been sold!

Three basics in the Slinky story form a common thread that runs through many of these classic toy histories. First, someone sees a potential market; secondly, a dynamite trade name is created; thirdly, clever marketing is utilized.

Often the opportunity is in plain sight and, in fact, may have been for some time. Hoffman points out that it is said that the Yo-Yo is actually the second-oldest known toy (after dolls). Yet it remained for Donald Duncan, in 1927, to see the possibilities. Further confirmation that some people do look at the world differently may be had by noting that Duncan also invented the parking meter and introduced the Good Humor "ice cream on a stick."

An example of a mental process utilizing analogical thinking may be seen in the history of the Erector Set. Back in 1911, A. C. Gilbert observed girders being assembled for an electric system along the railroad line he frequently traveled. Realizing kids love to assemble things (wood blocks, etc.), he put together a toy kit consisting of girders, gears, pulleys, etc.

This power of observing the obvious and seeing the not so obvious is again shown in the history of Mr. Potato Head. George Lerner noticed how children love to play with their food. Who has not? He utilized the observation to create Mr. Potato Head. Incidentally, "Mr. Potato Head was the first toy to ever be advertised on television." The story recites how the toy has been adapted to the times. His pipe was eliminated and the last pipe given to the Surgeon General at the Great American Smokeout. Responding to safety regulation they increased the size of its pasts and made them less sharp. As Hoffman notes, the current Mr. Potato Head may surprise nostalgic parents, but he is still loved by the kids.

Another example of how a toy was adapted to the times is Antonio Pasin's original wagon, "Liberty Coaster," of 1923. It was made of wood and it was followed by the classic little red wagon, "Radio Flyer," made of steel. It was called "Flyer" to emphasize motion and "Radio" to honor the Italian inventor of radio.

If for no other reason, read this book to satisfy your curiosity as to how the classic toys came to be. How Paul Guillow created the balsa wood airplane industry. How a toy store owner and a marketing consultant created Silly Putty---it floundered until a mention in the New Yorker magazine resulted in orders for a quarter-million and it's sales has since reached the 200-million mark!

This book is jammed packed with toy trivia. Largest-selling football in the world? Nerf football. Barbie Doll's last name? Roberts.

Viktor Budnik's photographs for this book are terrific. They make this little book look good enough for your coffee table. But best of all, even your kids will enjoy this book and, perhaps, pick up on the idea that behind each toy there was a real person who took an idea from the dream world and brought it into the real world.

These guys have put together a tremendous walk down memory lane. If you want to know the secrets behind your favorite childhood toys (as well as be reminded about how much fun they were)...buy this book. Set it out on a coffee table at your next party, and you are guaranteed an evening of fun reminiscing.

This book is more than fun reading...it is childhood joy recaptured.

Yo pude conseguir una edicion de Lalique Perfume Bottles
by GLENN UTT, y me siento feliz por tenerlo y disfrutar de tanta belleza convertida en cristal. Ojala se actualice.
Contacteme para intercambiar comentarios.
Saludos, Maria

Yo pude conseguir una edicion de Lalique Perfume Bottles
by GLENN UTT, y me siento feliz por tenerlo y disfrutar de tanta belleza convertida en cristal. Ojala se actualice.
Contacteme para intercambiar comentarios.
Saludos, Maria

Soy coleccionista de botellas de perfume de Lalique, he oido hablar del libro "Lalique Perfume Bottles", escrito por Glenn and Mary Lou Utt. Siento mucho que esté agotado, podrían ayudarme a conseguir un ejemplar? Los comentarios de Michael Trenteseau indican que es un verdadero conocedor del arte del cristal Lalique, me comunicaré con él. La colección iniciada en 1994 para su propia fragancia Lalique es preciosa, espero con ansiedad y mucha curiosidad por ver la próxima. Yo las tengo todas, gracias al amor de mi familia, que cada año me la regalan. Estoy interesada en conseguir libros relacionados con el arte del cristal Lalique. Espero la nueva edición de este libro en especial.

"Lalique Perfume Bottles" by Glenn and Mary Lou Utt is the definitive book on the work of the Lalique in one of the most important aspects of the family's design history. Rene Lalique designed the bottle for "l'Effleurt" for Francois Coty, originating the concept of a specific bottle designed for a single fragrance. Lalique later produced bottles that would house any of Coty's dozens of scents, but the concept of individuality in presentation was born in 1907.

The book is thorough in its descriptions and its pictures. Every flacon mentioned is illustrated, and there is a table in the back which lists them all as well.

There are two drawbacks to the first edition: There are some errors - pieces listed that are not in fact by Lalique, and some older designs have come to light. Much of this was dealt with in an addendum given to attendees at the International Perfume Bottle Collector convention in Atlanta in 1991, which may or may not be available elsewhere.

The second drawback is that it was written in 1990, before a boom in perfume bottle collecting, which included the release of Lalique's own fragrance in 1994.

Bringing the first edition up to date would mean including the changes made in 1991, and adding more recent designs. Fortunately, other than the colored stoppers of the classic double dove bottle for "L'air du Temps," the only new styles are those produced by Lalique either for their main crystal line, or for their own four fragrances.

I hope that the book is updated, I will be eager to add it to my collection.

The bandwith of this book is impressive. The photos are better than the narrative, but this book contains some interesting surprises.

This books shows you the lighters and gives a history of the lighter company. Many lighters. It doesn't give values of lighters, but its practically an encyclopedia on lighters..

A must for every collector.

Ad's book includes phantastic photography and an interesting concept regarding matching the things. The focus is not the jewel stuff one can always find in such books. It is the reflection of pure fascination of lighters, their history, function and the thrill of fire making history. Most important is the fact that the book adresses to the NON-collector as well as to the collector but more to the former. People that do not know anything about the subject will be fascinated by it. Although I am a collector I always read it again and again.

The second, all-color updated edition of Peter Winnewisser's THE LEGENDARY MODEL A FORD: THE ULTIMATE HISTORY OF ONE OF AMERICA'S GREAT AUTOMOBILES provides fans of Henry Ford with a close inspection of the history of his 1920s masterpiece the Model A. Period literature, color photos, dealer material, and anecdotes blend in a lively story which picks up where his first edition left off, providing some of the best photos of the last surviving Model As on the road, complimented by stories of the people who built and drove them. Nearly two hundred color photos blend with source material and references culled from the auto industry to make for an extraordinary keepsake.

History interests me and I'm restoring my 1931 Model A station wagon, so when I discovered Winnewisser's book I was excited to get it. I rarely buy books, and normally wait for the County Library system to purchase those that I might like to read. Thinking that a book like this might not have a wide audience, so the Library might not acquire it, I decided to fork out the money for it, and I'm glad I did. This is a good book and I enjoyed it quite a bit, reading it in three or four sittings. I lent it to my father, who grew up when Model As were on the street and drove the wagon for thirty-five years or so before giving it to me, and he liked the book, too.

That said, this book could have been better. First, Winnewisser needs an editor. The language is fine and the book is quite understandable, but it contains obvious errors. The caption under the engine photograph on page 9 is typical: it misidentifies the cutout that sits on top of the generator as a generator. On page 220 another caption misidentifies an 1930 station wagon as a 1929 model. Ford made substantial changes in the the Model A body lines between 1929 and 1930, as a reader can see by looking at the 1929 station wagon shown on page 77. When I looked at that photograph, I thought the car must have been made for use in England, as it has right-hand steering. Closer examination - the women are shaking left hands and the man's pocket square is on the wrong side of his suit coat - indicates the photograph is reversed. In discussing sales to its dealers, Winnewisser writes on page 197 that Ford adopted a twenty-two percent discount effective February 6, 1931, and then adds parenthetically that this discount was in effect at the River Rouge plant "as early as November 10, 1931." Is he saying the Rouge instituted a dealer discount 9 months after Ford adopted it, or did he use the wrong year? Good editing could clear up this confusion and the errors I cite above, and would make the book even more enjoyable.

Winnewisser did a lot of research for this book and brings out new subject matter (for me, at least). For example, I was surprised to learn that Ford not only employed African-Americans on the assembly line (as opposed to relegating these men to more menial work), but that blacks supervised white workers in some cases. There are some things that are not in Winnewisser's book. I would have been interested to see visual side-by-side comparisons of the different models and differences between standard and deluxe models. I would have appreciated more information on the making of parts and the painting and assembly of automobiles, since the assembly line was Ford's great innovation, albeit twenty-five years prior the period depicted in this book. I would have liked to have seen a little more information on Ford's AA commercial trucks. Some of this information is available elsewhere, but I would have expected to see it in a book subtitled "the ultimate history of one of America's great automobiles."

These criticisms aside, I'm glad Winnewisser took the time to research and write this book, and to include a bibliography so that I can look for more details when I have a mind to do that. I'm recommending the book to the folks in my Model A Ford Club of America chapter, and to other friends who I think might enjoy a history of another America in another time. I recommend it to anyone who reads this review.

This book does an excellent job of covering the history of the Model A! A great read because it goes beyond the historical and touches on the actual social feel of the car and the times. Filled with fun facts and antecdotes! I would recommed it to any history or antique car buff!

Pictures (B/W) and history of the production of the Model A Ford for all 4 years. Like "The Ford Model A, As Henry Built It", but the entire book (272 pages) is dedicated to the history of the Model A production. Haven't seen any other book which covers this stuff in this detail. Great pictures and images of original Ford documents.