Collectibles Books

This book in itself is a work of art. As busy mom, I find it so relaxing to sit with this book after the kids are in bed and just let the beautiful photographs and interesting interviews take me away to another place!

Both the introduction and the poetry selections of this inspired book are the perfect platform from which the selected artworks will leap straight into your heart. A wonderful book.

This work by Carolyn Bardos provides a beautiful presentation (writing, illustrations and layout)describing Hungarian ceramics. I found the interviews with contemporary ceramic artists extremely interesting and helpful in gaining appreciation of the subject.

Earthen Wonders by Carolyn M. Bardos is an extraordinary book. The author put out a call for entries and before she received a single response, decided to publish every slide that turned up in her mailbox. The result is not only a non-elitist look at art and book publishing--but the collection of work is astounding. Some of the art represented is by people who have never exhibited. Not only is this book refreshing, as so many ceramic publications feature the same artists repeatedly, but it also shows how people--not famous people--make art. Most of the book is devoted to large color reproductions and the text toward the back, delves into salient issues effecting the artists' work and life. Finally, this book is a is wonderful respite from the common American crafts-fair aesthetic. Earthen Wonders is a rare treasure and a real bargain for the price!

Refreshing to find an author who is comfortable in being different;she lets the artists speak about their passion. No formula here, just an ecclectic collection of beautiful ceramics.

This is another useful research book, like all the ones that I've seen in this series, it's a valuble source for pictures of middle class, everyday clothes. It has pictures of women's accessories and shows some men's and children's clothes, which many period fashion books tend to ignore. Highly practical book for theatrical costumers.

I have to agree with the other reviewers. Modern fashion tends to look "dumbed down". I've owned this book for some time and refer to it often. Not to copy, necessarily; but to find inspiration. There are clothes available that still look "classic". Many of the original Sears pictures were in color but are reproduced here in b&w. Many of the reproductions have an overly fuzzy look. I suppose that's why the book is only $15 instead of 2 or 3 times as much. The Schiffer Sears series has sharp color images but you pay twice as much. You could buy the original Sears catalogs on eBay (I have a few) for even more. Your choice. This book will give you a good overview of the fashion changes during the decade and you can take it from there. Also of note are the accessories. A New Deal/FDR watch! A Buck Rogers watch! This isn't camp, either, but back in the days when this was serious stuff. Highly recommended!

I own four books in this 'Searies' (Twenties, Thirties, Forties, Fifties) and I cannot recommend them highly enough. They are jam-packed with a great mix of pictures in good proportion which show the morphing of fashions over the decade(s). Dominant are women's clothing (formal, casual, dresses, hats, coats, shoes, with some undergarments, sportswear, nightwear, swimwear). Then there are smatterings of accessories (handbags, watches, gloves, powder compacts, belts, jewelry). Also some menswear and a small amount of childrenswear. All clothing is being worn.

All pictures are black and white and have a certain (pleasant) level of graininess. What you get are the original pictures, prices and descriptions from the catalogs. There is only a very small amount of introductory material (just a one page 'Publisher's Note' for the Thirties).

Changes over the series:
The transition from drawings (all very good and realistic) to photos occurs in the Thirties.
The variety of accessories appearing in the Twenties is largely reduced by the later decades (Fifties almost exclusively clothing and hats with some shoes).

There's only one problem with these catalogs...you can't order the contents!

Purchased this book soon after it was published in a Baltimore art museum.

Modern Fashions and hairstyles today reveal absolute mediocrity. No style. No class. More to offend the eye than to please. Trousered females with short cropped hair and men whose hair is unkept wearing garments ill made. Swimsuits that leave nothing to the imagination worn by people who one just wishes were not visable because they keep themselvs as they do their awful cloths.

This book is a treat to the eye. Wonderful cloths that show modern apparel was not alawys the norm.

For the student of History this book is a valuable source of information on the cloths of the period, for which I purchased my copy. No scoloarly work but merely taken from the Sears catalogs of the time. Undergarments and accessories, shoes to hats, everything is shown here.

If you want a comprehensive book that immerses you in the world of fashion from the thirties, this is the one. It is authentic and beautifully laid out and depicts numerous costume items from the thirties, though mostly focusing on women. The pictures depict everything from dresses to shoes, hats to gloves; the women's hairstyles, makeup, undergarments, and overall looks give the reader the most authentic possible view of fashion and the aesthetic ideals of the time. The catalogue also shows the prices and features descriptions that include fabric and color. There are some pictures of men's and children's fashions. This book is thorough and unbelievably beautiful. The whole series of Sears catalogue fashions by decade is amazing. I recommend them all!

I am very happy with this book. It tells me about all the fishing lures made back when adam was a boy....

We are generally disappointed in sequels but this 2nd edition IS AN EXCEPTION. The hobby's rarest and unusual Lures are pictured in vivid color with a short history. Set this one on your coffee table and your guests are instantly "hooked". If you are a collector or simply enjoy angling history, this one is definitly a "MUST HAVE"...

This book is really gorgeous on the outside and even more so on the inside. It has in depth descriptions of the different types of lures and their parts and gives great incite on how to date such lures and parts. The print is is large and bold and the color pictures are stunningly printed on heavy bond glossy paper. There are pictures throughout the book of just about every lure imaginable. I promise you will not be disappointed.

This reference has been a great tool for us. We collect antique lures and have learned what to look for and what it's worth. We have found just about every lure in our collection in this book. Would reccomend to anyone with the hobby!

Well done! I use this book constantly. Well illustrated and good discriptions.

For all of us that enjoy the "hunt", this is a fun and interesting book. The pictures are enjoyable and the information is helpful. There is good information on yearly sales, along with how to locate, etc.

Littlefield hit the nail on the head for me. He gets the same joy, excitement and invigoration out of saling that I do. It's about the people, the atmosphere, the search for treasure, the negotiating, the win (or loss). These adventures are all wrapped up in wonderful little 5 to 20 minute nibbles of life. Almost 100% of my experiences are positive and I can recall many of them years later when I look at a vase, a painting or some other treasure I have acquired..

Bottom line, for Christmas I made a list of those who share my passion, those who wonder about my passion and those few who think I am off my rocker. I went on line and bought a bunch. Christmas shopping over.

Buying retail in this case was done with joy.

All who have received the book from me have given it a great review too.

If you feel you've exhausted every garage sale in your area and you realize you've visited the same sales four years in a row, then you might want to expand your usual boundaries and consider branching out to other states. If so, you can't do much better than this book, which includes a calendar of some of the more noteworthy sales across the country, as well as other major garage sales. You might consider bringing a U-haul along with you if you have a tendency to go overboard and buy everything in sight.
If you like this one, you might also consider:

Garage Sale & Flea Market Annual (Garage Sale and Flea Market Annual)

In Hawaii, HANA HOU is an expression you will hear often....it means, once more, do it again, encore, repeat, one more time...... and so it is with items found in garage sales, yard sales, church bazaars, tag sales, estate sales.....any kind of hana hou sale..... Just because someone is finished with that rocker, it doesn't mean that its life has to end right then.... There can still be one more round left to that old rocking chair!

What your neighbor down the street considers trash can definitely be your treasure....and that is the message that Bruce Littlefield conveys in his newly published book, "Garage Sale America".

From tips scattered throughout the book on how to plan your strategies for your hunt to how to use the treasures after you get them home, and ending with a useful (and amusing) Garage Sale Glossary, this little book can serve as a handy and entertaining manual on how to unashamedly romp through the detritus of other people's lives and score while you're at it!

The perfect gift for those who love to hunt for treasures, whether they are the type who grab the newspaper every single weekend and mark all the sales down, planning their trips by neighborhood....or the occasional shopper who stops on a whim every time they see a "Yard Sale" sign along the road....or the ones such as myself who mark the annual church bazaars down on my calendar....for all of us to whom the thrill is as much in the hunt as in finding that special deal!

There is no stigma attached to finding a bargain in someone else's discards....in fact, the feeling of satisfaction, the ... elation, if you will, when you find just the right item or that last piece of china that will complete the set you started years ago, is hard to describe.

After spending one evening reading this fun and enjoyable book, I started looking around my own home to see what around me could be considered 'found treasures'....and have to admit that a bit less than half was either bought at yard, garage, church bazaar sales or, the best yet, items found through our local Freecycle network or even at the "transfer station" - the PC name for our local dump, ......completely free!

If you love to go yard saling,....if you love to find a bargain,.... if you're looking for the thrill of the deal... you will definitely enjoy reading Bruce's book.

A couple of personal notes: I loved the idea of the seller who invites his best customers (read: bigger spenders), to breakfast before his sales every year for, as Bruce puts it "cranking up the adrenalin while you wait for the unveiling".....and don't miss meeting Wini. I won't tell you where to find her. You will have to hunt through the book yourself!

I have a chronic case of disposophobia, or at least that's how Bruce Littlefield would diagnose it. I can't bear to part with old photographs, worn-out running shoes, and a frog collection I've had since college. My favorite store is Finders Keepers, or was, that is, until the local antique shop closed and I bought out half the inventory.

So when my copy of Littlefield's Garage Sale America arrived in the mail, you can imagine where I put it--on top of a great big stack of books I have yet to read, some old, some new.

It wasn't long before its cover cried out to me with its retro colors, Bakelite radio, and funky leopard hat.

I scoured the photo-filled paperback for advice on everything from enamel-top tables to fishing lures and reeled in a lot more information than I bargained for, like tips on decorating, where to find some really hot wheels, and how to run a successful sale. I'm even learning to deal with my affliction, described in the book's glossary as "Disposophobia: the fear of getting rid of stuff, no matter how worthless or how valuable."

Some books may come and go, but Garage Sale America is definitely a keeper.

All other books about GI Joe take note: You have just been left in the dust. Michlig's authoritative and highly readable GI Joe: The Complete Story of America's Favorite Man of Action is the best single source of information about the origin of GI Joe that exists. Colorful anecdotes illuminate this exhaustively informative, definitive work about America's Movable Fighting Man. It belongs on the bookshelves of everyone interested in the history of playthings.

Richard C. Levy
Washington, D.C.

A great read for the hardcore collector or the novice.

Full of great insider info and eye watering photographs.

Excellent review of the life and times of America's Moveable Fighting Man. Especially interesting are the details of the conception and behind-the-scenes work in creating the prototype figure and marketing concept, an aspect of the story that may interest even non-Joe devotees. Collectors may wish to note that this is a much-expanded (and therefore more essential) version of the slender book included with the G. I. Joe Masterpiece Edition boxed figure.

Don't confuse this book with the "GI Joe collector's guides" that exist in various forms. This is a different animal - - gripping, well-written nonfiction, telling the story of a small family-owned business and its leap of faith on a brand new type of toy for boys, the now-ubiquitous "action figure."

The story of the GI Joe product illuminates the story of the toy industry itself. I found this look inside the process of bringing a product to market and maintaining its value over the course of decades fascinating.

I don't normally give a Five Star rating, but my god, this book is wonderful. The story is fun and indepth. The design is AMAZING and the images of the GI JOE figures are wonderfully shot.

If you have even a slight, passing interest in GI JOE, buy this book, you won't be dissappointed!

The Hallmark Keepsake value guide was vary informative and well laid out
it is a pleaser using it. I would not hesitate buying another value guide for the year 2010.

Thank you for providing such a product.

I think this book is a great way to keep track of my Hallmark Ornaments and give me a current value of each one. However, because values change from year to year, it could be a lot of work transferring them to a new book each year. I think every couple of years would be fine to keep track of what you have unless you purchase numerous ornaments every year. I would, however, like to know where the values come from. If the values listed are to sell, I don't think you could get the amount stated. However, if it's for insurance reasons, I think it would be a great book to have.

I just love this book. It gives you a picture for all ornaments, including miniature ornaments too. Plus, other specialty hallmark products. The book also gives you a market value of the ornament and is nicely organized. I would recommend this book for the novist collector and the serious collector!

This book lists all Hallmark ornaments in pictures and prices. It is
helpful to find some of my ornaments and know their value. I would
recommend it to any collector of Hallmark.

This guide is very useful for determining insurance values for a person's ornament collection. It is not as useful for determining sale prices as sale prices almost never equal value guide prices. It is easy to use and has good pictures of virtually every ornament and merry miniature Hallmark has produced. I highly recommend it to any serious collector.

Widely covered mid-century master pieces by famous designers. If you are interested in vintage furnitures, this would be your great guide.

Excellent text as well as photos. It has been a collector's reference for me for years now.
Highly recommended.

My sister has just bought a 1950's ranch home with some original features. I was hoping this book would help celebrate the house and give some ideas as to decor. Instead, it is a good overview of the furniture designers who influenced the furniture of the time. It's nice, but not what I was looking for, which was the physical living space/furnishings of the middle class of the 50's.

Not that it ever really went away, but it appears that the GEN-X crowd is interesting in filling their lofts, condos, etc. with a touch of class and history. Those in the design know have always favored the elements of design that existed in the 50's and 60's, like they say good design is truly timeless. It would have been nice to see more coverage on DUNBAR and Edward Wormley.

This is a great book - buy it!

This is a wonderful coffee table book, a joy to browse through. It is profusely illustrated and contains a wealth of information.
If you like modern design I also suggest to visit the wonderful online archive about George Nelson at WWW.GEORGENELSON.ORG and also the museum archive from Verner Panton at WWW.VERNERPANTON.COM

I have one and will give you information on the Hummel Silk Carpet.(The Book lacks this information)
On the back is a tag stitched to it saying:

M.J. Hummel
ORIGINAL HUMMEL SILK CARPET
HANDKNOTTED IN BEIJING, CHINA.

ARS AG, ZUG, SWITZERLAND

LIMITED EDITION :10 /50

Also there is a tag attached to the SILK CARPET written in both Chinese and English
ZHE JIANG SILK RUG

I am giving this information because the book does not have a picture of this HUMMEL SILK CARPET and not sure about the information I just posted.
VALUE UNKNOWN but it is Very Beautiful

not only is this a complete guide -- but it is so easy to use -- anyone owning or buying Hummel's should have this -- I only wish I could find Guides like this for my other collectables --

This book is very well illustrated, well layed-out, easy to use, and the pictures are very beautiful. It's full of information, explains more than I expected, and it is a MUST for Hummel collectors.

I have all, since the first publication, of Robert Miller's Price Guide to MI Hummel Figurines, Plates, Miniatures and More.
Mr. Miller has all the knowledge one would expect & want to find in his books after much research and many trips to Germany to gain this knowledge. This is THE HUMMEL BIBLE! I highly recommend this book to all Hummel collectors or to anyone interested in the collecting of fine arts. Very well written with explicit details about Sister MI Hummel's life in Massing, Germany & her schooling. Each known Hummel is pictured & tells of the Master Artist who molded each three dimentional figurine from the drawings by Sister beginning in the 1930's to the present TMK markings. A great investment for Insurance purposes when appraising your figurines by The Hummelking!

Even though it's proclaimed by expert collectors as the absolute source of information about Hummel figurines, Robert Miller's reference work is easy for amateurs as well. He provides insightful guidance in determining value and quality as well as interesting tidbits about production and variations in the figurines. His work is referenced by many sellers in internet auctions, but is also helpful in figuring out just what you already have. As a rank beginner, I had no problem in following his material and ascertaining the value of an inherited collection. It was also useful in helping me determine additions that I wanted to make to the collection.

As of 13 May 2008 I was told by the Revere Academy that it will be another two years before the next edition of this wonderful book will be available....sigh. I worked from this book at a jewelry school in Manhattan and have been searching for it ever since. Another two years for the next edition is going to be way too long for this budding jeweler! I wish Alan would put it out to a bigger printing firm as I am convinced any amount of stock would fly off the shelf in no time at all as there is no other book of this calibre worth buying!

This book is excellent. No need to buy used. As of November 15, 2007, Alan Revere's website informs "This book is currently out of print. Look for the expanded and revised edition with 5 new chapters, new layout and larger photographs. Coming soon!" The price is about $70.

This is a well written project book in jewellery. The projects are detailed and well photographed, but not a book for the beginner. If you require books on methods and technical information I recommend 'Jewelry Concepts & Technology' by Oppi Untracht and 'Theory and Practice of Goldsmithing (Jewelry Crafts)'by Erhard Brepohl, which are better value for money.

This book is a gem. Pun intended. Gorgeous photographs and concise instructions combine to give the reader a lovely and interesting assistance into the complex world of goldsmithing , which Alan Revere knows initmately.
I especially appreciate the glossary and tool descriptions, which serve to beautifully strengthen both novice and veteran metal artists' cognitive arsenal. Wonderful beautiful volume, destined to be a classic for generations of fine jewelers and goldsmiths. Thank You Alan!!!

1st off a new edition is on the way with lots of new photos and 5 new chapers so don't get fleeced buying an over priced used copy.

Meanwhile, This is the single best choice for the intermediate to advanced jewler and even a beginner can learn much. Great step by step that is written so one can jump in a process and glean a specific skill without making the entire piece.

I've been making jewelry such as featured in this book for over 17 years and am a book hound. All the others are fighting it out for 2nd place as this rules the roost!

Can't wait for the new edition. Hurry up Alan!

Regards,

Wow, what a book!! I wish all engines had this much technical data and pictures.

This book is incredibly detailed, with many rare illustrations.
Graham White has done a thorough and interesting history of this
fabulously complex engine. Plus, his history of Allied Aircaft
Engines of WW2 is highly recommended.

I would recommend this book unreservedly. If you are at all interested in the history, development, production and usage of these amazing engines and the aircraft they powered, this is an investment you won't regret. I'm on my second read through and still being amazed at the info.

Graham White's book on P&W's R-4360 is a fine and thorough study of one of the greatest aeronautical piston engines ever produced. If you are at all interested in the general subject of aircraft engines, or even engines generally, you should obtain a copy to read and enjoy studying and savoring it slowly over the months after you first go through it. The text is clear and it is well illustrated, all that a book on an aircraft engine should be. My only quibble, and it is a quibble, is that the down-draught inlet ports, a distinct feature of the R-4360, have a much longer history than Mr. White seems to indicate, having been used by BMW in sportscar engines in the 1930s and by Miller in racing engines even earlier; however, since these examples are drawn from outside his field of study, Mr White may be excused, and even were this not the case, the general quality of this work would win him praise not criticism.

Graham White's monumental "R-4360: Pratt & Whitney's Major Miracle" is a comprehensive history of the largest, most powerful, most complex and most sophisticated aircraft piston engine ever built. The 28-cylinder, 3,500-horsepower-plus "Wasp Major" was truly the epitome of aircraft piston engine development. The big four-row radial pushed the engineering state-of-the-art in materials, cooling systems, ignition technology, manufacturing processes and many other areas. But, to the dismay of round-engine fans everywhere, it was also a dead-end. By the time P&W's famous "corncob" engine reached its full potential in the early 1950s, the new jet engines had taken both military and civilian aircraft markets by storm. There was no longer a need for big, heavy, noisy, temperamental piston engines.

This book is definitely not for everyone. If you are not of a technical persuasion, and if you don't enjoy poring over engineering drawings with literally nuts-and-bolts details of complicated pieces of machinery, then you should probably pass on this volume. If you're not interested in learning about the intricacies of intake and exhaust valve timing, turbosupercharger plumbing and carburetor design for this big radial engine, then you should probably look elsewhere for reading material. But if you are a confirmed technophile, and if incredibly detailed cutaway and exploded-view drawings make you salivate, then look no further--"R-4360: Pratt & Whitney's Major Miracle" is the book for you.

In addition to the R-4360's development history, Mr. White includes exhaustive descriptions of all the aircraft that used the engine--aircraft such as the Martin AM-1 "Mauler," the Convair B-36 "Peacemaker," the Northrop XB-35 "Flying Wing" and Howard Hughes' infamous "Hercules" seaplane, better known as the "Spruce Goose." The information is all here, sometimes in overwhelming detail. For example, there are 80 pages of specification sheets covering each and every version of the R-4360 ever designed or produced. With its hundreds of clear, sharp photographs and drawings, this book is a veritable gold mine of esoteric but interesting information.

It's big, it's thick, it's heavy, it's a little intimidating and it's not to be absorbed in a single sitting, but "R-4360: Pratt & Whitney's Major Miracle" is a valuable work of great significance and unique depth. I recommend it without reservation as the definitive chronicle of American aviation's largest, most powerful piston engine.