Collecting Books

This book is the size of a coffee table book, but you can actually read it and learn something. It is difficult to find a good history of the phonograph, especially the business history of how it developed. This book fills the bill. It also features a large number of clear photographs so you will know what the author is talking about. If you are interested in antique talking machines, or need a good coffee table book, this is a good choice.

Nice color photos, easy read although there is so much information and names, one can get confused on who is who and what company they started and worked for. Covers the complete history of the phonograph and the records that play on it. Explains how it came about, all the patent wars between people and technology that changed the phonograph early on. Nice sized book, easy to handle, easy read. Beautiful color photos of phonographs of all types. Lots of information. Worth having if you love old phonographs.

This is truly a remarkable book. If you are interested in the subject of phonographs and how they got started then this is the book for you. It is filled with the history of the phonograph. Especially interesting was the story of how Nipper the dog came about. You can't go wrong with this book.

The Talking Machine: An Illustrated Compendium is an extraordinarily well-assembled collection of nuts-and-bolts information, fascinating anecdotes, and gorgeous photography. Those who are familiar with this subject will find as a great a plunder of knowledge as those who are just beginning their education. The book traces the invention, evolution and maturation of the mechanical "Talking Machine," variously known popularly as the phonograph, gramaphone, graphophone, victrola, etc., depending on manufacturer. We learn of the birth of this amazing instrument in the hands of Thomas Edison's labratory cronies, its period of idleness immediately afterward and its re-birth and "perfection" some ten years later. We follow the incredible and relentless period of patent lawsuits. Learn who among the famous helped "make" the invention with their visits to the recording studio. Discover the many small firms in the Chicago area which sprang up and were often as not just as quickly snuffed out by the "Big Three": National Phonograph (Edison), Victor Talking Machine, and Columbia. The well-presented text is sumptuously augmented with an amazing collection of beautiful color photographs. This book is not cheap at $70, but would be worth twice the amount in the invaluable information given!

I SAW THIS BOOK ADVERTISED IN ANOTHER PISTOL BOOK I HAVE. IT IS ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT!!! BETTER THAN ADVERTISED

This is not just a book about toy cap pistols, it is a time machine. Not only does Mr. D'angelo present the cap pistols of our youth but he reveals the actors who played the part on television. A fact filled, exhaustive research of a love he shares with us. I had forgotten many of the toys he describes. Each page brought back memories of a childhood where honor and truth was the spoken word of the cowboy. So fans of the 50's and 60's westerns, return to those thrilling days of yesteryear when all boys wore their six shooters with pride and rode into the sunset.....

MR. D'ANGELO HAS BROUGHT A WEALTH OF PERSONAL KNOWLEDGE AND WARMTH ON THE SUBJECT INTO HIS WRITING; HE HAS COMPLETELY AND EXHAUSTIVELY RESEARCHED THE BACKGROUNDS OF ALL OF THE CHARACTERS AND THE WEAPONS, AND DISCUSSES THEM WITH OPEN FAMILIARITY. FOR THOSE RAISED DURING THE 50'S AND 60'S, THIS IS A TRIP DOWN TV AND THE MOVIES'S MEMORY LANE. THIS BOOK IS OBVIOUSLY A LABOR OF LOVE, AND IT TRULY SHOWS. A GREAT ADDITION TO ANY COLLECTOR'S LIBRARY, AND GREAT FOR THE NOSTALGIA BUFFS!

A masterpiece of research and delivery. This is a book I keep out and enjoy referring to every time I watch a western on TV. The unexpected benefit from this book occurs when friends notice it on the table. I thought I knew everything about people I have known for years, but this book starts conversations into childhood favorites that are truly enlightening and very enjoyable. A must have for anyone who has every watched a TV western of owned a cap gun.

It is very much to the credit of the MFA that such fine catalogue ise published. This collection of works collected by William Koch reflects the personal taste of the collector but also of the museum. Wisely, this catalogue is lead by good essays. The photographs accompany the texts in appropriate places. But the overwhelming part of the book is the art itself. These are paintings of fine quality. The reader makes refreshing discoveries on almost every page. This is an historically important, aesthetically rewarding book that deserves audience.

This book is a well written and researched overview of one man's remarkable collection. What distiguishes this collection from so many others of today is the clearly individual stamp of the collector-the works are diverse, from guns to Picasso but everything in it is of the finest quality. Here is a collection worthy of the appellation outstanding.

Michael Carr,
Sydney, Australia.

Things I Love: The Many Collections Of William I. Koch presents the holdings of a cultural benefactor who has been an important financial resource and collector of the world's most valuable art objects. Koch is internationally known as an engineer, businessman and sailor - and he's also a collector of fine art, wine and firearms of world-class origins. His collection holds such famous names as Monet, Renoir, Degas, Remington and more, and THINGS I LOVE surveys the nature and extent of his vast collection, packing full-page color photos on every page.

It isn't often that you run across an exhibition catalog that
is both an excellent record of an exhibition and a very enjoyable art book. This book chronicles the collections of
William I. Koch, someone with the financial resources, taste,and knowledge to assemble a very fine collection of
varied items. The exhibition took place at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts in 2005.

Most museum collections have items that have been acquired from personal collections whether from a donation or a bequest from an estate. It isn't often that a museum will have a collection of a living person, and one that is so varied.

Mr. Koch has wide interests, from racing yachts ( won the America's cup)to collecting fine art and paintings, to collecting Marine art, to collecting old west guns and memorabilia, to fine wines. Amongst his amazing wine collection are some original unopened bottles of wine from Thomas Jefferson's estate.

In the book you'll see his collections in there original settings, his estates in Palm Beach Florida, and Osterville,
Cape Cod. There is the stunning collection of art with pieces by Dali, Magrite, Picasso, Matisse, Degas. Bronzes by Remington and western art. There is the marine art collection with pieces that represent his famous ancestor
Captain Lawrence from the war of 1812.

In short this is a very pleasurable book to read and own, something that will always be fun to look through over the years.

In this excellent book,Philipp Bloom tackles a subject that knows no bounds.Anyone who has been a collector of anything knows what a madness collecting can become. Blom covers the subject from the earliest days ,when the idea of collecting was only something that was in the world of the extremely rich and powerful;and covers how through history it has changed to become a pursuit by anyone and at any level;and with the objects being collected being endless.
Over and over again ,throughout the book ;we see that no matter how great and extensive a collection is;the owner of the collection must face the reality of death,and the collection of objects must pass on as well.The book is loaded with maxims that apply to all collecting;

Just a couple are;

"In order to take objects out of circulation or to devote oneself to finding useless things,one has to be able to afford the time and resources to do so."

"The most important object of a collection is the next one."

"Whatever we collect,we have to kill."

"Can one be a collector without collecting?"

"Show me your library and I'll tell you who you are."

"Every passion borders on chaos,that of the collector on the chaos of memory."

"Those who own more find dying harder."

Reading this book is somewhat like visiting "The Smithonion";but only having a couple of hours to do so.It is well written,so it is still a pleasure.It is filled with interesting stories,unbelievable pursuits,amazingly addicted people,and something new,interesting and different on every page.
In the last 200 years,collecting has changed so much that it is something that can ,and is, taken up by the "common man" There are no rules and no limits as to what can be collected;and the only limits are time and imagination. Of course,money can be an issue,but not a necessity.
One of my favorite books is "Cadallac Jack" by Larry McMurtry,about an antique buyer and collections in the southern United States.It is filled with eccentric collectors.Imagine a collector in Texas who filled his house with bird nests. A great read for any collector.
I have collected several things over the years.Stamps,in my youth.Rocks,Minerals and Fossils,Puzzles,Yo-Yo's,and of course books. I retired at 56,and my "collections" give me endless enjoyment.
I think the thing that is most thoughtful about this book is the question "Can one be a collector without collecting?" Many people build collections such as playing different golf courses,visiting different countries,sport events,etc. I am also an avid Birdwatcher.I have seen 598 different birds in North America. We call that a "life List" and it is as much a personal collection as someone who attempts to the most World Series or any other events. I consdider my Bird Life List just as much of a collection as my other collections.
Blom has also included copious notes that give the reader a wealth of references if he wants to dig deeper into subjects he mentions in the book.

Absorbing and beautifully written, with a great bibliography to lead you on in your travels through this fascinating genre. Blom does for the general subject of collecting what Basbanes did for bibliophilia in A Gentle Madness. Well worth the read.

This is a book that takes you on a fascinating journey, is an enjoyable read and is also historically well-researched, so it can therefore be used by the student or academic as a useful reference. I came upon it quite by accident but now find it a very useful addition to my bookshelf. The story of the Ashmolean Museum's foundation was one of my particular favourites and really made my blood boil! Such stories are not often told about museum collections! I take my hat off to the author!

At first I thought this was going to be a survey of some eccentric collectors in history, on which is does not disappoint, but it turns out to be a lot richer and contain some real pearls of wisdom about life in general, and flashes of historical insight.

Reading through the chapters of this book was a lot like rummaging through a private collectors cabinet of curiosities. The chapter titles alone don't provide direction and only after a few pages does it begin to reveal its treasure. Chapters cover aspects of collecting as diverse as: people who collected experiences with women (Casanova), the collecting of body parts (religious relics), collecting memories, American billionaires who bought up European heritage (JP Morgan, Hearst), collectors of mass-produced items (milk bottles, food wrappers), Princes and Kings such as Rudolf of Hapsburg (17th C) who filled his castle with the worlds greatest collections and slowly went mad, collecting as a madness, as a substitute for love, as a form of autism, as psychology, as crime - and in the end, as a warning to all those who take it too far.

Tom Frey is an authority on Toys from the boomer era.I bought his "Remco Movieland Drive-in from him in 1991 from Toy Shop magazine.His photography and commentary is priceless!If you grew up in the late fifties,early sixties and bugged your Mom and Dad for a "Great Garloo" or a "Remco Drive-in"(like I did),then definitely BUY this book!!You'll LOVE IT!!

This is a great addition to any toy lovers library! There are quite a few toys shown here that I have not seen in previous books, and believe me I have a few. I thrilled at nice clean pictures of Video Village, the Talking Casper doll, Major Matt Mason, Johnny and Jane West. Lots of Marx Toys, reminiscent of Pennsylvania and my youth.
A time machine for anyone at or approaching 50!

TOY BOP! This could be THE bible for toy enthusiasts and creators...each page gives reason to why millions flock to fleas and why I personally have chosen my profession. Toy Bop is a what's what map to the never forgotten gold in yer the great mind shaft of memory. And in Toy Bop, the gold never glimmered brighter. From the quirky haphazard classic toys spawned by Marvin Glass to adorable machine guns and one color Marx's, Toy Bop displays its wears like GE at a Worlds Fair long ago. Pick it up, waste away a few hours, and tell Odd-Ogg and King Zor that I sent you.-- Daniel Seifert ---Toy Designer Guy Oddzon/koosh/hasbro

Tom Frey has put together the greatest book on toys I have ever seen. The book is not a price guide. Its a wonderful trip back in time. Back to the days when us kids had imagination. The pictures are outstanding. I have spoken with Tom and find him to be a very good source of information and you can tell from talking to him that he really loves his toys. If you were a child in the 50s to 60s and want a real trip down memory lane, then this is the book for you.

This book contains beautiful pictures of various Scottie Dog collectibles, some with manufacturers listed and all with values. I can not say enough wonderful things about this book. Anybody who is into dog collectibles must have this book. Anxiously awaiting the next edition! The only change I would suggest in future editions is to give more educational information about the manufacturers. Order this book, you will not be disappointed!

This is a guide to the many items produced with the Scottie Dog (Scottish Terrier)image. The Scottie's heyday was in the 1930's when the registration with the AKC was at it's highest. Also in this same era, U.S. President, Franklin Roosevelt had a Scottish Terrier named Fala, who was world famous. Therefore a large amount of items were produced with the likeness of the Scottie in the past, and of course in the present as well. This book has a sampling of those items in various categories such as banks, bookends, paper products, figurines, smoking sets, tins, kitchen, etc. In fact almost anything you can think of, has at one time, probably been produced with a Scottie on it! This book also gives a dollar value to each item, usually in a range. The text is accompanied by good color photgraphs of the representative items. At the end of the book is a listing of books with Scotties, films with Scotties. The cover is an attractive plaid with photographs of various Scottie items. There has long been a large cult of Scottie collectors, finally there is a guide! One drawback however, is the noticeable increase in price for Scottie items since this book was published as more antique dealers now realize they can command higher prices for these items. Readers should also be advised that there is now a volume 2 in this series.

Brand new, year 2001, 192 page volume is the 3rd in the series. It features 192 pages with every page loaded with large, sharp, full color photos. There's a nice introduction to the topic. A variety of Scottie collectibles are covered ranging from banks, bookends, doorstops, planters, statues, calendars and advertisements, to greeting cards, movies, and more. If you love Scotties, you'll really enjoy this book. Add it to your library.

If you are a scottie lover then this is the book for you! Even though this book isn't published yet I know the care and thought that went into this book. The author is a wonderful person to know and a true lover of scotties. This is a most have book for scottie collectors. It would be money well spent on your part.

This is a great book. It's a definitive reference on the somewhat obscure subject of Victorian Trade Cards, but for those of us who love them, it's a feast. It is crammed with illustrations, broken into categories, and contains history and collecting tips. The pricing information is somewhat out of date, due to the impact that online auctions have had on these collectables (some are more expensive, some less, as auctions make them more available.) If you're at all a fan of this genre, don't hesitate to buy this book!

Vastly illustrated and very informative. Although the majority of this book is pictures (very nice ones at that), there are some very interesting facts and historical information about the victorian card craze. Because there are in excess of 100,000 different cards in existance, don't expect to find every card in here or the current market price. It is just a matter of time before a more extensive guide is published, (I would still recommend because of the great illustrations!) The only problem I have with this book is the layout which can be annoying if you are trying to find info on one of your cards. You have to search through several sections of the book. (e.g. Jackson's chewing tobbaco card in the "Exploration and Travel" chapter instead of the "Tobbaco" chapter). More expensive cards are usually only discussed in the chapter rather than illustrated, which I find kind of strange(Maybe he didn't own any of those to get the photo?).

The beautiful 224 page, 8 1/2 x 11" softbound book contains more than 500 full color, sharp, large photos. '98 values. There are 70 topics ranging from angels, baseball, dolls, expositions to Uncle Sam, women, wringers and washing. There's plenty of background information on each topic. A useful glossary of terms is provided. A must for tradecard collectors. Fascinating to read and refer to.

If you find this book lying on someone's coffee table, don't pick it up--you'll be hooked! I am not an aficionado of trade cards, but I found this book to be endlessly fascinating. Cheadle wisely keeps his writing to a minimum, letting the illustrations speak for themselves-- page after page. I know of no book that is more intriguing just to page through. Henry Kort (kort@ainet.com)

Excellent book with great accounts of real car collectors. This book arrived as promised with the quality promised. A great entertaining reading from real people in the collector hobby. A must read for any car enthusiast.

Leuthner is on top of his game with this new book. The Group of collectors that he has brought together,show us some of the finest automobiles ever built. Quality automobiles such as these should be shared with the world, this book is a must have for any one that appreciates the very finest that life has to offer-

Instead of simply presenting a parade of pretty cars, the author gives the reader a look into the collector's mind. The layout and photography are also exceptional. A must for anybody who appreciates wonderful objects.

This is one of the finest automobile-related books I've ever seen. Not only are there great photos of some of the greatest cars in the world, but author Leuthner got to know each of the 11 car collectors on a personal basis. The result is an in-depth look at the men and their machines. Millions of dollars were layed out for these vintage masterpieces, and WHEELS gives them the respect they deserve. Very nice read, even though it's a coffee table type of book. That's rare.

A must have for anyone with a collection of pre 1930s shoes; well organized and illustrated; invaluable for analyzing, dating, and describing women's footwear.

This is the book that you want to own if you have a collection of women's shoes to catalog. The front matter of the book includes "Fig 1. Parts of the Shoe" which features 16 illustrations drawn by the author diagramming the terminology for common parts and pieces of shoes, basic types of front-lacing footwear and common heel types. Part Two, Dating Women's Shoes, 1795-1930, offers steps for dating a shoe and five chapters devoted to every aspect of the shoe: upper patterns in shoes, upper patterns in boots, heels and soles, variations in lasts and materials/decorations. Part two alone has over 400 illustrations of individual shoes elegantly drawn by the author with a caption to explain the style/type described. The text of each chapter tells you everything you wanted to know about uppers, heels and decorations in an energetic, meticulous and succinct writing style. Each illustration/shoe is further described in a credit section at the back of the book. Appendixes discuss: "How leather is made" and "How shoes are made", and include a "Partial Listing of Shoe Manufacturers as compiled from Labels and Advertisements," which is particularly valuable when trying to decipher worn labels. The glossary of 15 pages is thoroughly written so that one can feel confident using the correct terminology. Part I, A History of Women's Footwear in America includes the chapters: A Brief Look at the American Shoe Industry, Women's Shoes and Female Stereotypes, a Chronological Overview of Shoe Fashions, The Correct Dress of the Foot, and Shoes Adapted for Sports and Protection. Every aspect of the subject matter is laid out before you so that a beginner can feel confident dating and describing a shoe while those interested in fashion and costume history will treasure the wealth of information and the precision with which the author covers her subject. I can't imagine anyone writing a better book on the subject than this one.

This great book is a very interesting reading and one of the most valuable sources for dating the shoes. If you work with historical shoes or just love shoes you cannot just read it once - you will be always using it! On many occasions this book actually helped to date the shoes correctly.

Since I received my delivery of _Women's Shoes In America, 1795-1930_ from Amazon earlier this week, I have been unable to put down this extraordinary book. Nancy Rexford's work is a magnificent contribution to the field of costume history. I understand that it took Nancy 14 years to research the information for this book. I have no doubt that she will soon be acknowledged as the leading expert on the history of American shoes. Women's Shoes in America is divided into two main sections. The first section is "A History of Women's Footwear...". This section includes chapters on the rise of the American shoe industry (fascinating), cultural stereotyping, sporting shoes, etc. The second section of the book is "Dating Women's Shoes, 1795-1930". This section is a well organized and easy to follow guide on how to date shoes by their various parts; eg. heels, soles, uppers, trimmings, etc. This is a book every museum, dealer and fashion lover will cherish. You will be wowed by the author's breadth of historical knowledge, thorough research, clear organization, easy to follow identification key and her beautiful illustrations. For me, the icing on the cake for this book is that it is also so very literary; simply a delight to read!! I highly recommend it!

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This is a wonderful series. The special thing about Yostusba's perspective is she may be a 5 years old, but she's also a touch weird for a 5 year old. This opens the door for a lot of humor between her innocence and weird nature. When it's not being funny, it's downright sweet.

There are plenty of laughs and surprises. The caracter Yotsuba makes you reminensce on your childhood, very innocent plot line and good for kids.

5 volumes of Yotsuba, can we ever get enough of her? Apparently the answer is no (and we are not even up to date since there are 7 volume released so far, 8th volume is not released since it is still being serialized).

Volume 5 includes some of my favorite stories, Cardbo and Yanda just to name a few. In this volume we are introduced a new character named Yanda (who was mentioned back all the way at volume 1 for those who want to know) and he instantly becomes Yotsuba's enemy. This marks the first time you will see Yotsuba being very angry at one person and you don't want to miss this.

Yet another slow release, but I am glad this was released, hopefully the next volume will come out within the range of 3-4 months (hopefully). As always, do yourself a favor and get this volume if you are fan of the series, want to try something new, or just tired of same old manga stories.

For those who enjoyed the first 4 volumes this brings the same cuteness and hilarity. Cardbo the cardboard robot that runs on money and Yanda, Yotsuba's arch nemesis, are great chapters that gave me bouts of sidesplitting laughter. As all the previous volumes reading Yotsuba Vol. 5 brightens my day every time I read through them.