Image Books

Nowing just as good as nothing about matchmoving it was immediately clear to me that this book would show me the way. And it did. For those who want to start in matchmoving or even for the medium advanced the autor explains everything you want to know and more. Theory, lots of practical examples and a nice CD. Worth it's money!

Excellent book with a very easy exposition of photogrammetry an the newest applications it offers. Very good to understand what's behind camera tracking software in the postproduction market.

The book covers the general theory behind of matchmoving and photogrametry pretty clearly. There's step by step tutorials that guide you thru the matchmove process such as manual and auto tracking. I was a beginer and learned quiet a lot. I only wished he covered more on the interface of matchmover. Still a great book though.

If you want to know about "black" art of matchmoving this would be the author and this would the book.

Recently, I started doing matchmove work again, after a two year break. Before starting the new job, I wanted to brush up by reading this book. This is an excellent reference and I wish I had it when I started matchmoving four years ago. For the novice I can not recommend this book enough. For a manual, this book is easy to read and breaks down all aspects of matchmoving in just 250 pages. I did not go over the tutorials on the CD, I am just reviewing the written portion of the book.

A big purple monster type guy protects a girl that is trying to help others. A nasty bad guy and his hordes of creepy little black chomping demon type things try and get to her.

That is, if most of this isn't just some demented dream or other. Entertaining, but maybe a little wayward.

The first three volumes of the Maxx are by far the best experience in reading comics I have ever had. Seeing how the story unfolds and the mystery of all this crazy stuff unravels is awesome. Sam Kieth does an excelent job of dropping hints and little visual clues along the way without giving plot points away to soon. this was an excelent comic and sam keith's visual style is so neat.

The Maxx is a masterpiece. It's that simple.

Personally, I found The Maxx through watching the MTV Liquid Television show. I was very young, and very confused. Once I got older, though, I found a renewed interest in The Maxx and Sam K.'s work.

If you liked the show, and you know how to read, this is a no-brainer. Even if you've never seen the show, the various art styles, deep story and astounding, true-to-life dialog (Thanks to Messner-Loebs) will suck you in. This series honestly changed the way I look at life. You can see the specifics on the story in other reviews. I just wanted to share what The Maxx means to me. Which is a lot. Thank you, Sam Kieth.

I do not read comic books. I got the first volume of The Maxx because I enjoyed the cartoon so much - and volume 1 is almost exactly like the cartoon. The same is with the first half of volume 2 - then it starts to expand in strange and interesting rhelms!

Now - I can't help it, I'm ordering volume #3, I'm hooked.

Ok, this book is the beginning of the Maxx series. The story of Maxx that goes on til first breakup of Dave and Julie is the best considering whole series (first 10-11 ish).

If you are a fan, get first twenty issues. Issues 12-20 are also about Dave and Julie. After that, story is about Mister Gone's daughter, her Maxx and it strays even more around ish 30 into some one shots and Friend of Maxx like stories. Maxx is 35 issues long, but first 10 issues are must get. They are best art/story combo EVER, and only story arc comparable to best stories of Sandman.

This book is a must read for anyone who wants to know the mind of God and draw closer to Him. If you want to see revival in your church, home, community, at work, etc.; read this book. David Herzog has written a book that will encourage and inspire you to jump the next level in your walk with God.

Great 40 day devotional/study guide for a daily devotion when you don't have a lot of time. Goes great along with the book.

This book is awesome. You must get this book. I recommend this book to anyone. If you want to experience the presence of God, read this book. This book is filled with the presence of the Holy Spirit. David Herzog is a Great Man of God who is allowing God to use Him to do a great Work in the Kingdom.

With all the education man has achieved he's still miserable. How we need God in our lives. Our young people are searching through drugs and the occult trying to find that missing ingrediant in their lives. God's Glory fills the void!

Churches are going "through-the-motions" of a service and people still leave without what they came for. The GLORY FILLS THE VOID!

The GLORY is God's presence! And we need to understand how to react when God shows up.

Good book about the wave of revival that is going to take place in our nation. Some of the things we will experience are familiar, but many things will be brand-new. We are getting ready to reap the greatest harvest of souls the world has ever seen, and it will happen because of the outpouring of the Spirit.

I definitely recommend this book for anyone working with OpenGL's new Shading Language. I would, however, say that probably the most difficult part of working with GLSL is getting it working in the first place. Especially on Linux, this is somewhat confusing - some cards support GL 2.0, some don't, but still support the GLSL if using the ARB function calls. I would also make sure to point out to new users that GLEW is close to essential when working with the GLSL - you can download it from sourceforge. It might be worth mentioning in future versions of the book, along with ARB functions which are the same as the GLSL standard functions shown in the book.

Twenty years ago, I used to program graphics on an Evans and Sutherland PS340. It was then one of the top of the line graphics computers (costing $100k). It could labouriously do shading, but only Phong and Gouraud. Nowadays, many PCs have this ability, and much faster. But a problem still persists, where often the shading methods are restricted to what is implemented on the graphics chips.

In contrast, you have the approach in this definitive book on OpenGL Shading Language. This lets you implement in your code, shading routines of your own devising. To be sure, given the same shading method, one done in this language, and one in the hardware, then the latter will have better performance. But it turns out that today's computers are fast enough, and have enough RAM, that the difference in response might not be appreciable.

The book describes an extensive set of built-in convenience functions that come with the language. And the language's API is explained in detail. The author rightly recommends that you come at it with some experience in the standard OpenGL.

Since the language is still quite new, you are more or less on your own, when looking at development tools. This dearth is expected to be remedied in a few years. But right now, you'll have to rely on your wits. Along with a chapter that gives general principles of how you should develop your own shader. What may be even more use, however, is the second half of the book. Devoted to case studies of many shaders. Understanding these may be more beneficial than any IDE.

Oh, as you might expect from a graphics book, there is a lovely set of colour plates in the middle of the book, showing what custom shaders can do. Treat it as inspiration if you wish.

The recent trend in graphics hardware has been to replace fixed functionality with programmability in areas that have grown exceedingly complex (e.g., vertex processing and fragment processing). The OpenGL Shading Language has been designed to allow application programmers to express the processing that occurs at those programmable points of the OpenGL pipeline. Independently compilable units that are written in this language are called shaders. A program is a set of shaders that are compiled and linked together. The OpenGL Shading Language is based on ANSI C and many of the features have been retained except when they conflict with performance or ease of implementation. This shading language is without a doubt the most important addition to OpenGL since its inception, and this book provides an excellent guide to programming with it. The author was one of the primary contributors to the development of the language, and he provides a well-written and insightful explanation of the language and its use.
The book begins with a review of OpenGL basics, followed by an introduction to shaders and how they fit into the pipeline. It then covers the language itself, including data types, operators, interaction with the OpenGL state machine and fixed function pipeline, built-in functions, and more. It also introduces and explains the OpenGL APIs needed to use shaders.
The last half of the book focuses on shader development, including general process and workflow, and coverage of many specific techniques, such as procedural textures and GPU-based animation. It even includes a section on implementing the fixed function pipeline using shaders. The book ends with a handy comparison of OpenGL Shading Language with other shading languages, such as Cg, HLSL, and Renderman and a couple of appendices providing a language grammar and API reference.
I particularly liked chapters 6 through 8, which take you from a simple shading example -"brick"- through the specific steps of shader development that you would need to master regardless of the API you are using. Also the chapters on procedural textures and noise and the accompanying code examples helped clear up some matters that were murky when I read "Texturing & Modeling: A Procedural Approach" by Ebert et al. In summary, I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in implementing software shading, both from the standpoint of OpenGL and from the standpoint of the design process itself. I notice that Amazon does not show the table of contents for the second edition, so I do that here:
Chapter 1. REVIEW OF OPENGL BASICS
OpenGL History; OpenGL Evolution; Execution Mode; The Frame Buffer; State; Processing Pipeline; Drawing Geometry; Drawing Images; Coordinate Transforms; Texturing;

Chapter 2. BASICS
Introduction to the OpenGL Shading Language; Why Write Shaders?; OpenGL Programmable Processors; Language Overview; System Overview; Key Benefits;

Chapter 3. LANGUAGE DEFINITION
Example Shader Pair; Data Types; Initializers and Constructors; Type Conversions; Qualifiers and Interface to a Shader; Flow Control; Operations; Preprocessor; Preprocessor Expressions; Error Handling;

Chapter 4. THE OPENGL PROGRAMMABLE PIPELINE
The Vertex Processor; The Fragment Processor; Built-in Uniform Variables; Built-in Constants; Interaction with OpenGL Fixed Functionality;

Chapter 5. BUILT-IN FUNCTIONS
Angle and Trigonometry Functions; Exponential Functions; Common Functions; Geometric Functions; Matrix Functions; Vector Relational Functions; Texture Access Functions; Fragment Processing Functions; Noise Functions;

Chapter 6. SIMPLE SHADING EXAMPLE
Brick Shader Overview; Vertex Shader; Fragment Shader; Observations;

Chapter 7 OPENGL SHADING LANGUAGE API
Obtaining Version Information; Creating Shader Objects; Compiling Shader Objects; Linking and Using Shaders; Cleaning Up; Query Functions; Specifying Vertex Attributes; Specifying Uniform Variables; Samplers; Multiple Render Targets; Development Aids; Implementation-Dependent API Values; Application Code for Brick Shaders;

Chapter 8. SHADER DEVELOPMENT
General Principles; Performance Considerations; Shader Debugging; Shader Development Tools; Scene Graphs;

Chapter 9. EMULATING OPENGL FIXED FUNCTIONALITY
Transformation; Light Sources; Material Properties and Lighting; Two-Sided Lighting; No Lighting; Fog; Texture Coordinate Generation; User Clipping; Texture Application;

Chapter 10. STORED TEXTURE SHADERS
Access to Texture Maps from a Shader; Simple Texturing Example; Multitexturing Example; Cube Mapping Example; Another Environment Mapping Example; Glyph Bombing;

Chapter 11. PROCEDURAL TEXTURE SHADERS
Regular Patterns; Toy Ball; Lattice; Bump Mapping;

Chapter 12. LIGHTING
Hemisphere Lighting; Image-Based Lighting; Lighting with Spherical Harmonics; The *erLight Shader;

Chapter 13. SHADOWS
Ambient Occlusion; Shadow Maps; Deferred Shading for Volume Shadows;

Chapter 14. SURFACE CHARACTERISTICS
Refraction; Diffraction; BRDF Models; Polynomial Texture Mapping with BRDF Data;

Chapter 15. NOISE
Noise Defined; Noise Textures; Trade-offs; A Simple Noise Shader; Turbulence; Granite; Wood;

Chapter 16. ANIMATION
On/Off; Threshold; Translation; Morphing; Other Blending Effects; Vertex Noise; Particle Systems; Wobble;

Chapter 17. ANTIALIASING PROCEDURAL TEXTURES
Sources of Aliasing; Avoiding Aliasing; Increasing Resolution; Antialiased Stripe Example; Frequency Clamping;

Chapter 18. NON-PHOTOREALISTIC SHADERS
Hatching Example; Technical Illustration Example; Mandelbrot Example;

Chapter 19. SHADERS FOR IMAGING
Geometric Image Transforms; Mathematical Mappings; Lookup Table Operations; Color Space Conversions; Image Interpolation and Extrapolation; Blend Modes;

Chapter 20. REALWORLDZ
Features; RealWorldz Internals; Implementation; Atmospheric Effects; Ocean; Clouds;

Chapter 21. LANGUAGE COMPARISON
Chronology of Shading Languages; RenderMan; OpenGL Shader (ISL); HLSL; Cg;
Appendix A. Language Grammar
Appendix B. API Function Reference

I'm not a fan of the 'group of papers' style of book. But this book pulls it off nicely. The text is consistenly good throughout. And the illustrations and formulas are high quality and presented nicely.

I would have liked full color throughout, but I accept that it would have been cost prohibitive on a book of this heft. Speaking of heft, yeah, this is a doorstop of a book. I think some of the text could have been edited down and the formatting tightened up to reduce bulk.

The OpenGL Shading Language is without doubt the most important addition to OpenGL since its inception, and this book provides an excellent guide to programming with it. As one of the primary contributors to the development of the language, Rost provides a clear and well-written explanation of the language and how to use it.

The book begins with a review of OpenGL basics, followed by an introduction to shaders and how they fit into the pipeline. It then covers the language itself, including data types, operators, interaction with the OpenGL state machine and fixed function pipeline, built-in functions, and more. It also introduces and explains the OpenGL APIs needed to use shaders.

The last half of the book focuses on shader development, including general process and workflow, and coverage of many specific techniques, such as procedural textures and GPU-based animation. It even includes a section on implementing the fixed function pipeline using shaders.

The book ends with a handy comparison of GLSL with other shading languages, such as Cg and HLSL, and a couple of appendices providing a language grammar and API reference.

If you're doing shader development with OpenGL, you'll definitely want this book on your desk. My only complaint about it is that it was written before GLSL was officially promoted to the core. When that happened, a number of important things were changed that aren't reflected in the book. However, determining the differences isn't difficult, so don't let that deter you from picking this up.

As a former Forensic Video Analyst for a law enforcement agency, I can attest that not only is this the most thorough and easy to understand FVA "Course" book that I have ever read and gained the most from, the author is one of the top Forensic Video Analysts in the country, and even the world.
Any one who is interested in this profession, law enforcement and private, must have this book. Even if you already are an FVA professional, this book is an excellant reference source.

Photoshop CS3 for Forensic Professionals is by far the most informative course book for photoshop users. As a college student working towards a criminal justice degree with a concentration in criminal investigations, I highly recommend this book for any professional or student that needs to improve their digital imaging skills. The instructions are easy to understand and the step by step instructions on the companion CD are detailed. After reading Photoshop CS3 for Forensic Professionals and taking the CD course I can honestly say that my imaging skills have been greatly enhanced. This book is an excellent student resource and an invaluable tool for the forensic professional.

Part 1, "The Essentials", is comprised of six chapters. The first two chapters are not specific to Photoshop, and are a must read for anyone interested or involved in the use of digital images within a legal setting. The remaining four chapters provide an important foundation for analysts and investigators using Photoshop.

Part 2, "The Digital Darkroom", and Part 3, "Image Analysis and Enhancement", are detailed instructions regarding Photoshop's settings, filters, and the multitude of related processes to achieve optimum imaging results. Included with the book is a CD-ROM contianing sample images to work with when going through the tutorials, as well as some free scripts and trial plugin's.

I've been using Photoshop for several years now in my Forensic Video workflow, as well as personally for Graphic and Web design projects. This book has already proven to be the single most valuable reference for me pertaining to the use of Photoshop in either setting. It's also probably the smartest investment I've made in quite some time.

Great resource! Is there another in the offing?

This book both improved my workflow and my abilities to enhance images. The pratical exercises hit home the finer points.

I would compare this book to a "Forensic Photoshop" course costing much more, well done!

A lot of work went into this book and it shows. So many of us in this profession are so overwhelmed with casework that we don't have time to publish. I am glad that George found the time to get this out to everyone. Hopefully, this will inspire others to get their ideas in print and help to convince the publishing community that there IS a market for this material.
Great job George!
Cheers,
Jim Hoerricks
[...]

I have a number of books that attempt to explain Photoshop CS3 and Camera Raw in particular. This book is, far and away, the best I have seen. It is extremely well written, easy to follow, and very comprehensive. I recommend it without qualifications.

How do professional photographers turn RAW data into fine polished results? Photoshop CS3 RAW: Transform your RAW Images into Works of Art explains how to use the Photoshop CS2 tool, surveying the basics of optimizing RAW images and deciding when to shoot RAW, how to organize and automate their processing, how to tweak the images with professional techniques, and more. Neo-pros need this - and any computer or photography library strong in Photoshop techniques will find it popular.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

This is a fine introduction into CS3 RAW. It is very clear and easy to understand and follow. If you shoot in RAW and use ACR, this book should be in your library.

'Photoshop CS3 Raw: Get the Most Out of the Raw Format with Adobe Photoshop, Camera Raw, and Bridge' is a great resource for all levels of digital photographers who want to work with images of the highest quality possible. A regular photo who takes images with their camera probably takes them saved in the JPEG file format that has been so widely known and loved for so many years. The problem with this format is that when JPEG is used their is always data lost in the compression used to save the images. This data usually is minimal and not a big deal but if you need the highest quality pictures without any loss or compression at all, you need to save these in a better format. One of those formats is the Adobe RAW format which is the data saved with no data loss at all. These files will be much bigger in size but they also will guarantee that whatever picture(s) you took, you will see everything that was intended to be seen (and saved).

But simply taking the picture isn't enough, as there is tons of post-processing that goes on to get images looking even better than when they were taken. If you want to learn how to edit, crop, saturate, lighten, darken, whatever your heart desires with RAW imgagery, this is a great resource to have!! With nearly 250 pages spread across 12 chapters, this is a great introduction (in full color on glossy paper) to getting the most out of your camera and taking your images from Bs to As!!

This is a great resource to digital editing, my only caveat is that I feel it could be a bit longer. Another 50 pages or so with another example per chapter could have made things even better. A small complaint (and not enough to hurt my rating for the book) but it's worth noting.

If you take RAW images and want to learn how to get more out of them, this book will get you well on your way!!

***** RECOMMENDED

The outstanding thing to note about this book is that is organized very systematically. Instead of being a breathless description of everything you can do with the software, Aaland focuses on why you would do something and how to do it. Its an effort that is fun to read and easy to reference.

light read thats totally funny and brings you back to college days. and believe it or not you learn quite a bit! sooo many songs and bands were referenced in this book....i totally heard their music in a different way. 311 fans a must read

This is the definitive guide to what Pot brought to Pop Culture and it is really amazing how ingrained it is in our society. We all know Pot won't kill you, but leave it to Halperin and Bloom to show us how pot has enhanced our lives. Like it or not, we would be lost without weed and this entertaining, enlightening and thorough look at how Pot has ingrained our society is a great read. I wish I had this when I was 15, but I had to learn all the tricks on my own. Now I just have to hide my copy from my kids....I want them to figure it out the hard way.

well written, funny, and in-depth, this book covers it all from stoner slang, to films, to recipes etc... really nice packaging is a bonus and this would look fantastic on any coffee table.

Saw this book up in Martha's Vineyard this past weekend... couldn't wait to order it from Amazon (used of course) Fantastic book ... well written, valuable advice and great pictures. couldn't wait for 420 to roll around (or was it 7:14?)

I picked up this book as a gift for a friend. Now I'm not what one would call a "stoner". In fact, I can't remember the last time I smoked pot. I thumbed through it and got caught up in a really great read. I can only imagine how much better it would have been if I was a smoker, but it is a great fascinating and fun read for just about anyone. Loved it!

In the Road to Daybreak Nouwen seems to be able to reach us right where we are. He talks of his own flaws and failings and how Christ changes him in the midst. You will not be dissappointed with this book. Very relevant to where we are today.

Book showed priests as human this was good. I would also recommend the book An Encounter with A Prophet.

This is a wonderfully inspiring book documenting Henri's journey from Ivy League professor to the priest of a community of people with severe disabilities. His story reminds us that the crux of the Christian life is not flashiness and worldly success, but that it comes from being a servant to the needy and poor of our world. As Henri shares his fears, anxieties, and triumphs of his journey, we are encouraged to face the things keeping us from fully giving our life to the poor (be it mentally, spiritually, financially, emotionally, etc.) and/or are encouraged in the work we are already doing with people society has cast aside. If the 11th chapter of Hebrews was rewritten, Henri Nouwen would be another example of someone who showed great faith in God by taking God at his word and going to a new place where he knew not what would happen to him. As a special education teacher who is involved in the community of people with disabilities, I found Henri to be a true inspiration and encouragement to continue ministering to--and certainly being ministered to by people who have disabilities. This book would be an encouragement to anyone who wants their life to reflect some of the most central teachings of Jesus.

I learned a great deal about Fr Henri Nouwen from this book. THE ROAD TO DAYBREAK: A Spiritual Journey is his intimate diary that records the poignant year at L'Arche that began in the summer of 1985, a precious time of inner renewal and self-discovery. In his prologue, Fr Nouwen writes, "In the following pages there are words about L'Arche, about prayer, about living with handicapped people, about art, about city life, about filmmaking, about AIDS, about conflicts in the church, about Paris, London, San Francisco and Los Angeles, about Canada and a future there, and about many other small and great people and events. What binds them together in their wide variety is the spiritual struggle to say 'yes' to Jesus' invitation 'Come and follow me.'" It is this description of his spiritual journey and development over the year that is most intriguing to me. From reading these pages, I feel as though I have spoken to a friend whom I know quite well. Well enough to know his strengths in patience and tolerance, yet, also well enough to become annoyed at his foibles, Particularly, Fr Nouwen's incessant need for validation from his friends. Still, it is most striking to me the complete commitment that he has to serving his LORD. "Being in the world without being of it involves hard work." reads his entry for 10 May, "It requires a clear vision of what I want to do and how to do it. It requires a discipline of the eyes, the mind, and the heart. It requires a deep desire, as well as a strong commitment to live without interruptions in the name of Jesus." I learned of the discipline required by a desire to seek our unity in and through Jesus, the Christ. As Fr Nouwen described his work, I became aware that I am severely handicapped, myself. Although, I am blessed to be physically and mentally capable, I must confess I am spiritually handicapped. I can barely communicate in my spiritual relationship. I am challenged to maintain a consistent spiritual commitment, and I am completely dependent on the grace and mercy of the LORD, my GOD, in whose presence, I am. This insight which I received from reading this book has changed the way I view my own spiritual life and has strengthened that relationship. If you are interested in the life of Fr Henri Nouwen, or in a spiritual relationship as lived by someone, this book will be interesting to you. Although Fr Nouwen is a Catholic Priest, I think that people of all faiths and beliefs who are interested in a spiritual quest will gain from its reading. PEACE

this book was a gift to my mom when she retired from her work about 5 years ago. i don't know how it interested me but i did read it from cover to cover. as i went along, i couldn't help but identify with henri nouwen. our situation in life may not be the same but i swear i've been feeling everything that he has been feeling. his joys, his sorrows, his nostalgia, his fears. and i couldn't help but find hope each time he talks about his little triumphs over himself and over the world. i was particularly moved by the fact that though he is a priest he was so keenly aware of his need for appreciation, affection, attention and respect. my own needs that i have been wanting to ignore for fear of appearing needy and vulnerable. and besides it's senseless to get them if you will just be humiliated in the end. the worst humiliation i guess is the reproach you give yourself for not knowing to act at situations which is otherwise very ordinary to ordinary people. it is the shame of finding out you have a delusion of grandeur. it is inspiring to note that henri nouwen lived through it all and found meaning to all of them. when he did, i found meaning to each of mine's struggles too. his acceptance and redirection of his need for intimacy made me realize that even this need can be harnessed for something better. in sharing his journey i had a journey of my own. my struggles have not ended. it is lifetime. but every now and then, i would remember exerpts this book. and i become more appreciative of myself, of the people who have been a part of me and the people who are yet to be a part of my growth. i believe, a lot of people would have the same benefits that it gave me if ever they read the book.

I designed shopping carts for 5 years. After I left that company, I saw this book. I bought it as a gift for my former boss who was the owner of the company that made shopping carts. I thought that he would get a kick out of it. Before I gave it to him, I decided to glance at a few pages and ended up reading through the whole book before I gave it to him. I sort of felt bad since the book is now officially used. He loved it anyway. It was interesting and it has inspired me to do something similar.

When I first heard mention of this book (in The Believer magazine), I laughed out loud at the concept...

I laughed out loud when it showed up on my doorstep, too. The effort and thought put into the development of this silly book is tremendous. The result is an excellent play on the concept of field identification guides.

Whenever people see this book on my coffee table, it becomes a conversation piece. Funny, funny stuff.

Received the book last week- funny read and the pictures are amusing for a while...then the "field guide" aspect of the book may be a bit too complicated for a "fun read". It's quite a complicated work-up that the author had contrived, and while impressive- I was using too much brain power while reading something that should be entertaining. I don't think I have enough room left in my brain to store field guide info on shopping carts- even just to make it til the end of this book! But maybe YOU do! :)

As a certified straycartologist I applaud the effort to publicize this issue. I only hope we can convince those crumb bums in Washington that expanding our coverage to the rest of North America can only be achieved with copious federal spending.

Like the question burning in the loins of Lewis and Clark before us, what will the West reveal? My crotch is afire with this question: what will the West reveal about...ourselves? [For full effect, deliver that last word in a fervent whisper]

This book is easily one of the top four reference guides for shopping carts available on the market today. It does an excellent job of covering the following topics:

* Shopping carts

Overall, I heartily endorse this product.

This book is a 7 course meal for the eyes and mind! You will love the photographs of the rare Oz treasures, which are organized by decade.

This book is one of my favorite Oz reference books! John Fricke is truly the leading Oz expert!!

With Willard Carroll's Oz collection as a backdrop, John Fricke has cataloged the fabric of Frank Baum's stories of Oz. I am certain that Frank Baum could not have been aware this fabric would become a great tapestry upon which the world could identify what it meant to be human. Oz has permeated our society with its influence. It is found in our languages, our politics, human behavior, and is probably used more often as a simile than any other imagery in our language.

From the opening pages of this book to the last, the book is a compelling journey through Oz. The collection of Mr. Carroll's Oz memorabilia is so large that it is like trying to comprehend the distance between stars or that a few people actually have a billion dollars. This colligation of Oz collectibles somehow unites every civilization, geographic location, and human condition. It is one of the few things that have true universality.

After reading John Fricke's take on Oz, of course, based on Willard Carroll's collection, I am left wondering how history would be different were it not for Frank Baum's Oz?

The pictures are glorious, the layout intelligent and thoughtful-I will never see Oz in quite the same way again. John Fricke's writing is stellar. Willard Carroll's collection ---what can I say, WOW! 100 years of Oz is entertaining, educative and provides a new look at Frank Baum's Oz through the other end of the spyglass. This is a visit to a museum with a very knowledgeable guide through an unforgettable exhibit. Thanks for the tour. I'll be back again.

This book is a must for all collectors.

"100 Years of Oz" is a delight for everyone who has ever fallen in love with "The Wizard of Oz" (which includes just about everyone.) The success of the book lays in John Fricke's capabilities as a writer. His words are consise, thoughtful, and honest. The photographs, likewise, catch the eye like flashes of brilliant light. It is not easy to take one of America's most chershed series of books, its favorite film, and 100 years of mechandising and condense it all into one volume. Thankfully, Mr. Fricke has done that- impeccably. Buy this book today. I highly recommend it to everyone as an example of first class research. Above all, it is a time capsule of memories. Fricke will long be heralded as "Oz"'s best friend. Congratulations to all who made this book such a beautiful addition to my library.

Lions and tigers an bears? Oh my! Add Munchkins and Winged Monkeys and a Horse of a Different Color to the list. This is Oz Country, and things simply don't get better than this. To celebrate the centennial of the publication of L. Frank Baum's novel (and the 60th anniversary of the classic MGM flick), preeminent Oz historian John Fricke has written a glorious homage of all things fun and fantastical. Not only does the book offer a fascinating chronicle of the Ozian phenomenon, but the illustrations, culled from Willard Carroll's priceless collection of more than 10,000 museum-quality pieces, are breathtaking. Oh Auntie Em, there's no place like home . . . provided you're snuggled up in front a fire with this gem.

When I first saw this book years ago on "the Inernational Wizard of Oz Club", I wasn't really keen to get it (I guess the front cover looked a little too dull for me), but after seeing it in a bookstore and actually looking through it, I then knew I had to get this book, because (unlike the small "All Things Oz" collection), this book includes things OTHER than Baum's Book and MGM's Wizard, such as an unknown song from the 1904 Musical (not mentioned in "Oz: Before the Rainbow"), the Silent Films, 'Journey Back to Oz', 'The Wiz', both the Rankin Bass & Disney versions of 'Return to Oz', the 4 1987 CANADIAN-Animated Cinar Films (YES!! The mystery of their animation origin is written here!!), "the Wizard of Oz - Animated Series", "Oz Kids", the Asian "Space Adventures of Oz" TV series, "On Ice" Productions . . . it not only has all of this but also INCLUDES the most important and best of all, "The Dreamer of Oz"!! other language editions of the Oz books, and we also get a few 'Baum's Non-Oz' stuff, like his "Last Egyptian" Film and "Queen Zixi of Ix" book (plus a "Denslow's Picture Books for Children",) games/items/figurines, a few design sketches for MGM's Oz props/Emerald City and lots of other things that have to do with 'Oz' too - even though we don't get like 1-full page on info on every particular item, we still get some good information and lots of pictures too. Just like "All Things Oz", this book has lots of written information, pictures in the background/inserts and quotes from "the Wonderful Wizard of Oz" (and I'm glad to say that it doesn't have so many mistakes as "All Things Oz" does). But we also get a glimpse at some not-so pleasant Oz stuff, like the "Oz Comics for Adults" and a horrific Winged Monkey Creature Features model.
The Chapters of this book go by 10 Years (e.g. 1900's, 1910's, 1930's, 1940's, 1980's, 1990's, 2000's, etc.).
This was a pleasant surprise to find on a bookshelf (along with many other Oz books) and it was an absolute pleasure for me to buy it.
Also, what you see is a slip-on cover. The actual front cover is (an Italian poster of MGM's) Dorothy looking at the Crystal Ball and seeing the Wicked Witch of the West flying on her broomstick.
Trust me, get this book, and you'll love it - maybe even more than "All Things Oz"!