Arts and Culture Books

The intercut of the church & prison was strange yet wonderful. The abolitionists gave Yomba an illustrated Bible and he gave his heart to Jesus[alternate version]. Cinque was the man who subsequently gave his life for his clan...Yomba was the informer who died beside Cinque in remorse. Cinque did what he did because he had to.

Put yourself in the shoes of the victims of slavery. Allow yourself to really, really feel what it would be like to have every aspect of your culture, values, language stripped from you. Imagine having to sit by while someone rapes your wife, mother, 11 year old daughter. Imagine having to eat an animal which you have been taught is poison. Imagine not having freedom to marry and having to watch your baby being driven away in a wagon, never being seen again, because one man has taken it upon himself the right to sell another. Sit there, close your eyes and then you will be brought into a deeper understanding of the people of the Amistad.

MAYA ANGELOU opens this moviebook with truth. The answer to why our story must be retold over and over again. The shocking truth that a black man's skin could be cut into a postage stamp size flap and sold as souvenirs by his racist white murderers. The generational truth that Cinque's remarkable, chilling story lives on beyond the relic flap of that lynching. America today is the reason AMISTAD must live another generation in hopes that we try to do better.

In the palpable words of Debbie Allen, the inhumanity of slavery in America was put on trial. When Joseph Cinque courageously and unselfishly challenged America's Declaration of Independence, its Constitution, its President of the United States, its abolitionists, its Supreme Court, and the Queen of Spain, the entire world watched. The truth about America's slave system was revealed. That truth must continue to be discussed and explored and remembered from one generation to the next. AMISTAD, therefore, should never die on a bookshelf or in history. AMISTAD forces Joseph Cinque's story into eternity. The pictures and quotes in this fine moviebook should continue to shame and inspire all of us today to paint a better existence for all mankind.

Ask a man of extraordinary intellectual power who is equally creative such as Steven Spielberg to define "truth" and he will show you it in living color page after page, clip after clip. You will beg to discover it over and over again because AMISTAD commands that type of loyalty to tell our story repeatedly to our children, black and white. Readers will gain a different perspective on "Give Us Free" each time. You will cry your own script to the young and help keep Cinque's purpose alive to make life better. The truth not only sets us all free, it keeps us free. AMISTAD is indeed truth.

The post list of additional reading resources about Amistad for both the young and the old are an integral part of this masterpiece.

Reviewed by Swaggie Coleman
for The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers

Just like his film on it, Steven Spielberg's work on this book, "Amistad: 'Give Us Free'", was well-executed. It reminds one of Alex Haley's "Roots". Both stir emotions. Every bit of the story shows how cruel a man can be to his fellow man. And, I disagree with all those who term this true story "a story of illegally enslaved Africans", (Mr Spielberg didn't). We are shying away from the truth, which is that no African, (not even one), was a legal slave. There is nothing that made one slave legal, and the other illegal. There is no legality in slavery. Absolutely! That treacherous and heartless people overpowered, kidnapped, and transported, (in the most inhumane manner), their fellow human beings to America and other places does not, in any way, make those victims of inhumanity "legal slaves". Regardless of all the face-saving tales that those who defiled our lands with the innocent blood, tears, and sweat of millions of Africans will like us to believe, the truth is that not even a single African volunteered to become a slave in any circumstance. They were all forced into it: with no option but death. Those who ripped and enjoyed the bloodied fruits of slavery merely sought cheap excuses in order to justify what they did. But we know that there is nothing legal in kidnapping and subjecting human beings to such a horrible condition.
'La Amistad' tells a soul-eroding story. Cinque and his cohorts are true heroes. They are heroes of freedom, heroes of justice, and heroes of human rights. Songs have been composed about them. Books have been written about them. Films have been made about them. And, history will forever appreciate their gallantry.

"THE BEST!", Its inspiring on one's will to keep himself and other Africans from the early slave trade which destroyed many families in America. Exciting effort to fight in a foreign country without knowing its language or laws. Very forth right in telling truth of American's untold "ugly" slave trade and what slave traders were willing to do just to keep it alive. Amistad's truth about slavery was very emotional, determined to express the will of any free man who's fighting williness to remain a free soul. A Heartfelt story about a lone struggle for Africans coming to America for the first time and having to face the ugliness of slavery, this was not right and should not have happened. All wasn't lost in the end and my true thanks to the many allies: former President - John Q. Adams, Mr(s) Baldwin, Gibbs, and former slave Joadson for their unyeilding efforts to abolish this ugly sore(slavery) which infested deep within America. I truely loved this story, because it was simply "THE BEST!" Also, thanks to Alex Pate and Steven Spielberg and the many others for bring out this ugly hidden part of America's history, I never knew this happened. This could have been me and I cried when I saw the movie. "THE BEST...."

This book is amazing! Basically, it's a compilation of interviews of the most important female performing artists from the past couple of decades. Fascinating, stereotype-destroying, and informative.

This book should be required reading in any discipline. A wonderful introduction to an array of artists who challenge the conventions of society, because they believe that iniquity does not equal freedom.

The interviews are very excellent and thorough and you really get to know more about these women more from it. I felt invisible threads weaving in and out of the book and inside and outside of me, forming some unexplainable connection to these women. My sculpture teacher Jeniifer Pastor made some comment on how women performance artists have such good photogenic bodies and sort of questioned the their feminist nude poses in the pictures (such as Caroles Schneemann's photo "Body Collage, 1968" on page 72 of the book), and I passively-aggressively thought inside ...I agree with you, they are beautiful! They are in charge of the messages from their bodies in their space..they are not passive to the male gaze... I admire these women for all they have done for women artists..This book is good because afterwards I explored these artists further through their individual works whether it is music or a book or a video. My performance art class barely covered these artists so I decided to learn more about them on my own and these interviews helped out alot.

This book presents many unique ideas on being a woman. Juno interviews a variety of artists on life, sexuality, sensuality... femininity and masculinity. From the cultural critiques of bell hooks to Annie Sprinkle's smiling cervix, new brilliance and hope is imparted. If you are looking for inspiration and wisdom from activists by trade, rather than some ivory tower dworkinite, look no further.

I have been looking at this book again and again ever since finding it 3 years ago, each time gaining inspiration to be who I am with no appology. It and the women interviewed in it have inspired me greatly to push my own boundaries and explore society's taboos in a conscious way. I especially love the cover--an illustration of Medusa with pieces of culture's constructions in her snaky hair. Lots of photographs, which is a big plus!

Just got this book in the mail , maybe 3 days ago, and already i have increased my knowledge on animation!Being new to classic animation, or golden age , as it is sometimes called, i needed a reference, and this book qualifies! So easy to index , with just the information you need to know before buying the dvd.Very pleased with this purchase.

Reviews (on several sites) indicate that this is a book for someone who wants to be recommended certain titles. It is NOT that type of book: It is an encyclopedia, with a foreward and a 3-page explanation of the entry format. The rest contains only listings of DVDs with short synopses and factual information. It is a very thorough book for its express intention, but it's not a guide for someone who wants listings divided into genres (although adult-themed DVDs have a separate section). It will not "recommend" films to you. I have no found such book, nor website. (If you can recommend animated/sci-fi films, I'd be grateful. I was inspired to buy this book because I revisited The Fantastic Planet...eeesh! INCREDIBLE film!! I like trippy, classic, exemplary and subversive films, though I find anime sort of incomprehensible.)

Animation On DVD: The Ultimate Guide is a comprehensive listing of over 1,600 animation and anime films currently available on DVD. While the majority of the DVDs listed are Japanese animation, non-Japanese DVDs from Superman cartoons to Disney movies are also included. A black-and-white photograph of each DVD prefaces every listing; the capsule entries include a summary of the animation contents, a listing of special features and notes whether it is subtitled, fullscreen, has any inserts, and the like. Animation On DVD is divided into two sections, a general animation section with the majority of entries, and a mature/adult section expressly for DVDs rated R or X (note that the DVD photographs of entries in the mature section do include suggestive images inappropriate for young children). The mature/adult section descriptions does contain "laundry lists" of sexual acts within explicit DVDs, in order to inform the reader beforehand what he or she would encounter viewing the DVD in question. An index makes individual titles easy to find, and an easter eggs segment includes hidden tricks one can find in one's DVD collection! Packed cover to cover with useful and practical information for anyone who enjoys animation, whether the casual viewer or serious collector, Animation On DVD is a superb quick and easy browsing reference.

A straightforward listing of animation available on DVD in the US, Andy Mangels' guide is the ideal shoppers' resource. It tells you what's on the disc, hints whether it's worth your time, and also points you at the right Easter Eggs. For someone based in the UK who often has to guess what Region One DVDs she might like, it's very useful. I was a little disappointed not to see the same critical bite that features in Stone Bridge's Anime Encyclopaedia applied to animation from around the world, as there are many cartoons that deserve it -- the Rankin-Bass Hobbit, anyone? But still a good book detailing what you can buy from Amazon.com right now, to add to your collection.

Fans of animation don't need to look much further than this book by Andy Mangles. He has managed to include reviews for almost every existing type of animation that is currently on DVD.
For parents looking for a good guidebook on animated content, this is a must. Japanese Animation fans looking for reviews of shows and series they've heard about (and even second opinions on ones they've seen) will be pleased.
Andy's reviews are concise and well written. He uses a conversational approach to the reviews that doesn't become dry or bland. He also avoids over-using jargon that animation fans tend to throw around.
Andy gives a quick synopsis of the show, his opinion of the work and than lays down any concerns parents might have (violence or nudity). He has also separated out most of the adult themed shows into their own section. With the great quantity of shows to review Andy does get some help. The authors he picked have very similar writing styles and tastes, and makes for an easy transition.
Last but not least, a section of Easter Eggs (hidden special features on DVD's) is located in the back to aid those of us who like to see everything on the disc.
Being an anime fan myself, I found this book to be very helpful. Andy's writing style is entertaining and direct. The only low marks I could give it are for the cover. It's a bit too goofy looking for my tastes. I would also have enjoyed a section in the review that linked one show with another similar show, or with another work by the same creative team. But aside from those minor points this is a very handy book. I'll definitely use it when considering what my next anime purchase might be.

Star Wars is a cultural phenomenon of global proportions. What began as inspired and inspiring science fiction action/adventure movie trilogy has expanded into novels, comics, video games, fan conventions, and memorabilia that seems to increase in popularity every year. The collaborative work of Star War's enthusiasts W. Haden Blackman and Brett Rectork, "The Art And Making Of Star Wars Force Unleashed" is a profusely illustrated compendium of information about the creation of the 'Star Wars: Force Unleashed' video game that takes place within the Star Wars universe between the fall of the Republic and the rise of the Rebel Alliance. The cutting edge of game design as applied to this Star Wars theme entertainment is fully described and illustrated with more than 300 conceptual artworks. Readers are provided with a virtual tour of the development process, provided with details of unused game concepts, story meetings with George Lucas as well as commentaries and interviews with other key members of the video game design teams. Enhanced with ten Character Cards, "The Art And Making Of Star Wars Force Unleashed" will proved to be an essential addition to the personal collections of dedicated Star Wars fans and enthusiasts as the Star Wars phenomena continues to unfold as a multi-faceted, multi-platform, multi-format entertainment.

i saw this book at borders for double its price glad i held out and bought from amazon no free shipping which is weird lately amazon has been charging trying to make their money either taxing you or for shipping

Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R2GX6YMYRUK8Q2 The Art and Making of Star Wars Force Unleashed brings you behind the scenes into the game development process, while staying close to artists' drawing boards.

This book is choked full with breathtaking concept art, character designs, diary entries and screenshots from the game. It features over 300 pieces of art work in 168 pages. On two pages are pasted paper pockets, with each containing 5 character cards.

If you've owned the "art of" series for the Star Wars movies, expect the same high quality environment paintings. But this one goes up one notch with beautiful page layouts. It's the art magazine type of layout, so the every page design is essentially art in itself. Great effort from the book designers.

The 6 chapters in the book explains the game creation process in depth. That's from the development of a concept, to the pitch and approval stage, next to character studies, then environment and finally the technology behind.

There are lots of nitty gritty details that you won't read on Internet interviews. The authors bring you to the cutting floor and let you read all about the discarded ideas.

After reading the book, you'll literally feel like you've worked with these people (most probably as an intern).

For Star Wars fans, you have no reasons not to get this book. For people interested in concept design and animation, this book has lots of insight for you. This book is a great source of inspiration.

Be careful of the binding though. The part where the cover meets page 1 seems like they will come apart in the future. Easily fixed by pasting some clear tape to fix the problem before it develops.

If you like to see more pictures from the book, just do a search on "parka blogs force unleashed".

It's very interesting to read just how much time and effort goes into making a game, specially one within the Star Wars Universe. From all the different story concepts, to deciding on the timeline of the game, to which characters would make an appearance.

The artwork is nothing short of amazing, with all the different concepts for the Jedi characters, to the look of the Apprentice, to the characters that were not included in the game.

The book of course details the finished game as well, discussing in length the plot of the finished game, so if you don't want to be spoiled then wait until the game comes out to read it.

I recently watched The Clones Wars and thought it was average; it felt more like an homage, than the real deal. And although I enjoyed the prequels, my faith in "a galaxy far, far away" had slowly waned until I got this book. The imagery is stunning and true to form; it looks and feels like a perfect "bridge" between Ep 3 & 4.

Clearly is takes on a new realm in the Star Wars universe - "the force unleashed" but the designers give reasons why we have never seen someone of this power before; all conveyed through hundreds of amazing, beautifully presented images.

From concept to completion, this book tells the story of every facet of the games development including original titles and designs. In honesty, there was only one design (a single page) that I thought looked too far left of center. Other than that, this book is one of the finest "making of" books I have bought in years.

For any Star Wars fan - or someone interested in the tireless amount of effort that goes into making a game - this book is a must.

Hope this helps...

Dr Sanchez-H does a splendid job of documenting the influences inside and outside of Bolivia that shaped Bolivian film and culture. His work not only uses an analytical process but is highly creative as well. A "must read" for anyone interested in Latin American history, film, and politics. Two thumbs up!

Wonderfull book. Both Jorge Ruiz, 'the Bolivian Bob Flaherty' and Jorge Sanjines, 'the Pearl of the Andes', have produced works that stand the test of time. They are real filmmakers, in heart and soul. And trough their works speaks deep passion for the lives lived in this remote area of the world. Did you know that documentarist Jorge Ruiz was the first one to come up with the idea for the story that eventually resulted in 'Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid'?
And that the Jorge Sanjines picture that stars GERALDINE CHAPLIN, 'PARA RECIBIR EL CANTO DE LOS PÁJAROS' was photographed by the great Bolivian cinematographer Guillermo Ruiz? The son of Jorge!

A book descrbing in depth the present and past reality ofbolivina filmmakers, actors an d the strong political backgorundbehind it, showing the harsh reality of this 3rd world drug republic. a must for dope users and film freaks as well

Three unusual areas of film history at last receive their due. The Art and Politics of Bolivian Cinema, by Jose Sanchez-H. (Scarecrow Press, Lanham, Maryland) places this Latin American nation's films in a historical and sociological context, and features interviews with some of the leading directors, above all Sanjines.

"...a valuable contribution to the still slim bibliography on Bolivian Cinema...a vivid and total mosaic of the history of Bolivian Cinema."-From the introduction by Jorge Ruiz, Bolivian Filmmaker

Other Reviews:

"Detailed information, not available elsewhere in English, fills the book, making it a major resource..."-FILM QUARTELY

"...a very comprehensive history based not only on sound research, but also on interviews with Bolivia's most significant filmmakers..a very valuable tool for students and scholars of film and Latin American culture."-BRITISH BULLETIN OF PUBLICATIONS ON LATIN AMERICA

The intricate, well researched tale of Angel Sanctuary has always been a shojo favorite. The detailed art, disturbing concepts, religous imagery, and tragic love that circle the storyline are all exceptional and this book only makes it more amazing. At the beginning of the manga, we see two "evils" retrieve the crystalized body of the beautiful organic angel Alexiel so they can return her soul to it before the battle between heaven and hell. It seems that in the past, manly ALexiel rebelled against Adam Kaddamon, God's ultimate creation. Because of the rebellion, she was crystalized and is supposed to be reincarmated over and over until her new body untaps her powers and destroys themself. THis si the story of her current incarnate, the mixed up and ignored teenager Setsuna Mudo, whom only wants to live his life as an almost normal teenager. Kaori Yuki's spintinglingly gorgeous artwork from both Angel Sanctuary and Count cain (as well as some others) is truly wonderful, and she may be the most skilled creatr I have come across. There is also an interview with her in the back of the book, and a calendar she created based on Lewis Carroll's Alice and Wonderland. If you are hesitating, stop it. This book should be treasured by all true manga fans.

Once this book came out I was iching to get my hands on it. When I saw it on the shelf at Waldenbooks, I grabed it, barely flipped through it, and bought it. It was damn well worth the money.

I always have and will be a fan of Angel Sanctuary as well as Kaori Yuki's gorgeous art. For any fan of AS, this book is an essential!
The material of the book is good quality, and the pictures are astounding. The great thing about this book is the style of art varies; it's not just dark gothic art or happy pictures, but a combination of both. Plus, it's got an interesting chart in the middle of the book that gives detailed information on the legions of heaven and the 7 layers to heaven and hell (I think they're 7).
Another plus is an interview with Kaori Yuki in the back of the book talking about Angel Sanctuary, her British influences, and an Alice in Wonderland calendar she created.
I really don't think anyone needs to hesitate on buying Angel Cage. Obviously, if you're reading this review, I suggest you buy the book from this here amazon.com [...]. For the price compared to the amazing quality, this is the best deal!

Finally, America is starting to wise up and realize the value of translating artbooks-- common in Japan -- so that we can enjoy the lush color and technique that is usually edited to a blurry black and white copy when it makes its way stateside.

Kaori Yuki is no less than a genius, and her work truly shines when you see the depth of her artwork.


Angels and devils; not all beautiful, not all ugly, but all seriously intriguing and entertaining. This is a must see!!

The Art of Angel Sanctuary: Angel Cage is a simply dazzling collection of art from the Manga series created by Yuki Kaori. As a relatively new reader of Manga over just the past year or so I've long admired many of the artists but always lamented the fact that the books I read are in black & white unlike the color comics we've all become used to. Thankfully VIZ has addressed this with this wonderful collection of art from Angel Sanctuary.

Angel Sanctuary is an acclaimed and hugely popular Manga created by Yuki Kaori in Hana to Yume, a bi-weekly shoujo manga magazine published by Hakusensha and now being published in America by VIZ Media. Based somewhat loosely on the biblical New Testament, it deals with Evil striking one of the corridors of heaven and taking back the body of the fallen angel Alexiel in preparation for the coming battle between Heaven and Hell. Alexiel's body has been sealed in a crystal for her rebelling against God. As Punishment for her defiance, Her soul is reincarnated as a human being over and over in a never ending loop where she dies violently, always at a young age. As the story begins Alexiel has been reincarnated as a teenager named, Setsuna Mudou who is the Messiah prophesied to save humanity in the Black Book of Revelation.

This beautifully illustrated hardcover book shows off Kaori's amazing talent as a digest sized, black & white book simply cannot do. Filled with the characters from the story, Kaori's stunning use of color makes these full page, and two-page illustrations suitable for framing (but don't tear up your book!) The illustrations run the gamut from dark gothic, to deeply sad, to wryly humorous as Kaori is able to evoke all of these emotions through her wonderfully expressive art. In addition to the art, there is a reference section in the middle detailing all the main characters of Angel Santuary, broken down by both Heaven and Hell. Also included are cutaway diagrams of the upper and lower planes and the hierarchy of angels.

Finally, there is a lengthy interview with Kaori where she discusses her work as well as her influences. Kaori reveals her love for Lewis Carroll's original Alice in Wonderland story, particularly Carroll's rather moody art, which is far different than what is displayed in the animated versions of his tale. Included is the calendar that she created based on Alice in Wonderland. Kaori also reveals her thoughts on ghosts and things spiritual and makes for a nice accompaniment to the art. It's a gorgeous book that includes a gold-lettered front cover. Simply a must have for fans of Angel Sanctuary or any fan of Manga art.

Reviewed by Tim Janson

If you are a fan of Angel Sanctuary or Kaori Yuki, then this artbook is a must-have. If you've read any of her manga, then you already know what an amazing artist Kaori Yuki is, but these pictures look even better because they are in full-color! These stunning, intricately detailed pictures show many of the different characters in Angel Sanctuary, sometimes amidst poignant imagery and symbolism, sometimes posing with other characters, and sometimes just by themselves, but even then their facial expressions are so real that no other details are needed. Like the series, the mood of the artbook ranges from happy and laid-back to dark and depressing to creepy and mysterious. But having such varied themes doesn't make the book seem disjointed, it actually makes it seem more complete.

Of course this book would be worth buying for the beautiful artwork alone, but it also includes a really helpful reference guide for the Angel Sanctuary series, including brief descriptions of nearly 40 important characters and where they rank in the hierarchy of heaven or hell, and explanations of different places and events from the manga. Considering how complex the series is, I think it's great to have such an easily accessible guide sitting next to my bed when I'm reading, in case I need to refresh my memory. The artbook also contains an extensive interview with Kaori Yuki (in English, don't worry) that's both interesting and informative.

The gorgeous art and all the cool extras that come with it are more than worth this book's price. Even if you aren't a fan of Kaori Yuki or her work, after looking through Angel Cage, you probably will be.

This is an excellent book. It covers the movie perfectly. It's small compared to Art 1, but then again it's only covering a movie and not an entire series. I now realize the value of the art books, and when the next movie "Shadow Rising" comes out I'll gladly by the art book for it as well.

This book is a good companion to the animation, adding lots more detail and also hinting at things to come. The art isn't as good as some other anime, so the art book isn't either, but for details on the Robotech timeline and mecha designs, this book is very nice. As always, I wanted more detail than was given, but there is a nice appendix at the back with the vital stats on all the vehicles. If your a fan, this is a must have book. If your just looking for great art, pass it by.

Totally worth it. Full color, very heavy glossy paper throughout. It has a history of Robotech, both story-internal that covers the major events in all the previous series (or failed series, counting the Sentinels) and real-world that covers all of the original series, failed starts like the Sentinels (which would have been cool) and Robotech 3000 (thank heavens it tanked), and the origin and development of the new movie. All of this is fully illustrated; there are some great screen captures from the original series and the parts of the Sentinels that were produced. All that's nice, but it's not the main course.

The main course is what you've come to expect from Robotech Art books: cool pictures of the characters, mecha, and ships. The book soars in this regard. For new ships and characters there are sketches showing how the design evolved, one or more final "key art" images, and a screencap or two. For stuff carried over from the original series, there is also some original concept art and images of the stuff as is appeared on screen back when, so you can see if and how things were updated (not much, fortunately) for the new movie.

To sum up, this is a sumptuously illustrated and produced volume in its own right, and second only to Robotech Art 1 as both an art book and a sourcebook for the history, characters, and vehicles of Robotech.

brillent movie and a great start to the next part of the robotech saga.cant wait till the rest of the new seies starts showing.this movie will be enjoyed by fans new and old.highly reccommeded.

This book about the Shadow Chronicles, the latest Robotech Saga, has a lot more than just pretty pictures. The book is divided in to 6 major sections and one minor section. Section I summarizes the Robotech story and timeline. It starts in 1999 when the SDF-1 crashes on Earth, to the battle between the Robotech Expeditionary Force (REF) and the Invid at Reflex Point in 2044. It also mentions the ill-fated Robotech 3000 series. (If you never saw Robotech 3000, don't waste your time.) Section II talks about the world in 2044. It focuses on Earth, the Invid, and the REF. It includes descriptions and drawings of major installations such as the Invid hive complex at Reflex Point, Space Station Liberty, and Moon Base ALUCE. Section III has drawings, biographical information, and motivations of all of the characters mentioned in the Shadow Chronicles. This list includes Scott Bernard, Marcus Rush, Marlene Rush, Ariel, The Regess, Maia Sterling, Vince Grant, Jean Grant, Max Romero, Doug Taylor, Gunther Reinhardt, Rick Hunter, Lisa Hunter, Louis Nichols, Janice M2, Sparks, the Haydonites, and "generic" REF shipboard personnel. Section IV presents drawings and descriptions of all the mecha from the series, and a few that were not shown in the movie. These mecha include REF veritechs, cyclones, and body armor, and Invid and Haydonite mecha. Some of the mecha have been seen in print before, but some have not. It is not surprising that after the mecha, Section V shows drawings and descriptions of the ships. This was my favorite section. There are excellent color and black and white drawings of the SDF-3, SDF-4 and all of the REF capital ships including the Ikazuchi, Shimakaze, Horizon, Tokugawa, and Ark Angel classes. This section also has the Invid and Haydonite capital ships. Some of the more familiar REF ships such as the Garfish, Ikazuchi, and Horizon have been nicely redraw with better explanations of their roles and capabilities. Section VI focuses on the production aspects of the movie. It tells the who, what, and how the Shadow chronicles came to be. The last, small section (VII), has 3 pages of reference material. Page 1 is a mecha data page. It has the vital statistics of the various mecha and ships. This information can easily be adapted to roleplaying stats. Page 2 has a glossary of terms that are bounced around the Robotech universe. It quickly defines terms such as veritech, flower of life, etc. The last page is an index. I am a huge Robotech fan that has all of the episodes and movies and play the roleplaying game. This book has a wealth of information and a little bit for everyone - nice pictures, nice descriptions, good background info, and production information. If you like Robotech, I think that you'll like this book.

well I just can tell that is the best "the art of... " book I have.... Just Amazing!!!!

This book can be easily be mistaken as another Pixar artbook. The quality and selection of art included is huge.

There's lots of character and set design. Interestingly, there are pages with characters and photos of materials they used for texturing their 3D models. Tips are given on how texturing is approached on the film.

You'll see characters evolve from pencil drawings to 3D models and clay. They have included a few photos of rendered models without colours and textures, which I thought was quite cool.

Hundreds of drawings fill the pages. You won't see a lot of movie stills, which is great, of course.

Blue Sky Studio takes you through the process of creating and art directing the design of the movie. It's well worth the money for any artbook collectors. There's plenty to read and look at.

There are some pictures of the book on my blog. Just do a search on "parka blogs robots art"

Has some really nice work inside and it's nice to see the process they went through making the movie.

If you are a fan of the Art of Pixar books, Robots is easily on par. It has some of the most talented, amazing and awe-inspiring pre-vis work I have ever seen in an art book. The entire Robots world is contained inside these pages, its entire evolution plotted out with hundreds of drawings, paintings and sculptures.

My biggest problem with "Art of" books is when they show too much finished film imagery. Why would I buy a book with the same images from the movie? I want to know where the film came from, not where it ended up. Art of Robots shines in this respect. In only a few places will you find actual images of the finished CG renders. The rest are raw, traditional works of art that give valuable clues into the films development. I especially like the pages that show a painted character and the photographs used to reference their color and texture for the film. Great information on the film-making process at Blue Sky.

Despite the obvious shortcomings in the film's story, this book stands on its own as one of the better "Art of" books I have seen. A real honor for all the artists who poured their talent into this film.

This book is fabulous! It is better than I thought it would be. It has so much wonderful art inside.

Great book on the subject of Airline posters I would recommend this to artists and aviation buffs.

Impressive look back to early days of air travel. The posters are very clear and have been reproduced well. This is a keeper!

The main difference between early airline posters and later years was the size of the plane. The new winged transport was a prominent design element and the end location, if any, was hardly mentioned. Now, with air travel so commonplace and lots of airlines using the same jet (thanks Boeing and Airbus) the destination is the selling point. Geza Szurovy has selected some fascinating examples of the genre for his book.

Page eleven shows the first airline poster, the 1914 St Petersburg to Tampa route, in a tiny Benoist flying boat, that amazingly only carried one passenger. The venture lasted three months. Of the 170 posters shown there's plenty of choice to nominate your favorites, I like the ones that feature cut-aways of the aircraft and also the beautiful stylised airbrush rendering of New York that TWA used for their Transcontinental Boeing 307 poster from 1940, on page fifty-eight.

Presented in a book these posters create their own interest but I don't think many of them would have won any design awards. The typography and graphics, mostly paintings, just reflect what the airlines marketing department wanted. However ignore the type and look at the artwork and you'll see some wonderful illustrations from Cassandre, Jean Carlu, McKnight Kauffer, David Klein and Stan Galli and one from ace cartoonist Jack Davis, for Icelandic Air.

This is a large size all-color book but I was disappointed by the bland presentation, all the posters are butted into a light grey top-to-bottom panel on each page and even more annoying, on many pages, someone had the silly idea of adding small black and white photos of the planes that appear in the posters. This addition makes the depth of many posters smaller than they need be and the little photo, frequently showing plenty of detail, is just wasted. Fortunately this design treatment does not apply to every page.

If you are interested in the graphics of the airline business have a look at the beautifully designed 'En Route' by Lynn Johnson and Michael O'Leary, this concentrates on airline luggage label art and shows some super examples from airlines featured in 'The Art of the Airways'.

***FOR AN INSIDE LOOK click 'customer images' under the cover.

This is a superb book. The posters are gorgeous and interesting-such as evocative scenes from North Africa in the 1930's and an airplane where the passenger seats were in the wing root. The text is intelligent and concise. Overall the book transports you to times and places far away. We have watched people aged 8 to 80 with no special interest in airlines spend far more time with it than they (or we) had expected.

Mr. Szurovy has had a life long love affair with airplanes, and it shows in this book. We highly recommend it for those who love airplanes, and those who want a great book of romantic and exotic posters from airline companies of yesteryear.

If you take an interest in world aviation history from the passsengers' viewpoint, this book should conjour up the romance and adventure of flying by air during the last century. And in the days when it was extremely expensive relative to sea and land travel, you can understand the need of the airlines to entice people to spend the money.
The book has posters from around the world, even from Australia's Qantas (which the author mis-spells as Quantas), but not alas from a New Zealand airline (but don't worry, the book "The Aircraft of Air New Zealand and affiliates since 1940" puts that right). All posters in this book are superbly reproduced, with an adequate commentary and the page design is very nice. Good stuff!

Hunchback of Notre Dame is one of my favorite Disney classics. This book is a must-have for Disney fans and those who loved the film. The pages have rarely seen actual artwork and production stills(pictures of scenes form the movie) and stunning artwork of medeavile Paris. From page to page there are artwork of the characters from the film and details on who animated them and you'll see concept art of the characters, backgrounds and actual storyboards. Some pages fold-out to reveal storyboards from certain scenes.

If you loved the Hunchback of Notre Dame or is a Disney fan, then I would recommend this book to you. You would definitly read this book again and again. The artwork is so stunningly gorgeous that you just can't look at it without your jaw dropping.

This book can be compared to others such as "The Art of The Lion King" or "Prince of Egypt: New Vision in Animation," which are both great to own. Even if you're not a fan of the movie, this book still overflows with beautiful artwork: concept sketches, background paintings (which are my personal favorite), production stills, and many other treats. It also talks a bit about the making of the film, including the animation department's trip to Paris.
Of course, this book is a must-have for Disney fans, but for those interested in animation in general, this is definetely worth getting.

im actually 14 but still lol x
This film is yes for kids but has a whole different story under the main one , its about what makes a monster and what makes a man. That yes one may look like a man but inside hes the monster where as quasi is a true man inside.

The focus of this book was certainly ART, as it provides stunning pictures of Mideval Paris from historical archive that Disney artists meticulously researched before finalizing the background scenery. We also get a glimpse of the profiling of the psychology of each character, and their interaction that drives the story. However, at this price, I wish that they had CD-ROM version that catered to the sophisticated fans of animation art who are very interested in all of the gory technical details.

Like Rebello's previous "Art of" books (Lion King and Pocahontas), this one is a joy to look at, but it's missing one thing. I wish it had more about the characters' voices. Often the actor or actress who voices a character influences the visual development of that character. The animator may model the character after the actor, or he or she may take one particular gesture from the actor and incorporate it into the character (like Belle - she kept brushing that lock of hair away from her face because her voice, Paige O'Hara, did the same thing). So including some information about the voices behind the characters would provide even more insight for those of us clamoring to know about how an animated film is made. But even with this one flaw, the book is gorgeous, especially the production stills of the interior of Notre Dame. And the concept art is great - sometimes it's wildly different from what actually shows up on screen, so you get a look at the evolution process. Oh - don't skip the index. The illustrations of how animators let off steam are hysterical! My favorite - "Quasi and Harriet". So, if you're a fan of Disney animation, get this!