No comments about Japanese Movie Billboards: Retro Art from a Century of Cinema.

No comments about Those Little Rascals: The Pictorial History of Our Gang.

3 comments about New Handbook of British Pottery and Porcelain Marks.

1. This is the essential book if you collect English pottery. I have found it useful as both a collector and dealer. In fact, my old hardbound copy is falling to pieces from use. I am so glad to have this paperback edition for day to day reference. Dr. Godden has tapped sources for mark information that no one else has used. Everyone copies from him.



2. I have several books on pottery. This is the worst. I almost never find the marks I need to find, while the other reference books I have DO have them. I do not recommend this book!



3. Geoffrey A. Godden did it again! A book highly recommended for collectors of pottery. Very informative & from a legend of marks. Plus its in a handy paperback form. If you collect, own your own shop, or write collector's books this is a must have for you! Thank you for writing this wonderful book!

1 comments about Colonial and Early American Lighting.

1. The author gave many cutesy anecdotal examples of how lighting related to ordinary life in the 18th and 19th century, but his approach was so scattershot that the book became very hard to follow. e.g.(you might be reading on page 100 of the book and the author would refer back to a photo plate on page 10 and then to another photo on page 137). The writing is not structured along a logically progressive timeline as most people are used to following in modern research texts. Also the photgraphic plates yield photos of lamps and candlesticks which are quite small with difficult to determine details, due to the large number of items displyed in each plate. The plates are in black and white and the paper is not the best quality for photographic reproduction.

   However, on a more positive note, the anecdotes were a refreshing change from an otherwise boring treatise. I wouldn't recommend this as your first or only choice for scholarly study of the field, but as an adjunct to other texts and for some interesting background material it is fine.

5 comments about Long May She Wave: A Graphic History of the American Flag.

1. With the 9/11 display at the local history center, I took pictures of the tattered flag and other quilts and such there and at the Dogwood Festival quilt shows. Always, the flag is a major item in the photography exhibit.
   
   In Tennessee, we've had some stubborn retaliations about the original flag. According to this book, the first flag was the one used in the Civil War (which the KKK) adopted, the Confederate fighting flag. I had read and related how Betsy Ross had not designed the American Stars and Stripes but merely sewed it for her friend, George Washington. It seems that many primary school teachers were instructing the young minds that Betsy Ross had indeed made it from her own design. She used her own material, true, as she was a seamstress and used what she had on hand with this request for a national flag with no preparation.
   
   Thank God for the South being first again! Even after the American Revolution in which we were granted our freedom from the British, we continued to use the (red,white&blue) color combination (Spain has yellow and red) as no one was in a hurry to be original. They came up with something in 1777, a year after the Constitution was signed in Philadelphia.
   
   A nearby high school has had their Rebel flag taken from them after all of the heritage and history of the school. In Nashville, a crude silver & gold statute of Nathan Bedford Forrest, as designed and welded by a local attorney, was installed out by I65 with several Rebel flags in a semi-circle. Much was made of this desecreation to a united nation, and they were told to remove them promptly. Years later, they are still in place where they can be seen by all of the travelers going South of Nashville and the locals as they use the Interstate to work.
   
   A flag is a flag is a flag. In the review I did about Civil War poems and songs, there were some about the Stars & Stripes as important to all of the soldiers. In Knoxville, the families were split and all I knew about this dat-blame war was that it was 'brother against brother.' That's how it was in this town and the counties surrounding the Smoky Mountains as shown so clearly in the movie, 'Cold Mountain.'
   
   We paid for a U. S. flag which had hung over the Capital building in Washington, D.C. at the urging of Robin Beard, later an ambassador to (?) He was our district representative and I had chased him down the halls with my red, white and blue hat flapping.
   
   The flag is a symbol of this country and decorates the caskets of all veterans. It is a venerable treasure, but I let my brother take the one off my dad's, as he already had the one from his son's coffin earlier. Neither died in any war, but had been a member of the armed forces of this country. The flag is for all of us to revere and every family should own one. I know someone who said he would hang the Confederate flag out of his office window if he could get away with it, and yet his family were for the North. He is not a Rebel, nor ever would be, so I was proud of his claims, which proved to be false. He just likes to write controversial things to create some kind of action. This is such a boring, old town. The flag perks up any rally, picnic or gathering (political or non-political). Everyone in America loves that glorious old flag which stands for freedom.



2. Beautiful book of American flag items from long ago to today. What a wonderful collection and interesting items. I love just looking and looking.



3. This book is fascinating. It is one you can pick up and browse a bit and become lost in the art and imagery of an icon that is so familiar we rarely take a good look at it. By sharing his collection with us, Mr. Hinrichs takes us beyond the simple stars and stripes to a visual history of our country.

   Anyone familiar with graphic design should recognize Mr. Hinrichs' work. The overall presentation of the piece is incredible. I call it "the true coffee table book" because I think it is one can be opened and looked at and enjoyed a few pages at a time, and isn't that the purpose of a coffee table book?

   The timing of the work is fascinating. Although initially published this spring, it is extremely appropriate for the new wave of patriotism that has swept this country since the tragic events in September.




4. I stumbled on this title when it appeared as the centerpiece to a local store display of flag books that went up in the wake of September 11th. The stunning production and the breadth of material represented provide a truly unique insight into the power of the American flag as a symbol (of freedom, to be sure, but also as a symbol of revolution, grief, and pride). If you want the full impact of the flag's place in our history, as a graphic element that appears in everything from memorials to toys to pop art to protest banners (and more), this is the book. The text is limited but insightful, just enough to complement the tremendous variety of objects from the author's personal collection. I never failed to find new wonders on each page (including manifestations of the flag I would never have imagined), and in sum the book also amounts to a testament to American ingenuity. There's nothing else like it.



5. It is hard to see why the authors of "Long May She Wave" chose to burden it with a title that not only parades a demeaning stereotype misrepresenting objects as female, but rudely misquotes the words of our national anthem to do so. A check of the Smithsonian Institution's excellent web page on the history of the Star Spangled Banner and the drafting and publication of the National Anthem confirms that no one associated with the flag or the anthem ever referred to it as "she" as this book title so insultingly does. In documents from those patriots who made the famous banner, used it in battle, preserved it for posterity, and memorialized it in the inspiring poem that became our national anthem, the flag is sensibly termed it, not the coy and historically false "she" invented by the authors of this book. Since the the title signalled the authors' disregard for historical accuracy, I left it on the display shelf unopened.

5 comments about 100 Legendary Knives.

1. The good news: great photos, excellent design. The bad news: absolutely atrocious writing. Pointless captions for every photo. The author states the obvious, gives a tiny bit of background info, raises questions he never answers, and finds a way to say "par excellence" to describe every other knife in this book. Reading this book is like standing next to a guy at a party who jabbers away for three hours and never says anything important. But the photos really are quite nice.



2. This is an excellent book with wonderful illustrations and descriptions. It is not very technical but some of the knife terms used falls strangely on the Anglo ear! My only reserve about the book is that it is too biased towards French knives. Which I suppose is to be expected from a French author. But in this respect the title is slightly misleading. It should rather have read "100 Legendary French Knives - and a few others".



3. If you have any interest in knives or collecting them You will find out exactly how good your taste in knives really is. This book has full page color pics and is a very easy read.You might find yourself buying knives you never heard of or smile when you see how many legendary knives you allready own. How good is your taste in knives?



4. I always have such a hard time buying gifts for men, my father most of all. However, when I saw this book I knew it was for him. He is an avid knife collector, and this is the one thing I could get him that he wouldnt have ever thought of buying for himself. This book will be proudly displayed within all of his collection, and he can pick it up and flip through it anytime he chooses. Thanks



5. Pacella's book 100 Legendary Knives contains excellent photos of exemplary knives of various types, albeit types arbitrarily chosen by him. The pics absolutely make the book worthwhile. However, because of Pacella's arbitrary choices of knives, some of the selected knives are not really "legendary" in any true degree, but simply an example of one of many types of knives. Various of the non-American bladesmiths and certainly most of the examples of French knife makers could have been replaced with more prominent names, most likely American. Of course, having arbitrarily named certain knives as legendary, like the Mississippi Gambler's knife, Pacella immediately opens himself to statements such as mine. It is good to remember that everybody's list of 100 legendary anything is up for discussion and disagreement. As well, the writing style at times creates ridiculous senses of things--"The various periods of prehistory succeeded each other, ..." What is "prehistory," that is, what exact time is before historical reckoning? And, yes, historical delineations of time are usually chronological and therefore do fall one after the other. The pics make the book, and it is well-worth the price only for the pics.

2 comments about Shawnee Pottery: The Full Encyclopedia With Value Guide (Schiffer Book for Collectors).

1. Everything you ever wanted to know about collecting this fine pottery is in here. Very impressed about the history and how complete it is. Pam did an EXCELLENT job in researching. Easy to follow with great pictures. You will never regret getting a copy of this book. It is WONDERFUL.



2. This book is a must for any Shawnee collector. The information and pictures are extensive and laid out in easy to read chapters. She covers all Shawnee, from cookie jars to ashtrays. I take this with me on all Shawnee excursions. It is large and somewhat heavy, definitely not a "pocket guide".

1 comments about Anri Woodcarving: Bottle Stoppers, Corkscrews, Nutcrackers, Toothpick Holders, Smoking Accessories, and More.

1. This book is written for collectors but as a woodcarver, I appreciate the history of woodcarving that is a part of this book. The book is filled with great color photos of carvings done over many years. On the downside, it cost me more money because after reading it, I ended up going to ebay and bidding on several anri carvings. I did note than a number of the carvings for sale were being sold by the books author.

No comments about The Official Blackbook Price Guide to U.S. Postage Stamps 2005, 27th Edition (Official Blackbook Price Guide to United States Postage Stamps).

No comments about Toy and Miniature Sewing Machines: Identification & Value Guide (Toy & Miniature Sewing Machines Bk. II).