2 comments about Islamic Design (Dover Pictura).

1. I use a lot of Dover clipart and this 'design series' is the first real disappointment. They want a premium price for this clip-art, and here's what you get for it;
   
   Large sized images, many in excess of 3000px, but much of the art is obviously just re-scanned at a higher dpi. That doesn't necessarily improve the quality of the lines and colors. Colors which should be solid are instead, dithered, and often fail to fully fill up their apportioned areas, leaving margins of white space. Black lines are not entirely black, and are not entirely there. The bottom line is that these scans are very poor quality and require a lot of touch-up before they can be morphed and used in a project. Added to the fact that there's half as many pieces of clip art as you'd find in a Dover book that costs 1/3rd as much, and that there's 'filler' clips which are just about useless because they're essentially showing you the original pictures from where a pattern was pulled, this 'designer series' is a huge disappointment. One made worse if you bought any of these at full price.
   
   Do yourself a favor, buy these off the used bookshelf, there's good reason that they're so much less expensive there.



2. I am a graphic designer for a magazine, and I use Dover publications often in both my professional and personal work. I have to represent many different cultures with the layouts I create. The Islamic patterns in this book and CD-Rom set are beautiful, and very useful. The price is so cheap, even if you only end up using a few images, it is a good deal. They can help put the viewer in the culture when the photo shoot needed help and an appropriate stock photo is not available. The printed book itself is attractive and pleasant to browse through.
   
   One drawback is that the sources are not identified. It would be nice to know something about the background behind each design: where is it from, is it characteristic of any particular Islamic group? I would like to be able to use the images as intelligently as possible, and a little education along with the artwork would be nice.
   
   I haven't used them yet, but there are also vector versions: over 70, all one color pieces. The quality varies, but at the price, I have no complaint. At least some of them will be useful, from what I have seen.
   
   Overall, I would recomemd this book; you won't find a less expensive collection of Islamic art with this high lvel of quality and variety of formats.

1 comments about Modern Menswear.

1. Great visuals and it breaks it down by designer. My only wish was that it didn't just wrap up each designer with a little blurb and then some pictures. It could be more complete but since this is a book about a group of people, it appears that they left the extra information for you to seek out elsewhere. Otherwise a great reference for newer menswear designers.

2 comments about Old-Time Travel Posters and Luggage Labels CD-ROM and Book (Dover Electronic Clip Art).

1. I'm a prop master for a local college and this book is invaluable for re-creating the correct look for any and all stage and film productions we do here.



2. I wanted to do a decorating project and needed some Hotel and Travel Stickers. This was an excellent resource for completing my project. It is too bad Hotels and Railways no longer do this.

3 comments about Holiday Graph Art.

1. Great activity book. Your child/group will get to practice graphing, the book is a very satisfying puzzler (if you keep the picture a mystery until they are done, and finally, your child/group will get to sharpen those skills needed to follow directions.
   
   Here are a couple of tips:
   
   1. Mark off each item as you complete it on the graph to prevent mistakes.
   2. Until you are sure that your child/group has the hang of it do all the artwork in COLORED PENCIL. This way if there are any mistakes they can be erased without messing up the whole picture.
   3. Not all of the books in this series are created equal. Some are harder than others.



2. This is not the same as the original Cartesian Cartoons. Its for much younger students.



3. I am a 5th grade teacher and my students love the graph art books. It's a good way to introduce them to coordinate graphing, too. I keep some copies around for those early finishers or to use on those days when you need a short activity to do. I have Challenging Graph Art and Holiday Graph Art and use them both.

5 comments about The Illustrated Star Wars Universe (Star Wars).

1. Take the artistic talents of acclaimed production artist Ralph McQuarrie and the writing skills of prolific author Kevin J. Anderson (The Jedi Academy Trilogy) and you get The Illustrated Star Wars Universe, a coffee table book that gives readers a glimpse of the various planets showcased in George Lucas' original Star Wars Trilogy (1977-83).

   Using McQuarrie's production sketches and paintings for A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi and other Lucasfilm projects (including the Endor-based television specials of the mid-1980s plus preliminary sketches for the 1997 Special Edition updates), Anderson takes readers on a grand tour of the most important planets seen in the Luke Skywalker/Darth Vader half of the Star Wars Saga. Starting with Tatooine, the desert world that is the home world to both Anakin Skywalker and his son Luke and ending with Alderaan, the planet where Princess Leia was hidden from her father and was doomed to be destroyed by the Death Star, eight planets are described in individual chapters, each told not by one omniscient narrator but by eight different observers, each with his or her point of view and/or political agenda.

   For instance, while the chapter on Tatooine is an anthropologist's dispassionate and scientific report on the desert planet's hostile environment and its hardy inhabitants (ranging from the nomadic and hostile Tusken Raiders and scavenging Jawas to the resilient human moisture farmers and their homesteads), the description of Coruscant, the massive city-planet which was once the seat of power of the Old Republic and is the capital of Emperor Palpatine's Galactic Empire, is a pro-Imperial propaganda article authored by Pollus Hax, the Emperor's chief public relations expert and "spin doctor."

   Although much of the artwork featured in The Illustrated Star Wars Universe has been published elsewhere (either in the various Art of Star Wars books relating to the Classic Trilogy or in McQuarrie's Star Wars Portfolios), this combination of production paintings and Anderson's vivid and imaginative text works wonderfully and adds detail and background to both the movies and the post-Episode VI Expanded Universe novels, including Anderson's own JedI Academy trilogy and Darksaber.




2. Awesome Illustrations and enjoyable narratives to go along with them. Lots of fun.



3. Ralph is one of the Best Illustrators that i know.His work is very inspirating for me.If you are true fan of Star Wars you just need this book.Excellent printing on high quality paper.Don't wait and buy this piece of art.



4. This incredible book help you feel like all the Star Wars universe and its planets are real. You read the accounts of the "writers" and you think that they really exists.
   It helps to understand all the story and the beutiful pictures help to get into.
   A MUST book for a Star Wars fan.



5. This book really showcases the beautiful artwork of Ralph McQuarrie, who helped establish the look of the Star Wars films way back at the dawn of the story as we know it. In this book we see fascinating early visual drafts of things that we would later see in the movies. Most of it was impossibly fantastic to ever get filmed at the time but maybe we'll see some of it in the next two movies.

   The chapters on Alderan and Bespin are particular fascinating and beautiful.

No comments about Excess: Fashion And The Underground In The 80S.

5 comments about Cowboy Boot Book, The.

1. This is Tyler & Jim's first "boot book" and it has turned more people into boot collectors and bootmakers than any other.
   
   I think it's because of the great personal stories it tells ...and the portrait Jim took of each maker. This book has the look and feel of a treasure map.
   
   Originally printed in 1992, it's remarkable that it's still in print. Get it while you can.



2. If your're looking to buy this book then you've probably heard of the legendary book titled "Texas Boots" now out of print. Don't fret--this book is better. Whereas the older book was mostly black and white, this one has beautiful color pictures, and most of the bootmakers listed here are still alive. In fact, if you buy this book don't bother to consider "The Art of the Boot" by the same author as the two books are about the same, except that Art costs more and has a few more pictures, but the Cowboy Boot Book has a much better history of the cowboy boot.



3. This is a book that works on many levels making it a great introduction to the history, art, and craft of cowboy bootmaking. It quotes Jack Reed, the only owner of a one-man boot shop left in Texas, saying it takes 372 steps to make cowboy boots, but is not detailed enough to list them all. Until I read this book, I had no idea that there was a market in vintage cowboy boots. I found out that original ornate tops can be fitted with a replaced foot to bring old boots back to life. Jim Arndt's photographs of boots, bootmakers, and boot collectors are outstanding throughout and really bring the book to life. The beginning of the book does an admirable job tracing the history of cowboy boots back to the old Texas-to-Kansas cattle drives of the post-Civil War era. This is followed by a great A - Z directory of the various skins that have been used to make the boots including characteristics, care, and current availability. The next section is a great history of the major boot making factories and the people behind them with chapters on Justin, Nocona, Tony Lama, Lucchese, and Rocketbuster. The rest of the book covers the rest of the cowboy boot business and personalities. Included are descriptions of individual bootmakers and cowboy boot collectors. Each is lavishly illustrated with pictures of them and their boots. The author and photographer are avid collectors and their collections are covered in this section of the book. The book ends with an outline of the retail side of the industry. Major sellers of new and vintage boots are described and a state-by-state Store Guide is included. Of course, not every state has a custom bootmaker or a vintage cowboy boot store, but you can still find the nearest one if this book has convinced you that you are ready for the next step above looking in the Yellow Pages under Western Apparel. The only place where I felt this book went too far is when they say in the caption to a photograph: "the details of this pair of boots could be compared to a fine oil painting." But if you want a basic knowledge of cowboy boots, or love to look at cowboy boots either in a store or on other people's feet this is the book for you.



4. Yep, I'm a boot wearin' Jewish cowboy! (A doctor, in fact!) I started Country & Western line dancing a couple years ago, and from there I got into boots. Been wearin' 'em ever since!

   That said, I was totally blown away by the unbelievable hand-made boots in this book. Spectacularly photographed, they appear as works of art. (I see that the same authors are publishing a book later this year called "The Art of the Boot". You know I'll be buying a copy!). I personally have a couple pairs of wonderful Tony Lama boots that fit like a glove, but the boots in this book are in a different class entirely - we're talking ten times more expensive than anything you might find on the shelf at a western wear store.

   It'll be a while before I can afford any of the boots in this book, but it's nice to admire them, and appreciate the craftsmanship and dedication that went into making them.




5. Filled with great photographs and lots of info, this book is a visual kick in the butt as well as an interesting look at wearers and makers of boots. (Surprise inside - Imelda wasn't the only one with a problem.) The author's interest in the fancy, short boots of the 40's is apparent in the book; after all, they are fascinating to look at. On the other hand, there is not a lot of history associated with the development of the cowboy boot as an article of working clothing, or how it became a touchstone of American culture. In a nutshell, the book is a magnificent coffee table work that is much too informative to leave in the living room. There is nothing else quite like it in print and it is a must have for anyone into things Western.

2 comments about Mechademia 1: Emerging Worlds of Anime and Manga (Mechamedia).

1. An "academic journal" on this J-Pop phenomenon that should interest anyone/everyone, accessible to all. Don't miss the second issue, "Networks of Desire." A thousand ideas per second.



2. The full table of contents for this book is as follows:
   
   "The Japan Fad in Global Youth Culture and Millennial Capitalism"
   by Anne Allison
   
   "Globalizing Manga: From Japan to Hong Kong and Beyond"
   by Wendy Siuyi Wong
   
   "The World of Anime Fandom in America"
   by Susan Napier
   
   "Costuming the Imagination: Origins of Anime and Manga Cosplay"
   by Theresa Winge
   
   "Assessing Interactivity in Video Game Design"
   by Mark J.P. Wolf
   
   "Mori Minoru's Day of Resurrection"
   Introduced by Takayuki Tatsumi
   
   "Superflat and the Layers of Image and History in 1990's Japan"
   by Thomas Looser
   
   Kurenai no Metalsuits, "Anime to wa nani ka/What is animation"
   by Ueno Toshiya, translated by Michael Arnold
   
   "Anime: The Multiplanar Image."
   by Thomas Lamarre
   
   "The Werewolf in the Crested Kimono: The Wolf-Human Dynamic in Anime and Manga"
   by Antonia Levi
   
   "Metamorphosis of the Japanese Girl: The Girl, the Hyper-Girl, and the Fighting Beauty"
   by Mari Kotani
   
   "Revolutionary Girl Utena: Manga and Anime Citations"
   Compiled by Timothy Perper and Martha Cornog
   
   
   REVIEW & COMMENTARY SECTION
   (Edited by Timothy Perper and Martha Cornog)
   
   "Metropolis," reviewed by Bill Benzon; "Adult Manga: Culture and Power in Contemporary Japanese Society," by Sharon Kinsella, reviewed by Vern Bullough; "Mobile Suit Gundam," by Tomino Yoshiyuki, translated by Fred Schodt, reviewed by Patrick Drazen; "Maria-Sama ga Miteru" and "Azumanga Daioh," reviewed by Marc Hairston; "Manga: 60 Years of Japanese Comics," by Paul Gravett and "Watching Anime, Reading Manga: 25 Years of Essays and Reviews," by Fred Patten, reviewed By Brian Ruh; "Revolutionary Girl Utena: The Adolescence of Utena,"by Saito Chiho, reviewed by Timothy Perper and Martha Cornog.
   
   TORENDO SECTION
   (Edited by Michelle Ollie)

1 comments about Fitting & Pattern Alteration: A Multi-Method Approach.

1. Fitting & Pattern Alteration: A Multi-Method Approach...This guide provides hundreds of clear illustrations with concise descriptions of fitting issues and easy-to-follow directions to resolve them using several methods. The authors cover virtually every fitting aspect of the human body, including the special problems presented by those of us who may have physical problems that translate into badly fitting garments, from neck to ankle.

   Anyone frustrated with the results of their own apparel projects needs this guide on their sewing room bookshelf.

5 comments about The Art of Ray Harryhausen.

1. Excellent addition to Harryhausen's "An Animated Life".
   Drawings,sketches,pictures...Recommended!!



2. If you're a fan of Ray and his films, or even just a fan of great movies in general, this is a must-have book. There are plenty of other reviewers here who give details about the book, so I'll skip that and just say that it really does live up to the hype you're seeing here. Ray is a master (and a really nice guy too), and he speaks candidly and in detail about his life and films so it's an enjoyable and informative read. Plus the pictures are phenomenal. I don't know that I'd say this is better than the first book, because they're really both great.



3. I grew up with Harryhausen movies. This book captures my imagination like his animation did when I was a kid. I love it. It is almost as much fun to read as it is to look at the awesome pictures of Harryhausen's drawings and sculptures! If I had to reduce my animation library down to 5 books, this would be one of them.



4. I don't feel qualified reviewing my purchase as it was a gift for a dear friend who has been a Harryhausen fan since he was twelve. By his reaction upon receiving the book I felt I must have given him the greatist gift in the world. It was before I wrapped the book that I had a chance to skim through it and I found it to be very impressive in its wealth of photos, illustrations and information. I was very glad to see it was printed on quality paper and the illustrations were large and clear. I have seen other books of this type and get very annoyed when they print a picture of a film no larger then 2"x 2 1/2". I would say this book is a great tribute to Mr. Harryhausen's career.



5. Much better than the first book. The first while good was to technical. We all love Ray Harryhausen for his visual work and this book shows it off beautifully. I highly reccommend it.
   Phil