3 comments about Antique Trader Vintage Magazines Price Guide.

1. I've been interested in old magazines for a few years now, and have been looking for a helpful price guide. I just bought this, and I highly recommend it. There's a lot of information, not just about the magazines most of us are familiar with, but also about many lesser knonwn older magazines that have great value due to authors who published their early work in them--e.g. Edgar Allen Poe. It's not just helpful information as a price guide, it's very interesting reading! Lots of great color photos also. I looked through another magazine price guide in a bookstore, and this one is much, much better.



2. I picked up this book to learn more about vintage ads and magazines I was interested in. I was pleasantly surprised that not only was the book a complete guide to magazines but had great analgoies and stories the "editors" wrote within.
   Great information on a subject that seems to be little explored.



3. When we moved into our 1920's home,we found boxes left in the attic filled with old fashion magazines. My husband was ready to trash the lot, but being of the pack rat variety I found a home for them in my office.
   
   With the help of The Antique Trader Vintage Magazines Price Guide the door was opened for me to the world of old magazines. The beautiful color photos helped me to easily identify my boxes of "trash" and give them a value.
   
   Most important, the love affair the authors have for magazines comes across in their historical entries. The unique way they organize collectible magazine people into Sleepers like OZ artist W.W. Denslow or Stars like F.Scott Fitzgerald makes me want to haunt local yard sales. My major problem with the book was that I became so fascinated that I wanted more. The book could easily have been double in size and information and kept my interest as both a reader and for use as a desk reference. With what I've learned, our next home will hopefully be an 1890's Victorian with a basement full of Godey's Lady's Book magazines.

1 comments about Devilish Greetings: Vintage Devil Postcards.

1. Book Review by Susan Brown Nicholson
   
   
   Beauchamp, Monte. Devilish Greetings, 2007, 160p, 160 color ill, ISBN 978-1-56097-871-8: Grath & Thompson, Fantographic Books, WA. To order: Fantagraphics Books, 7563 Lake City Way NE, Seattle, WA 98115, 1-800-657-1100.
   
   Once again Graphic designer Monte Beauchamp has produced a delightful book on a devilish subject, vintage devil postcards. The illustrations are outlandishly delightful with examples of metamorphic, novelty, and outstanding publishers like Osnabrucker Papierwaaren Fabrik (OPF), and more.
   
   Devilish Greetings is a fiery, full-color survey of spooky, kooky and delightfully demented devil postcards from days gone by. It is a fun filled page turner, a must have for anyone interested in the visual arts, pop culture, and the glory days of the penny postcard.
   
   The Devil made me do it, is a well known phrase. At the turn of the last century, postcard artists delighted at producing comic art to portray this mythical creature. While as Beauchamp points out, the Devil seems to have appeared in every form of mass-marketed printed matter, no where is he more prevalent than on the picture post card.
   
   The Earliest examples are European, but went on to promote the haunting holidays of Halloween, and to celebrate the sinful and saucy side of life. This book features some of the most fantastic images of this horned creature whether he is in red, blue or black. He frolics in flight with wings and tosses his long tail as a form of expression. Don't miss the colorful antics of this creature featured on the pages of this delightful book.
   
   The design of the book itself makes you want to jump into the fray and start collecting this image. The examples illustrated are outstanding with a nice smattering of the Krampus through the pages. Don't miss this as a devilish gift for someone on your list.

2 comments about Twelve Old-Time Cats Bookmarks (Small-Format Bookmarks).

1. It's so handy, and better than dog-earing my books.
   
   I love buying this because when I just need another buck or two to push me over into the $25 range to get free SuperSaver shipping. I don't get why I have to pay the extra buck in processing fees though...



2. These are very cute. My only gripe is that they are only printed on ONE SIDE, and I like my bookmarks to be printed on both sides.
   But, they are very cute, and I gave these as a gift.

1 comments about Old-Fashioned All-Occasion Cards: 24 Cards (Card Books).

1. This is a charming collection that invokes memories of a gentler time. The postcards feature holiday themes, most with sweet faced children and soft, cuddly animals. The patriotic cards (Memorial Day, President's Day, Fourth of July)are rousing and powerful. This is a delightful collection that will charm the recipient.

No comments about Christmas Merrymaking.

5 comments about Sexcats.

1. 
   There really aren't many books that contain just a bunch of GREAT nudie picks from the fifties and sixties. Most of them out there are too small, and too sparse, with maybe one or two good pics, and pages and pages of nonsense. This book got it right. 350+ pages of HAWT fotos from the ghost of Kittens Past. I dig.
   I dig even more than my copy of Playboys Redhead book... and that book is pretty hot.



2. Christopher Mealie has put together a book of photos for those of us ( aging baby boomers ) who remember when lingerie, and / or bare breasts were as hot as it got. There's something about what you DON'T see that makes it all the more sexy. That these women are rather normal-looking, and would, most likely, never grace the pages of Playboy, makes them more realistic, and, attainable.For those of you who don't, necessarily, want the girl next door, and like a wide variety of breasts, this collection is for you.



3. I think the images are stunning, the girls evoke a classic beauty that doesn't exist anymore EXCEPT between the covers of this excellent book. People today don't appreciate fine erotica. . . Maxim has ruined it for this generation. Thankfully, this brilliant book captures the seduction of another era. . . one that is missed but not forgotten. Get a copy of this book if you want to see what a truly sexy woman looks like. . . you won't find her in playboy or maxim, but you will find her in this book.



4. Its a great collection of vintage erotic photographs........ Unlike anything available now days. Buy this book if not for the nude ladies....then for the photography art!!!



5. Christopher's collection of photographs is a wonderful nostalgic view of the way things used to be. It gives us a fond look back at the times when these photos were quietly passed around in secret, and when we got to sneak a peek at our dad's (or grandfather's) private stash.
   
   Well done!

5 comments about Fountain Pens: Their History and Art.

1. This handsome volume reflects the high quality standards, cantankerous spirit, and eccentrically traditionalist preferences that seem to characterize many of us who are drawn to the impractical beauty we call insist upon calling fountain pens.
   
   An introduction and six chapters tell the story of this writing instrument, its long evolution, its demise in the twentieth century, and its rebirth as a collector's item here in our twenty-first. Five lavishly illustrated chapters meander their way from the pre-fountain-pen spectacle of rooms-full of 'inexpensive scribes' with quill in hand doing the work of a small iiterate class ('Pre-1880s: before the fountain pen', pp. 22-39) on to moderate levels of pen production ('1880-1910: early marketing efforts, pp. 40-52) to the rise of a corporate behemoth (1910-1925: competing with Sheaffer', pp. 54-85) to the fountain pen's twentieth century misfortuntes ('1930-1940: how the depression affected the market', pp. 86-107); '1945: the war: how bargain debasement nurtured the ballpoint pen', pp. 108-121) and finally to a day when--mirabile dictu--people write books about fountan pens ('The future: the rebirth of the cottage industry', pp. 122-128).
   
   Mr. Steinberg is neither an economist or sociologist and so given to amusingly sweeping explanations of pen life: 'By the 1930s the world was in the grips of the Great Depression. The public wanted to be dazzled by technological marvels to take their minds off their economic woes. Hence the uncommon popularity of the Schneider Trophy seaplane races and the land-speed record attempts ... For fountain pen design, the Great Depression made utilitarianism and functionality the order of the day.'
   
   However, Steinberg *is* a lover of pens and that's why he's a capable author of a coffee-table illustrated book like this one.
   
   One closes this book with several impressions forming themselves in his brain.
   
   First, there is the sheer technological challenge of making a pen where ink flows in the directions it's supposed to, with tolerable evenness, and a refusal to leak. This is one of those small technological adventures that culminates in something the rest of us take for granted rather than to the cleaners with ink stains around the pockets.
   
   Then there is the sheer variety that flourishes within somewhat unbending natural limits. As with dogs, there are only so many ways and means to make a pen. Yet the plethora of canine breeds on offer has its parallel in the dazzling display of pens of which photographs, paintings, and reproduced advertisements flavor this book.
   
   If you are so inclined, you may well find a resource that will educate your more thoroughly about fountain pens. But probably not with a more satisfactory outcome for the appreciative eye.



2. If you own three books on pens, this should be one of them.



3. I purchased this as a Father's Day gift for my dad, who is a fountain pen addict. He loved the book and the history, but especially the pictures of the old ads for some of the classic fountain pens. He continues to talk about the book and for about $20 I found a gift that has become one of his favorites.



4. This is a beautiful book. The covers and pages are of high quality papers. Steinberg has written a truly excellent book on history of the fountain pens. Though by no means it is comprehensive and detail but definitely more than adequate for any serious collectors as part of the essential knowledge on fountain pens. The illustrations are well laid out accompanying the story and they are simply superb. A very elegant book and suitable for both beginners and serious collectors. Even good as a gift to introduce someone to pen collecting. I simply love the book and a pleasure to read it.



5. I've received the book yesterday. It is not the first related to Fountain Pens that I see, but this one is really nice. It is not written as the others but as a review of the history and the kind of pens. I've read almost a half of it last night!

No comments about Encyclopedia of Collectible Children's Books.

4 comments about Automat Journal (Potter Style).

1. i thought this was a book about the automat and it's just a blank book which is not what is described on the website. Why do you need 2 authors for a blank journal?????



2. I was not happy with this because I thought it was a journal about the Automat but instead it was a lined log book and to be written in.



3. Don't expect to read about the automat in this book, it's just blank pages of lined paper. Nowhere in the description does it say it's a blank book. I was looking forward to reading about someone "reminisce about yesteryear" but my memory of this book is not so fond. I wish I hadn't wasted my money on it.



4. I ordered this journal as a companion to "The Automat: The History, Recipes, and Allure of Horn & Hardart's Masterpiece" as it was a recommended "go together" and "written" by the same authors.
   Although the blurb on the back says "A nickel won't buy you a cup of coffee anymore, but at least you can reminisce of yesteryear in vintage style", This is a blank journal and the reminiscing all depends on what you write. I was under the impression this was a journal written by the great-grandaughter of the founder and would give some insight of the day. I was wrong.
   As a blank diary, it's vintage style is appealing and it's just the right size to carry with you if you're so inclined. If you're expecting to reminisce about the Automat, buy the book I mentioned above.

1 comments about 20th Century Paper Dolls: Identification & Values.

1. This book, which retails for under $20, amazingly consists of over 330 pages of pure content in full color.
   
   20th century paper doll publishing was dominated by just a few large companies, but there were scores of smaller companies that contributed to an industry that is now sadly in retreat. Mary Young's book looks at these smaller companies, whose heyday was mostly in the earlier part of the century. It catalogs the output of the smaller companies and provides profuse all-color illustrations of the paper doll sets. Also, it often deliciously allows the user to peek inside the sets to see the paper dolls as both art and historical document.
   
   Countless sets are shown in this reference book, they are named, assigned monetary values, and descriptive notes are often attached. The value to the collector is significant. The identification of orphaned dolls and even loose items of paper doll clothing, the kind that pop up out-of-place in large paper doll lots, is made possible.
   
   The only drawback to the book is that some of the pictures are blurry or are too dark. That is quibbling because a great number of the items of the items depicted in the book are rare. It was a real privilege to get access to these wonderful old and fragile toys.