1 comments about Toys & Prices 2006 (Toys and Prices).

1. It's difficult for any one Toy price guide to be the definitive, sole source of pricing and listing information for every toy. There are simply so many toys out there that you'll always find something that may be in one guide and not in the other. But if you want to start somewhere, or if you're content to choose only one guide, then Toys & Prices 2006 is the best choice. First, it comes from a great source, Krause Publications, who have been putting out excellent price guides for many years as well as publications like Toy Shop, Toy Cars & Models, etc...Second it's written by people who are knowledgeable in the field and in the various types of toys in the book.
   
   The latest edition is 824 pages with over 31,000 toy listings with multiple prices. The book is sectioned by toy types from Action figures, Games, and Lunch boxes to Pez, Robots, Space Toys, and Vehicles, 23 different sections in all. Specific brands such as Barbie, G.I. Joe, Star Wars, and View Master get sections all to their own. The toys can overlap from section to section so if you don't find it in one be sure to check another. Each section starts with an introduction by an expert in the particular type of toy and includes notes on recent market trends. The Barbie section includes information on various resources, publications, websites, books, and clubs for the collector. The G.I. Joe section has a short, but concise history of each of the various Joe action figure lines. The book averages 3 - 4 black & white pictures per page with some 2,100 plus pictures in all. There is also a 16 page color photo section.
   
   Testing the book out I didn't find many things that were not in the guide. One interesting omission was the Lord of the Rings action figures from Toy Biz based upon the recent films. Interesting because the book DID contain the older lines from Toy Vault and Knickerbocker toys. My only real disappointment was that in eight pages of Transformer toys listings there were only five photographs included. Heck you can easily find MIB pictures off the internet of most, if not every Transformer toy. OK, I guess that may be nit-picking just a bit. As will all Krause books the layout is very clean and well laid out. They don't sacrifice readability by making the type so small you can't read it like some other guides do. This is one book I always take along with me when I go out to flea markets or garage sales. Great as usual!
   
   Reviewed by Tim Janson

1 comments about Boys Toys.

1. I got this from Amazon's bargain books because I'm interested in the history of toys and it looked like a great read. It's not really a read at all. My three stars are not to say don't get this book, but rather don't get it at the $16 retail price, as it's at most an hour of reading. Glancing at it I guessed it was a UK book redone in an American edition, which it is. Why did I guess that? Because one of the best features of such books is that they focus on, or at least include, British toys and manufacturers. An American author might be tempted in such a small book to skip over the Daleks from Dr. Who, which here receive their due.
   
   This is a small, hardback, all color, graphically lain out 128 page book. Even after reading many books on the subject, I learned things here I didn't know, mostly about the UK connection. That said, the author obviously didn't know about some of his subjects, which is why there are so many thank- yous in the credits. The text trumpets that photos were taken especially for the book, but that's also the drawback. The photos either don't match the text or the blurbs about them are wrong, which is why this is not a collector book, regardless of that subject on the cover.
   
   For instance, in the chapter titled Lost in Space, the brief text is about the rare Remco Lost in Space (B-9) robot, but the picture is of the excellent Trendmasters B-9 robot which was sold through Toys R Us at the time of the Lost in Space movie release (along with the robot in the movie, Trendmasters released toys of the classic Lost in Space TV series, most of which are now rare, as Toys R Us declined to carry most of them). The Smoking Spaceman is also a picture of the recent repro model, since the original version was dark gray, and this one is blue, one of the recent color variants.
   
   There are many rare toys mentioned, but not pictured, the graphics instead featuring easy to get over hard to find. This is even the case with UK specific toys, such as the Matchbox Thunderbirds Tracy Island playset, and toys by Pallitoy, Gilbert (also US) and Corgi. Why mention Remco if you're not going to show either their amazing battleship or submarine? Regardless, the book is interesting reading, and might make an enquiring mind want to know more. In which case, I'd recommend Timeless Toys: Classic Toys and the Playmakers Who Created Them, Space Toys of the 60's: Major Matt Mason, Mighy Zeroid Robots & Colorforms Outer Space Men, Blast Off! Rockets, Robots, Ray Guns, and Rarities from the Golden Age of Space Toys, Toys of the Sixties: A Pictorial Price Guide, and Marx Toys: Robots, Space, Comic, Disney & TV Characters : With Values (Schiffer Book for Collectors).

No comments about The Toy Train Department - Volume 2: Electric Train Pages from the Great Montgomery Wards Christmas Catalogs of the 1950's and 1960's.

No comments about Bing Trains.

2 comments about Barbie: Doll (Miniature Editions).

1. When I read "hardcover, 128 pages" in the description of a book, I imagine a serious book, and have never thought to check the book's dimensions. I will from now on. This is a cute, superficial little "toy" book most suitable for the 10-12 year old collecting new Barbie dolls. It is not a factual reference book. It features one doll/outfit per page with a short blurb about the picture. The outfits are sometimes matched with incorrect accessories or off-the-wall descriptions. While this is of no consequence to the little girl playing with her first Barbie, it should not be confused with a book for serious collectors.



2. This is the most adorable, artfully written and gorgeously photographed Barbie book of them all! Well done Keni Valenti! Every one of my many nieces and grandaughters will find a copy in their stocking on Christmas morning. Thanks for giving everyone who loves Barbie as much as my family does, such a great stocking stuffer and...just in time for Xmas.

No comments about The Mini Rubber Polar Bear Kit: Chill Out! (Mega Mini Kits).

No comments about American Carousel.

1 comments about Sure Signs That You Are Addicted To Beanie Babies.

1. this book is a great gift for any beanie baby collector

No comments about Modern Collector's Dolls: Price Update (1993 Revised Values).

No comments about Toy Shop 1997 Annual Directory (Toy Shop Annual).