Book Description
The Coin Collector's Survival Manual has been called "one of the most important coin books ever written" by The New York Times and has sold more than 80,000 copies. This new explanded edition examines the coin field from an insider's perspective and breaks important new ground in disclosing the ins and outs of coin collecting and investing.
Customer Reviews:
Good Book---Where's the Follow Through??.......2007-05-03
I have been a fan of Scott Travers books for a while now. When it came time to sell my collection after reading a few books, Mr. Travers who promotes himself and his firm throughout this particular book, was nowhere to be found. I followed the advice in this book and tried to contact Mr. Travers several times by phone and email to sell my collection valued at over $20K. After leaving messages on more than one occasion, I received a phone call inquiring on my collection, and explaining I would receive another phone call later. That phone call never came. All I would ask is that this author, who took time to write a book claiming to be the best of it's kind on the market, to follow through with his own words.
Perfect for the Beginner.......2007-02-16
I've decided to begin collecting and needed something to kick-start my hobby. This book appears to be a nice way to ease into it. It gives the basic grading systems and sound advice. It's not too detailed and covers what you might require as a novice. If you're considering US coins, get the "Red Book" as well for pricing and more info.
An excellent book on coin collections.......2006-05-28
Recently I had inherited a coin collection. Honestly, I basically knew very little about coin collecting. I found this book to be very informative, and very helpful in learning about this hobby. I like that Scott Travers writes in a no-nonsense style. He is easy to read, and better yet, easy to understand. I think he goes well to describe many aspects of coin collecting.
I like that the book takes it time in telling you about the grading of coins, where to purchase coins, and better yet the pitfalls and traps inexperienced people may fall into. I like the many pictures throughout the book and found them instrumental in understanding about grading, and how to look at coins for any possible defects.
I would recommend this book to the novice, as well as the more experienced coin collector. I think this book covers many aspects of coin collecting that everyone can gain knowledge from. This is definately the ideal book to pick up for someone who is interested in collecting coins.
Absolutely crucial info for anyone investing in U.S. coins!.......2006-02-15
OK, so I'm biased. I've known Scott Travers since he was a teenager, and I've worked professionally with him on a number of projects over the years, including this book. But I'm also a former consumer affairs reporter, former American Numismatic Association Consumer Education Committee Chair and a former member of the Board of Directors of the Better Business Bureau in Chicago. Yeah, I'm a big believer in consumer education and protection. That's exactly what Scott's new book provides: absolutely crucial information for anyone who wants to buy rare coins whether for future financial gain or just to make sure you're getting a good deal today.
At the February 2006 Long Beach Coin, Stamp & Collectibles Expo I watched and listened as an unsuspecting "collector" who purchased several gold coins in an online auction was crushed to learn from several reputable dealers that his "MS68" Saint Gaudens was only MS64 at best and worth thousands less than the $8,000 he paid for it. If he'd read Scott's chapters about grading and online auctions he would have saved money --and grief.
Even if you don't buy five, six or seven-figure coins, this book will help save you or make you hundreds of dollars by knowing insiders' secrets about buying and selling even modestly priced coins. COINage Magazine's Senior Editor, Ed Reiter, called this new edition "...the gold standard for coin books on consumer protection and investment." I agree.
-donn-
Donn Pearlman
(Affiliations given for identification purposes only)
Don't expect too much from this helpful, easy read!.......2003-07-12
I've decided to add my, ahem, two cents worth, on this book because I have just finished reading another book by the same author titled 'How to make money in coins right now.' I resisted buying the latter because I suspected, rightfully as it turns out, that there would not be much new information contained in it; Mr. Travers has a tendency to rehash a lot of his admittedly valuable and well-reasoned information advice. This book covers a lot of ground, per the reviews below, much of it essential. The single most valuable section, to my mind, is the in-depth discussion of coin grades as used by the professionals, and a discussion of recent changes made in grading standards. Also helpful is the section discussing ways to spot coins that may not be as good as the 'look,' and why (toning, doctoring, cleaning, etc.). I definitely can recommend this book as a stand alone purchase but would steer the interested buyer to another of Mr. Travers' books titled 'How to make money in coins right now.' I say this only because each book covers a lot of the same ground but the other contains information crucial to the 'value' question that every coin collector has at the back of his mind. Either will do, however, I just don't recommend purchasing both: One or the other and spend the money you don't spend on a nice collectible coin.
Book Description
One hundred twenty pages of illustrations, accompanied by descriptive captions, depict one-piece strapless bathing suits and dresses with plunging necklines for women; business suits with wide lapels for men; bluejeans, plaid shirts, and full, knee-length swing skirts for girls; fringed cowboy suits for youngsters of both genders; more. Over 300 black-and-white illustrations.
Customer Reviews:
Gorgeous, authentic, thorough--GREAT book!.......2007-05-16
Whenever I take this book out, people fight over a peek into its glossy pages. It covers everything in fashion from the fifties, though mostly focusing on women. The pictures depict fashions, from dresses to shoes, hats and gloves to maternity wear; the women's hairstyles, makeup, and overall looks give the reader the most authentic possible view of fashion and the aesthetic ideals of the time. The catalogue also shows the prices and features descriptions that include fabric, color, and price. There are some pictures of teenage, male, and children's fashions. This book is thorough and unbelievably beautiful.
Really good fashion overview........2006-11-09
I was born in early 1953 so many of the fashions still mean something to me. I have to admit that I'm still drawn to the femininity of the period but I have my dreams and you have yours and we'll leave it at that. This is a good book for the money. Not too detailed, the reproductions can get a little bit fuzzy and there is no color; but this what you get for $15 these days. If you like what you see here, there are other resources to persue. It's a pretty good starting point.
A fun trip down memory lane.......2005-04-19
I truly enjoyed reading the old advertising copy while looking at the old ads. Some of the fashions I remember my grandmother and mother wearing. Lots of fun reading.
One of the best 50's books ever made.......2004-04-15
This is a primary source book that tells the prices and materials, which are very helpful to a costume designer. I also enjoy the book Fifties Forever, which is similar except it's color photos of actual vintage stuff (the color does help, but the Sears catalogue is still great without it).
Very informative.......2004-02-03
I thouroughly enjoyed reading this book. It was packed from start to finish with pictures. The book gives an excellent overview of what the average woman was wearing in the 1950's, unlike many similar books which focus on important designers.
While it is very light on text I still feel that it is a must for anyone interested in this period.
Book Description
Americans began the twentieth century standing in Europe's sartorial shadow, yet ended by outfitting the world in blue jeans, T-shirts and sneakers. How did this come about? What changes in American culture were reflected in fashion? What role did popular culture play? This important overview of American fashion in the twentieth century considers how Americans went from imitating British and French fashion to developing their own sense of style. It examines such influences on dress as class, jazz and hip hop, war, the space race, movies, television and sports. Further, the book shows how gender, psychology, advertising, public policy, shifting family values, the American design movement and expertise in mass production profoundly influenced an American style that has been exported across the globe.
Book Description
Rich with illustrations, this revised and updated second edition of Dress Codes systematically analyzes the meaning and relevance of clothing in American culture. Presented here in one book for the first time are theories of clothing and an up-to-date analysis of images of power and authority, gender, seduction (the sexy look, the alluring look, the glamorous look, the vulnerable look), wealth and beauty, youth and health, and leisure and political hierarchy. Taken together, the chapters offer to the student and the general reader a complete"semiotics of clothing" in a form that is highly readable, very entertaining, and thoroughly informative. The illustrations provide fascinating glimpses into the history of American fashion and clothing-along with their antecedents in Europe-as well as a fine collection of images from the more familiar world of contemporary America.
Rubinstein has identified six distinct categories of dress in American society, upon which Dress Codes is based."Clothing signs" have only one meaning and are instituted by those in authority as required attire (police uniform, nun's attire);"clothing symbols," which have several meanings and involve individual choice (designer clothing, jewelry);"clothing tie-signs," which are specific types of clothing that indicate membership in a community outside mainstream culture (Hasidic, Amish, or Hare Krishna attire);"clothing tie-symbols," which act as a means of broader social affiliation emanating especially from fears, hopes, and dreams (Save the Earth clothing, Pro-Choice T-shirts, Madonna's crosses);"personal dress," which refers to the"I" component we bring in when dressing the public self (bowtie, dramatic, or artistic attire); and"contemporary fashion," which is the interaction between political and economic events and consumer sentiments, involving public memory.
Written in a lively and entertaining style,Dress Codes will fascinate both general readers and students interested in the history of fashion and costume, fashion design, human development, and gender studies.
Customer Reviews:
A great book for research about the "why" of fashion trends.......2000-04-21
For a class project, I decided to make a website discussing how various fashions throughout time have reflected the social status of women. This book was a great resource. It makes one realize that people don't always wear clothes just because they like them. Looking at fashion gives wonderful insite into a culture.
Book Description
The story of America's best-loved garment, from the humble pants Levi Strauss sold to California miners in the 1870s to big-city socialites spending big money—$300 and up—for premium jeans today
Since their emergence over a century and a half ago, blue jeans have been worn by every segment of American society, and exported around the world as a symbol of our civilization. In Jeans, James Sullivan traces the evolution of jeans from a simple utilitarian garment into what fashion critics have called “the American uniform,” the very embodiment of our society's ethos.
Beginning with the adoption of front-buckled trousers as a style of dress in nineteenth-century America (derided as “fornication pants” by Mormon leader Brigham Young), Sullivan tells the story of the riveted blue jeans' humble origin as “waist overall” work pants. He then follows their mass production by such regional entrepreneurs as San Francisco's legendary Levi Strauss and their further popularization as youth clothing and Westernwear in the twentieth century with the rise of such national brands as Lee and Wrangler. Sullivan shows how such film stars as John Wayne, James Dean, Marlon Brando, and Marilyn Monroe evangelized jeans for a new generation, and how in recent decades designer fashion and consumer culture have combined to make them ubiquitous: worn by rappers, hipsters, discount shoppers, and politicians, embodying the fashion and cultural ideas of vastly different segments of society.
Touching on a broad-ranging host of topics—from the rise and fall of natural indigo dyes to the enduring mythos of the cowboy, from the explosion of youth culture in the Baby Boom era to the globalization of the textile industry and the erosion of American manufacturing—Jeans is a history of American culture as told through its pants.
Customer Reviews:
Great, but a few flaws........2006-11-28
I was torn between a 4 and a 5 rating. What is good is great, but I think a few things should have been added.
I'd give it a couple of stars just for the loving detail of having printed it blue on white. It is a very interesting history. It is all the more informative because Sullivan gives alternate versions of various stories, instead of simply selecting the one he prefers. In addition, he mentions that he is slightly skeptical of some "official stories" without actually calling the source a liar. He has obviously spoken with or researched a large number of people involved in the industry. There is a lot of detail about various companies, although Levis gets the most space (as is appropriate.) Sullivan begins with forerunners of jeans, different fabrics, and traces the shift in usage from working people, to youthful rebellion to deisgner jeans.
There is one thing missing in this history, in my opinion, and I admit that this is a self-serving pet peeve. Having been born in 1953, I am tired of having the baby boomers all characterized the the oldest members of the set. The Baby Boom lasted until 1968 - some of the youngest "boomers" are the children of the oldest. I can just imagine what people younger than myself think. By the late 1960s and early 1970s, when I was wearing jeans, the sense of rebellion had pretty much died out. Oh, the rebellious still wore jeans, wearing jeans wasn't necessarily a sign of being rebellious. I'm sure there are exceptions, but the adults of most of my peers accepted jeans as the costume of the young without much protest, even though most of them didn't wear jeans. That battle was fought and won by the slightly older. The issue was less blue jeans per se than the issue of formality in dress. We couldn't wear jeans to high school, but women also couldn't wear any type of pants, including a split skirt or culottes. I don't think that jeans were quite the sex symbols that they became with designer jeans. They were rather androgynous and partly symbolic of sexual equality. Some people wore them as an alternative to gendered clothing. If you're not sure what that meant, try reading Susan Brownmiller's Feminity. I'm not saying that wearers necessarily succeeded in avoiding cultural norms of looking sexy, just that it was sometimes their intent.
My other problems are with some of the details. Sullivan doesn't clearly define a lot of terms. While I appreciate his explanation of denim/jean/dungaree and how they came to be confused, a little more detail would have been nice. When Sullivan says that denim differed from jean in being a tougher twill, does he mean that denim was a twill and jean was not, or does he mean that both were twills but denim was tougher. I think he should have defined more of his fashion terms: there weren't so many that it would have been burdensome. I imagine that a lot of people think that "calico" applies only to fabrics with small figured prints, in which case the description of "dungaree" must have been a surprise. And what is a a "broken twill" or the various leg styles? One, which was called a something like a "Dickie-leg" (its not in the index), is completely unfamiliar to me.
Another odd thing about jeans, which I don't think Sullivan touched on, is that they are a "neutral" color. People will wear blue jeans with colors that they wouldn't combine with a pair of slacks that were the same color.
The index is good, but as illustrated above, could have been a bit more detailed.
A few complaints, but overall a very good read and a useful book on popular culture.
Great Read, Interesting Book.......2006-09-16
Being a 3rd generation garmento, I found this book very interesting. Denim has gone from being a blue-collar item
to having full-fledged fashion status and dominating the contemporary market. Sullivan's book chronicles this transition
in a smooth, intelligible way. This book explores American culture as much as it does denim.
And to the person who contested the Brigham Young quote, your comment was not exactly a "review",
which is what this section is designed for. Furthermore, I would be interested to know your basis in challenging
this quote as you offered no source for your statement.
Great Book.......2006-09-08
James Sullivan covers the history of jeans from the creation of denim to the Levi's I'm wearing today. The book is well researched; full of great information and things I never knew about the jeans industry. It brought clarity to much of what went on in the late 70's and early 80's when designer jeans came about. A fun look at America's cultural history. Really a great read.
Sticky Fingers.......2006-09-08
Regardless of what denomination Brigham Young was when he did or didn't call jeans 'fornication pants', jeans ARE sexy and--as everyone knows--sex sells. Sullivan does a great job of tracing the arc of this most iconic piece of American clothing from simple work gear to high fashion (and big business) must-have. A stylish and functional bit of Americana, much like jeans themselves; I love the blue type and design. My only complaint is that "Jeans" doesn't come with a soundtrack, but then again I guess we each have our own.
Problem with the Brigham Young Quote.......2006-08-30
Brigham Young wasn't a Mormon until April 14th, 1832. In 1830, he was a Methodist.
So, it should read, "Brigham Young, Methodist Preacher, called them fornication pants."
But, he never said it as a Methodist either.
Average customer rating:
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Fashion and Costume in American Popular Culture: A Reference Guide (American Popular Culture)
Valerie Burnham Oliver
Manufacturer: Greenwood Press
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ASIN: 0313294127 |
Book Description
Providing a convenient and unique look at fashion and costume literature and how it has developed historically, this volume discusses monographic and reference literature and provides information on periodicals, research centers, and costume museums and collections. It also provides a new way of looking at the literature through a database of 58 Library of Congress subject headings. It covers topics from jeans to wedding dresses and features "popular" examples of how clothing is used and reflected in our culture through the literature discussed. Of interest to scholars, students, and anyone curious about the unique power clothing holds in our lives. Various types of reference sources are discussed including other guides to the literature, encyclopedia, dictionaries, biographical dictionaries, specialized bibliographies, and indexing and abstracting services. Electronic CD-ROM and online databases equivalents are included in the presentation of indexing and abstracting services with major networks such as OCLC, RLIN, Lexis/Nexis, and Dialog mentioned as well. In addition a list of 123 research centers, mainly libraries, is provided and arranged geographically by state, some 176 costume museums and collections of costumes located at colleges and universities are listed alphabetically, and a list of 278 periodicals on fashion, costume, clothing and related topics is provided. A database of some 58 clothing and accessory subject headings is analyzed in the Worldcat database with the literature of the top ten specific clothing and accessory subject terms limited to media publication format are covered. Additionally, histories of costume and fashion in the U.S. and works which concentrate on psychological, sociological or cultural aspects are outlined. An appendix, including the clothing and accessory database, and author and subject indexes conclude the volume.
Amazon.com
Fifty issues--collected into 15 volumes that total 2,000 pages--the Hernandez brothers' Love and Rockets is an enormous achievement that helped to create a new audience for comics. Notable for their strong female characters and their focus on relationships, rather than on traditional comic-book 'action', the stories collected in this volume, and the rest of the series, show how the comic format can be used to create characters and situations as detailed and compelling as in any novel.
Reviewers have compared Gilbert Hernandez's work--set in the fictional Latin American town of Palomar--with that of Gabriel Garcia Marquez and Robert Altman. Reading his brother Jaime's work--most of which focuses on a group of Southern California Mexican American women--is like reading Tolstoy, if only Tolstoy had written about twenty-something punk girls. Love and Rockets has certainly earned its legendary reputation among the comic-book cognoscenti, and deserves to be read by an even wider audience. Welcome to the world of Los Bros Hernandez.
Average customer rating:
- Bizarre! Outstanding!
- The Alaska we sourdoughs know..
- make way for the saturday night live of Alaska!!!
- Classic literature in the Neo-American Humor vein
- If you've seen their show, it helps prompt your memory
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Mr. Whitekeys' Alaska Bizarre: Direct from the Whale Fat Follies Revue in Anchorage
Alaska Northwest Books , and
Whitekeys
Manufacturer: Alaska Northwest Books
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Moose Dropping & Other Crimes Against Nature
ASIN: 0882404709 |
Book Description
The lowfalutin' look at the biggest, wildest state in the Union, from the originator of the Fly By Night Club's zany musicomedy show.
Customer Reviews:
Bizarre! Outstanding!.......2002-10-06
I read this book and was amazed at the bizareness of it, so I had to see the show! It is everything they say; where do these guys get their ideas? Of course, I had to try the coconut beer battered Spam.......delicious!
I must read for anyone thinking of coming to Alaska!
The Alaska we sourdoughs know.........2000-06-16
This is pretty much right on about the state of things in our Great State. People from Outside will scratch their heads at somethings, but let me tell you, it's all (just about) true! A great memory for a great state, or a good thing to send out when you are just tired of trying to explain the better things of life on the Last Frontier. Long live Spam...
make way for the saturday night live of Alaska!!!.......1999-05-08
From the moment I opened the sleazy pages of this political and moral incorrectness, I was moved. I was also in the bathroom at the time, but anyway,I was amazed at the humor , it's unique, clever and inventive. Something someone might expect if you visited a class full of third graders who were mutants, childish humor expressed in such an intellegent way, to make the stonchiest old republican titter. It really captures the crazy lifestyle of those isolated Alaskans and endears them to my heart. Because Iam one by the way has no bearing on this review...I'll be the first to tell you there are some real home grown stinkers come outa here ... Anyway, if you've got a funny bone grease it up and sit back with this book, it's got enough stories of fun, when passed on, It'll make you the highlight of many parties to come!! I highly recommend this creature for reading. A million laughs!! Thanks!!, Diva that digs it.
Classic literature in the Neo-American Humor vein.......1999-04-05
The author, Mr. Whitekeys, demonstrates yet another facet of his wildly diverse talents. How one man can single handedly summarize all that is good about Alaska in a brief pictoral volume leaves me...speechless. I can't wait to visit the Fly By Night Club and see the book acted out in life!!
If you've seen their show, it helps prompt your memory.......1998-08-01
If you've seen the Whale-fat follies in Anchorage Alaska, you need this book as a remembrance of your surreal pilrimage to their...their...club. If you haven't been to the show, well, the book is off the wall so far, the pages hardly have time to stick to the latex before hitting the floor. Their show is political satire, schtick and delightfully bawdy. The former Miss Anchorage often steals the show with her Wagnerian physique and her drop-dead comic timing. Buy the book, but even better, see the show, then buy the book.
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- The Control of Biblical Meaning: Canon As Semiotic Mechanism
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- The Dawn of the Floating World
- The Everything Kids' Horses Book: Hours of Off-the-hoof Fun! (Everything Kids Series)
- The Impressionists' Paris: Walking Tours of the Artists' Studios, Homes, and the Sites They Painted
- The Incarnational Art Of Flannery O'connor
- The Life of a Balinese Temple: Artistry, Imagination, and History in a Peasant Village
- The New Deal Art Projects: An Anthology of Memoirs
- The Nude: Barron's Art Handbooks
- The Origins of Renaissance Art: The Baptistery Doors, Florence
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