Guides and Flights of Fancy

New Larousse Encyclopedia of Mythology, Edited by Felix Guirand, with an Introduction by Robert Graves.  

“A comprehensive reference guide to ancient and prehistoric legend, exploring the folklore and mythology of every nation and civilization.” - Amazon. Besides which, this is where for years I kept that picture of me and Mike as dog-trainers. Illustrated with photos of artifacts and art.

Ranking: Gotta Keep It.

File Code: Encyclopedia. Mythology. Hardback.

Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, Consultant Editor Robert Holdstock. Foreword by Isaac Asimov.

One of the early purchases from the Science Fiction Book Club. I remember it was in John’s books for a long time. I always enjoyed explanations and histories and analyses, and Sci-Fi was allied with other branches of Imaginative Literature. I think the picture of Darth Vader on the cover was part of it that helped lure us in; we wanted anything about Star Wars, and it was not just yet the Juggernaut that the franchise became. Science Fiction was always trying to be the grown-up at the table, and this book has pictures of four bare boobs and a penis to prove it. Profusely illustrated, but no other porno. About 40 years out of date, but pretty good up to that period.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Science Fiction. Encyclopedia. Hardback.

The Star Trek Encyclopedia: A Reference Guide to the Future Updated and Expanded, by Michael Okuda and Denise Okuda, with Debbie Mirek.

Accurate up to 1997. Illustrated with photos from the TV shows and films, and graphics by Doug Drexler. There was a time when I was very involved with Star Trek but starting with the Next Generation movies my enthusiasm began to trail off, and after Star Trek: Enterprise it completely died. I still have this Encyclopedia as a melancholy remembrance.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Encyclopedia. Science Fiction. Hardback.

Horror: A Connoisseur’s Guide to Literature and Film, by Leonard Wolf.

A 1989 work by Wolf (of ‘The Annotated Dracula’), it is what it says on the label. Short synopses and a look at the significance of works of horror. Full of black-and-white drawings and stills. A nice browser.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Guidebook. Horror. Hardback.

The Ultimate Encyclopedia of Fantasy: The Definitive Illustrated Guide. General Editor: David Pringle. Foreword by Terry Pratchett.

A brilliant full color guide to Fantasy, produced at the end of the 20^th Century (1999). Looks at the types of Fantasy, Fantasy in movies, magazines and television, the authors, the major characters, the imaginary worlds, and Fantasy terminology. The sparkling illustrations are like the sudden burst of color when Dorothy steps into Oz, compared to the black-and-white monotone that had prevailed in books like this before.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Fantasy. Guide. Hardback.

The Ultimate Encyclopedia of Science Fiction: The Definitive Illustrated Guide. General Editor: David Pringle.

A brilliant full color guide to Science Fiction up to 1996, from the classics to the pulps to the movies to TV to the magazines. Covers the authors, the fictional characters, and the terminology, colorfully presented with famous book covers, movie stills and posters, and photos of the people who produce Science Fiction. A good browser as well as a guide.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Science Fiction. Guide. Hardback.

Kids’ TV: The First 25 Years, by Stuart Fischer.

1946 – 1973, which nearly enough coincides with my childhood’s end. A season by season look at children’s programming, noting trends and changes of standards. Includes who wrote the shows, who produced the shows, what channel they were on, who voiced the shows, and what seasons they were rerun. Illustrated with black-and-white Still and production art. “Back in my day, the Internet was called books.”

Ranking: Essential Reference.

File Code: Television Kids’ Shows. Reference. Hardback.

Children’s Television, 1947-1990, by Jeffery Davis.

“Over 200 Series, Game and Variety Shows, Cartoons, Educational Programs and Specials”. In some ways a more complete if less visual guide than “Kids’ TV: The First 25 Years”. A memory jogger and a browser.

Ranking: Essential Reference.

File Code: Television Kids’ Shows. Reference. Hardback.

Animated TV Specials: The Complete Directory to the First Twenty-Five Years, 1962-1987, by George W. Woolery.

An exhaustive reference book on one of my favorite subjects. Who produced them, who wrote and animated them, who voiced them, and when and where they appeared. Some black and white illustrations, but not as many as you would hope.

Ranking: Essential Reference.

File Code: Animation. Reference. Hardback.

The Simpsons: A Complete Guide to Our Favorite Family (Seasons 1 - 8), Edited by Ray Richmond; The Simpsons Forever!: A Complete Guide to Our Favorite Family … Continued (Seasons 9 – 10), Edited by Scott M. Gimple; The Simpsons Beyond Forever!: A Complete Guide to Our Favorite Family … Still Continued (Seasons 11 - 12), Edited by Jesse L. McCann; The Simpsons One Step Beyond Forever! A Complete Guide to Our Favorite Family … Continued Yet Again (Seasons 13 – 14), Edited by Jesse L. McCann, Created by Matt Groening.

After that last book, I just gave up. Wasn’t really worth it then. All the best seasons were over, and degeneration was setting in. Also, reruns were much more abundantly available everywhere.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Reference. The Simpsons. Softcovers.

Cereal Boxes & Prices: 1960’s: A Tribute & Price Guide, by Scott Bruce.

It’s probably hard for most people to understand how integral a part of childhood cereal was for us when we were little kids. This was partly because the cereal mascots often had their own cartoon shows that amounted to half-hour long commercials (a practice banned in the early 70’s; now people in some countries are trying to banish the cartoon mascots even from the boxes). Our breakfast cereal was the one thing we were really allowed to choose when Mom went shopping, and we often picked it according to what prize we saw offered. And they were real prizes too, most often, right there in the box, little toys you could play with the minute you found them. Some of it was brittle gimcrackery that looked great but didn’t last long, like the pale purple buzzard noddy head, but others were “little animals” like the Winnie-the-Pooh cereal bowl hangers or the Freakies, some of which survive to this day. This book is a colorful tribute and reminder of childhood; I wouldn’t mind sharing a bowl of Crispy Critters with Linus the Lion right now.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Nostalgia. Reference. Softcover.

Squeaky Toys: A Collector’s Handbook & Price Guide, by L. H. MacKenzie.

“A Schiffer Book for Collectors”. Squeaky toys go back in my life before even conscious memories. Who knows how much of my aesthetic outlook was formed by the somewhat random choices of toys our parents made? The spectacles, walking stick, and valise (we called it a ‘purse’ because it was the most familiar term at the time; the same way we called our underwear ‘panties’ because that’s what Mom called them) of the ‘Omi’ lion, the glasses and umbrella of Professor Worm, the yellow sleepy-eyed Owl, made a strange trinity of wise friends that I could take on adventures. After a time, of course, we played with them less and less, but while stuffed animals wasted away and toys with movable parts broke and were lost or thrown away, the squeakies lived on almost untouched (though their squeakers were long gone). ‘Omi’ still has some crayons inside that got pushed into the squeaker hole through idle childhood fiddling – there’s no way I can write that sentence without it sounding dirty. This book is a handy helper that identifies the companies, time periods, types, and prices of squeaky toys. It helps me identify Mike’s old Lambie as a Rempel product. But I’ve never found even a picture of another ‘Omi’ anywhere, ever; not even on eBay. A guide not so exhaustive as suggestive and a glance at an alternative childhood’s ‘could-have-beens’.

Ranking: Nostalgic Keeper.

File Code: Toys. Guide. Softcover.

Tomart’s Encyclopedia & Price Guide to Action Figure Collectibles (Volume One: A-Team to G. I. Joe; Volume Two: G. I. Joe to Star Trek; Volume Three: Star Wars to Zybots), by Bill Sikora and T. N. Tumbusch.

Includes Playsets and Vehicles, up to 1996. I’ve gone through a rather intense relationship with action figures most of my life, from MEGOs Planet of the Apes, to Playmates Star Trek: The Next Generation, to Toybiz “The Lord of the Rings” and beyond, as quite a few 25-gallon plastic bins can attest. A toy and ‘playings’ were (and are) one of the most concrete ways to partake in a beloved franchise. The next best thing to having the entire collection, this copiously complete guide allows an opportunity to gloat and dream about what I have and don’t have, without having to unpack some heavy bins.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Toy Guide. Reference. Softcovers.

Wizardology: A Guide to Wizards of the World, by Dugald A. Steer and A. J. Wood.

More of an artifact than a book almost, it feigns to have been written by Merlin and contains fun, games and ‘lore’ for the young would-be wizard. It is illustrated by five people (Nghiem Ta, Anne Yvonne Gilbert, John Howe, Tomislav Tomic, and Helen Ward); I am not sure which is responsible for the woodcut-like engravings which to me are the best feature of this book, but my bet is on Tomic. A book combining whimsy and some authentic occult lore for budding young pagans, it is in the ‘Ology’ series, and I am sure owes its existence in part to Harry Potter. Had a toy tie-in of various wizard action figures.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Art Book. Wizards. Reference. Padded Hardback.

The Flight of Dragons, by Peter Dickinson. Illustrated by Wayne Anderson.

Appeared in the wake of the popularity of “Gnomes”; Another book I got from The Science Fiction Book Club. “The Flight of Dragons is a 1979 speculative evolution book …  According to Dickinson's hypothesis, the chief obstacle to admitting the (past) existence of dragons is the difficulty of powered flight by so large an organism. To resolve this, he introduces a dirigible-like structure in which hydrochloric acid would dissolve large amounts of rapidly growing bone, releasing massive amounts of hydrogen that, once aloft, would support the body above the ground. The dragon's wings are traced to "modifications of the ribcage" (an anatomical evolutionary path shared by the genus Draco), and the expulsion of fire from the throat, as a means of removal of excess gas. The absence of fossil evidence is traced again to the internal acids, which (in Dickinson's view) would dissolve the bones soon after death … In 1982, Rankin/Bass Productions released a made-for-TV animated film The Flight of Dragons, aspects of which were based on Dickinson's novel. For example, the character design in the film bears a resemblance to the illustrations in the book, and its lead character takes his name from the author, Peter Dickinson. However, the animated film derives most elements of its story line from the novel The Dragon and the George (by Gordon R. Dickson).” – Wikipedia. The style of the artwork never completely appealed to me (though some individual pictures were great) but “I desired Dragons with a profound desire” and this was one of the only books dedicated to them that I could find at the time. I have a DVD copy of the animated special now (it is middling good) and I used to have a Del Rey paperback of the Dickson novel (those confusing author names!) but the cover got damaged, I sold it, and feel no need to replace it.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Dragons. Speculative Evolution. Hardback.

Kingdom of the Dwarfs, Illustrated by David Wenzel, Text by Robb Walsh.

Another ‘speculative history’ art book in the wake of “Gnomes”, I bought this through The Science Fiction Book Club when I was in high school. I was already a big fan of the fantasy race since “The Hobbit”, and this look at dwarfs in lore and legend offered a nice little ‘what-if’ they had been real, in the guise of a supposed archeological dig in an underground kingdom. Wenzel had already done work related to Middle-Earth, and went on to do the graphic novel adaptation of “The Hobbit”.  I think the art is more important here than the text.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Legend. Feigned History. Art. Hardback.

Castles, by Alan Lee. Written by David Day. Designed and edited by David Larkin.

Coming in fairly close to the end of the “Gnomes” fantasy art book vogue (1984), this book takes a look at famous castles in legend, myth, and fantasy. Its main feature is as a showcase for Alan Lee (who had already done work on “Faeries” and would later go on as a major art designer for Jackson’s “The Lord of the Rings”). David Day would become well-known to me as a bit of a corpse-grinder in his recycling and repackaging of his writings about Middle Earth and other aspects of fantasy.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Castles. Art Book. Hardback.