39 replies to this topic

[scaramunga]

I only really collect these books for the beautiful cross sections of various lairs.

Does one include that?

Wrong series of books

: )

[Guy Haines]

I only really collect these books for the beautiful cross sections of various lairs.

Does one include that?

Wrong series of books

: )

Indeed, although we haven't seen the Bond Villains volume yet. Maybe there will be a "lairs" section in that, although if it follows the pattern of the first two books, I doubt it.

I wonder why they are being published this year? Just to keep us fans engaged during a dry spell? Or did the publishers commission the books ages ago on the assumption that Bond 23 would be released in 2010? I can't believe the publishers weren't aware of the MGM situation, but if they weren't paying attention, they may have dropped a bit of a clanger regarding timing.

Unless of course, they re-release them when "23" finally appears, with a few more pages added to cover the new film. Call me a cynic.......

[sharpshooter]

Top marks for presentation and they'd look nice on the shelf as a set of four.

I'll give them that. But that's about it.

I flipped through the car edition at Borders, and it was pretty bare bones. Bond patriotism isn't enough to warrant this purchase, I'm afraid.

[Turn]

I picked up The Secret World back when it was new in 1999 or 2000 or whenever it was. It was different at the time and I didn't mind paying full price for it. But the subsequent updates remind me of the Rubin Bond Encyclopedia books that would update one section for each new film and not bother to update any of the previous text, even in areas where things were wrong or in need of updating. The subsequent updates seemed like a blatant cash-in by adding a couple of new photos or drawings.

You know what these DK books really remind me of is The Official James Bond Movie Book that came out in 1987 and updated with LTK in 1989. I remember buying the book with birthday money back in 1987. It had some nice pictures, but ultimately didn't add anything the way the first Rubin book and John Brosnan's James Bond in the Cinema did. There wasn't the abundance of Bond-related books there are now at the time, so that one wasn't too bad at the time.

I'd buy these if they were reduced at Barnes and Noble or someplace. Same reason I haven't bought the recent Bond Encyclopedia. Nice photos and layout, but I don't want to pay full price for something that doesn't really add to my knowledge or enjoyment of the series. If they can put books like James Bond the Legacy, a book I didn't mind paying a higher price for, on their bargain tables, the DK books should join them there. Or at Half Price Books; I admit I came close to buying the most recent Secret World update there as I had a 50 percent off coupon.

For the present, I make priorities books like The Making of OHMSS and The Battle For Bond. Besides that there are too many other great collectibles I would rather pursue on eBay.

[Turn]

I actually looked through The Book of Bond and the vehicles book at a Barnes and Noble yesterday. They were pretty much what I expected.

A film title and a couple of pictures from it for the Bond book and pictures of the vehicles in the other. I guess the price wasn't too bad, $15.00 or so, but I would pay about a third of that at most for one.

The size was also surprising. Whereas the Secret World book was fairly large, these were closer to the size of a regular hardback bestseller, but thinner. All in all, pretty useless for most fans.

[jaguar007]

It looks like it it geared toward people who really don't know the Bond series or just getting into it. I did pick up the book because it did have some pictures I had not seen before.

[zencat]

Still a little baffled who these books are aimed at and why they were done. Maybe these were photos that DK licensed but never used, so why not crap out a few quickie books.

[scaramunga]

I finally saw the books at Borders and Barnes and Nobles here in the US. I must say they have very cool covers. Almost a fabric like material on them. The books also have a very cool layout in terms of the photos and subjects. Of course the books don't have much to them beyond things most Bond fans would know. I passed on them at the moment. The collector in me would like to pick them up, but they are pretty unessential.

For what they are, they are decent books I think. Just don't expect the history of the films and how they were made. Something for new fans I guess... or collectors?

: )

Amazon has a preview of both books online. Gives you an idea of the layout, etc...

http://www.amazon.co...ader_075666554X

http://www.amazon.co...pd_bxgy_b_img_b

Edited by scaramunga, 02 September 2010 - 01:35 AM.

[scaramunga]

Has anyone picked up the 2 other books of this series? Looked for them today out of curiosity, but did not see them at Barnes and Nobles.

It was the Bond Girls one and Bond Villains one out last week I believe?

Thanks!

[PeteNeon]

Sorry to resurrect an old thread, but I recently got the Book of Bond, and noticed what I assume is quite a glaring printing error in the Thunderball section.

 

 

It looks like someone has tried to retouch the image, but used the eraser instead!