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'A mis-matched zoo of mind-boggling creations from minotaurs through golems to mermaids, from sphinxes to sirens and shapeshifting nightmares ... takes us to the edge of the cultural map' --The Times
'My special favourite this year ... a colourful and hideous collection of arty monsters of all kinds ... this nightmarish bestiary is sure to stir the bloodthirsty imaginations of nice boys and girls everywhere'
--V&A Magazine
'My special favourite this year ... a colourful and hideous collection of arty monsters of all kinds ... this nightmarish bestiary is sure to stir the bloodthirsty imaginations of nice boys and girls everywhere'
--V&A Magazine
Product Description
This book explores monsters through the ages and throughout the world. With a brilliant set of bizarre and fantastical illustrations, Monsters provides a dark yet engrossing visual history of fearsome beasts from every age and culture. Christopher Dell investigates what the existence of monsters even if only in our heads says about humankind, and explores such questions as how monsters have survived the millennia; why they are universal; why we find the same one-eyed giants in Japan and in ancient Greece, or the same dragons in Europe and China.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
This is essentially a picture-book full of a fantastic array of fantastical things.Yes there is some written information,which is easy to read and superficially informative,but it's really all about the images,which are wonderfully varied and superbly reproduced.(See "The Book of Imaginary Beings" by the great Jorge Luis Borges if you want words rather than pictures).There are images many will know from Bosch,Breugel,Fuseli,Goya,Hokusai and Kuniyoshi,but so many more that certainly I've never seen before.It must have taken a great deal of research to bring together such a marvellous array of extraordinary wonders from so many cultures,from all over the world and through the millennia.
My only critcism is that the captions are grouped together at the end of each chapter and it's a little annoying to have to flick back and forth through several pages to find out what you are looking at.But this is a minor quibble.Of course there are omissions,but perhaps we can look forward to "Monsters Part 2" sometime! Overall it's just a joy to peruse and delight in these scary,funny,bizarre,absurd and magnificent monsters.
A marvellous book,and excellent value for money.The Book Of Imaginary Beings (Vintage classics)
My only critcism is that the captions are grouped together at the end of each chapter and it's a little annoying to have to flick back and forth through several pages to find out what you are looking at.But this is a minor quibble.Of course there are omissions,but perhaps we can look forward to "Monsters Part 2" sometime! Overall it's just a joy to peruse and delight in these scary,funny,bizarre,absurd and magnificent monsters.
A marvellous book,and excellent value for money.The Book Of Imaginary Beings (Vintage classics)
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
If you are looking for an individual case by case study of monsters describing their complete history and characteristics, then you will be sorely disappointed with this book as it contains very little text. If on the other hand, you want a picture book which contains stunning representations of historical images and paintings, then you are in for a real visual treat.
The monsters are grouped together in several sections and contain the briefest of introductions to each category. What then follows is a selection of full and doubled paged images representing monsters from all over the world. The images and paintings are in colour, are very sharp and beautifully presented. At the end of each section there is a complete list of the sources used, so follow up reading is possible if desired.
This book is ideal for art and design students and is also recommended as a visual companion to those who enjoy studying folklore and legends.
The monsters are grouped together in several sections and contain the briefest of introductions to each category. What then follows is a selection of full and doubled paged images representing monsters from all over the world. The images and paintings are in colour, are very sharp and beautifully presented. At the end of each section there is a complete list of the sources used, so follow up reading is possible if desired.
This book is ideal for art and design students and is also recommended as a visual companion to those who enjoy studying folklore and legends.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I tend to agree with the previous reviewer, but I would be a little more generous. It's true that there is very little text here, and that which is given is quite light. However, the collection of images that are brought together here - all in very high Thames and Hudson quality - are all exceptional, and this is its strength. I would say that this makes the book a good companion piece to some of the better interpretative works on monsters that tend to come out on from scholarly publishers with who just can't afford to get lots of high quality reproductions of good artistic examples
I got this book as a resource for the class I teach on monsters and religion, so I could present students with a more focussed introduction to monsters in the visual in the arts than they would get by just putting the word into Google. So in some ways, Dell's book is a missed opportunity, but it is very attractive and quite useful in the absense of a more complete, lushly illustrated volume on monsters.
I got this book as a resource for the class I teach on monsters and religion, so I could present students with a more focussed introduction to monsters in the visual in the arts than they would get by just putting the word into Google. So in some ways, Dell's book is a missed opportunity, but it is very attractive and quite useful in the absense of a more complete, lushly illustrated volume on monsters.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Brilliant Images, Shame About the Text
While this book contains a fantastic array of images from around the world and back and forth in time, juxtaposed in such a way it's a genuine delight to turn each page, a word of... Read more
Published 5 months ago by Mr. Jamie Panton
Really enjoyed it.
I disagree with the other 'reviewers' who gave this 2 stars. The book is excellently produced. The illustrations are perfectly reproduced and the text is more than adequately... Read more
Published 16 months ago by Mr.Pippin Argus
Not what I thought it was..
I bought this book based on the preview, i.e. the first few pages.
This was not representative of the contents. Read more
This was not representative of the contents. Read more
Published 16 months ago by J.P
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