The Walt Disney Film Archives: The Animated Movies 1921-1968: 40th Anniversary Edition Hardcover – Illustrated, November 19, 2020

This is a "bookshelf" version of the very large $200 "coffee table" version; I have both, and my comments apply to both. All of the text and all of the pictures (albeit smaller in this volume) are included in both versions.As someone who has studied animation, and in particular Disney animation for 50 years, I find this book to be the most definitive book on Disney feature animation that I have read. Keep in mind that this volume only deals with the films released during Disney's life time (it ends with "The Jungle Book"). As this is labeled "Volume 1, I have to assume that there will be more coming.The early chapters deal with the Laugh-o-Grams, the Alice Comedies, Mickey and company, and the Silly Symphonies. For these, there are other books that go into greater detail; they are presented in this book as a preface to the main part of the book - the feature films.Every feature film from "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" through "The Jungle Book" is discussed - most in their own chapters. Each film has an essay (sometimes 2) written by an art and/or animation scholar. As such the text is written at a college-level art history book, or a museum exhibit catalog. There are many illustrations; frames from the features, animation and layout drawings, character model sheets, etc. are all included. Children may enjoy looking at the pictures (especially in the large format version), but this is NOT a children's book.I have many Taschen art books, and they are all superbly curated, printed and bound - and reasonably priced. At $20, this book is literally a steal; I cannot recommend it highly enough.

I love that this book was shrink-wrapped so there were no marks or dents on the cover, and the book is absolutely beautiful, with a great price. VERY pleased.

Divided into 28 chronological chapters, the animated features range from 1921's "Laugh-O-Grams" to 1968's "The Jungle Book." Lavishly photographed and illustrated, each chapter contains a short synopsis of the "film" and a listing of its movie credits with a more illuminating narrative detailing the technological milestones and other significant facts achieved during its creation. A lovely book and important reference of all things Disney, when Disney was truly Disney.

Actually got it cheaper at Amazon, then was offered at Daedalus books! Initial price was cheaper, with free shipping saved a nice amount. I reccomend the book to all Walt Dysney fans. Beautiful pictures and loads of facts. Highly reccomend!

I was very surprised when I got the book....I thought I got DVDs by mistake since the book was heavy for it size. The turned out to be the quality of the paper in the book. I used to work and Disneyland and met Walt one morning there all aloneto talk to him privately. I also had a tour of his Studios in Burbank when I was in Junior high school...most remunerable times of my life. I always love Disney animation when they were hand drawn and painted. But, the CGI animation does not have the same effect now. The book is so precise and well illustrated....it is amazing and an excellent read. I would suggest this for anyone who loves the creations of Walt Disney....

This smaller version of the much larger and detailed Taschen book provides well-written information about each of the films created during Disney's lifetime alongside beautiful cel setups and backgrounds. The text is informative, yet not overly wordy providing both an educational and enjoyable reading experience. One disadvantage of this book as compared to its larger counterpart is that the some of the film stills are sliced through when on both pages (see photo for example) Some simple rearranging would have fixed this issue. The book also focuses rather heavily on the artistry of Disney films, rather than other elements such as character development and music.

I love the page protector built into the cover. All books should have that.

Good book on all the old movies and files unty1968 very well edited very informative!!!