Our latest Geek Pick of the Week is something for fans of giant monster movies thanks to a new Illustrated Guide to Kaiju throughout film’s history.
As the Holiday season approaches, we’re bringing back our Geek Pick of the Week. Each week leading up to Christmas, we’ll be highlighting a cool product we’ve found that we feel would be the perfect gift for geeks of all kinds. Use these to help fill in your own wish list or find the perfect gift for the nerds in your life. Click HERE to read more about previous Picks of the Week!
My love of monster movies (and specifically Godzilla) is pretty well documented. As such, I was pretty thrilled to check out this new reference book from Shawn Pryor; Kaiju Unleashed: An Illustrated Guide to the World of Strange Beasts.
As the title implies, this book is all about giant monsters and their many incarnations. More than simply walking readers through their various appearances and set of powers (though that information is also fun to read about), the book dives into where they fit within film history as well. This includes quotes from a number of filmmakers who worked on these films, and references to previous archive materials as well. The result is a reference book that works for casual fans of Kaiju in general, while also appealing to cinephiles who want to dive deeper into their history/impact within the industry.
How the book presents its information also makes it ideal for this type of quick-reference book. At first glance, it seems like the layout seems a bit wonky, but the more I read, the more it made sense how they organized when to discuss certain monsters. Plus, they make it super easy (right at the beginning) to find a specific kaiju if you want to jump directly to a section. In this way, it works as something that can be read straight through, or to just grab and look up something real quick when needed.
To complement the information gathered, the book includes a rich variety of images pulled from the films themselves and marketing art. The book itself is slightly oversized, allowing the art/images plenty of room on the page without compromising on the overall quality of what you’re looking at. Combine that with a sleek cover and sprayed page edges (something I’m admittedly a huge sucker for) and Kaiju Unleashed is a stunner to look at.
Even if you aren’t looking to dive into the history of the monsters, or other facts presented about them, you can still flip through and enjoy the presentation. Ultimately, this is exactly the kind of thing you want out of a reference book; something that is both informative, but works as a casual “coffee table” book to enjoy as well.
If you’ve got a monster movie fan on your shopping list this year, or just someone who enjoys a bit of movie history, Kaiju Unleashed: An Illustrated Guide to the World of Strange Beasts is an excellent choice. With fun information and great presentation, there’s a lot to enjoy in this one.
Kaiju Unleashed: An Illustrated Guide to the World of Strange Beasts is currently available in stores and online.
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