Liners - The Golden Age - 9783833161865

Published by H.F Ullmann. Text by Robert Fox. Hardcover, 352 pages. Pre-owned in near MINT condition.

This book should please every lover of the "Era of the Passenger Liner". Packed, wall to wall, with vintage images of the greatest ships to ever embark on ocean travel its a real feast for the eyes. As the title suggests, the focus here is largely on those ships in service from the early Teens to the late Thirties - "The Golden Age". This mode of transport never quite regained its luster after the the Second World War. I know there are certainly some exceptions to that statement but the elegance and mystique that surrounded passenger liner travel would never be the same. Many of today's cruise ships are impressive in their own right but they don't appeal to one's imagination the way a Titanic, Mauretania, Queen Mary or Normandie can. This collection does not attempt a thorough representation of all the ships of the era but rather focuses on the most important ships with an in-depth treatment of each. If you are looking for technical information or extensive history this is not the book to provide it. It is, however, a valuable photographic archive that should appeal to both the serious enthusiast and the casual observer alike.

This book is solidly constructed in a very utilitarian fashion (no frills here). It has the customary, illustrated, glossy covers that are now ubiquitous on books in this price range. All images are, as one would expect, black and white. For the price, this book delivers real value. One very minor quibble - I would have liked to seen them dress up the presentation with a dust jacket. I know they were traveling economy class here but, given the subject matter, a little nod to elegance wouldn't hurt.

Ullmann and Taschen are proving themselves to be the Toyotas of the publishing business. They provide well produced, affordable books on contemporary and traditional topics that don't price-out the working stiff. Without consciously doing so, I find that more and more of my purchases carry their imprints. This is just the latest example.