Kyle Newman

Put me in the "loved it" category. Yes, in the final few pages there was quite a lot of "at last, we've achieved gaming rules perfection," but up until that point the authors seemed quite open-minded about the plusses and deficiencies of the company and its games throughout its history. And oh, the art!

It's a large book (both in size of each page and number of pages) so it can (a) display the art at a decent scale, and (b) show quite a lot of it, while (c) including enough text so that you show more do feel you're reading a history, and not merely viewing a coffee table book of pretty pictures.

I pretty much devoured the first half in a single (long) sitting, then polished off the rest in stolen moments over the next two days. There's no better compliment to a book than that I'd rather be reading it than anything else.

(Note: 5 stars = amazing, wonderful, 4 = very good book, 3 = decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. I'm fairly good at picking for myself so end up with a lot of 4s). show less

When I think of what inspired my imagination as a kid, I keep coming back to the magnificent 80s and 90s era D&D art which graced the novels and modules I read and played in my youth. I freely admit to being swayed by a healthy dose of nostalgia, but it was heartwarming to revisit some of those paintings which meant so much to me in my younger days, and continue to do so to this day. As a history of D&D and its art, it's passable if a bit safe, steering clear of some of its earlier and show more especially later controversies.

Keith Parkinson, Clyde Caldwell, Larry Elmore, and Jeff Easley - masters from ye olden day of TSR. To me, these artist are not just emblematic of D&D's golden era, but of fantasy art in general. While these artists are mentioned, it feels as if they are given somewhat short thrift compared to the influence they had, and still have to this day. On the other hand, since they could have filled the volume by themselves, the space saved allows other artists to be explored, and they fully deserve to have their work highlighted as well.

The main criticism would be that it is clearly a "company book," which assumes that each era of D&D is one of progress towards a more perfect whole, which conveniently is that of the current edition! While there's a certain amount of truth to certain innovations which have improved the game, there are plenty of grognards such as myself who feel the modern editions have gradually lost much of that magic which once made the game special.

Despite my occasional critiques, for fantasy or RPG fans this volume is worth exploring - even if only to experience the journey once again. show less

This massive tome delves into the history of D&D through its visual form: the stunning fantasy artwork throughout the years (though perhaps less stunning early on). The quality of the book itself is incredible. I bought the B&N exclusive edition and I forget how exactly it was supposed to vary from the standard, but I loved the color throughout and the fold-out pages that often had things like dungeon maps were a nice touch.

Dragonlance was my big obsession through my teens, and I was happy show more to see it given necessary attention--and especially that much of that went to Larry Elmore. I have adored his art since I was 12 and own a number of his prints. I was irked by mixed up character names at one point in the Dragonlance section (mix up Caramon and Tanis? How?!), but that was the only such error that stood out to me. show less

A wonderful trip down memory lane, with the right balance of art, brief history and humour.
From page 85:
And as D&D attracted this eager audience, the newly printed Dungeon Masters Guide (1979) was there to meet them.
In addition to providing counsel on the design of adventures and the adjudication of combat, the Dungeon Masters Guide also contained the ultimate treasure room of magic items that every adventurer coveted -pages where players would endlessly window-shop and fantasize about show more artifacts that might turn their characters into gods.

And although primarily focusing on the Art of D&D, the structure provided by using a chronological history of the game, interspersed with the developing art of monsters through editions, make this a fascinating and entertaining read. show less