Great LEGO Sets A Visual History(Hardback) - 2015 Edition

by Daniel Lipkowitz

Packed with stunning photography and fascinating facts, Great LEGO A Visual History explores the history of LEGO sets in magnificent detail. The guide offers an expansive overview of the most significant, popular, and interesting play sets, featured in chronological order from 1955 to the present day.Great LEGO A Visual History features the most beloved sets in the LEGO Group's long history, including much-loved classic 1980s LEGO Space and LEGO Castle sets and the latest stunning licensed themed sets, such as LEGO Star Wars.Created in full collaboration with the LEGO Group and with profiles and quotes from LEGO designers, this captivating new book also comes with an exclusive retro-style LEGO set for readers to build.LEGO, the LEGO logo, the Brick and Knob configurations and the Minifigure are trademarks of the LEGO Group. 2015 The LEGO Group.Produced by DK Publishing under license from the LEGO Group.

Genres: Nonfiction, Reference, Childrens

Hardcover

First published October 6, 2015

Reviews

[C · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fun, nostalgic read. Large pages with close-up photos and explanations of set features. Describes how sets are produced. Covers 1955-2015.

Notes
Godtfred Kirk Christiansen, then owner of the LEGO Group, didn't want violent conflict in sets. So early Castle models didn't have opposing sides, and designers of Space sets added pieces to weapon-like parts rather than including weapons.

Original 1978 castle was yellow because there weren't many gray elements, because Godtfred Kirk Christiansen didn't like that designers built tanks of gray bricks.

The skeleton was designed a decade before it appeared in a set, but the designer was scolded for designing a dead minifigure.

[Stephen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a visual history of some of the amazing Lego sets. It was wonderful to see many of the sets that I have owned as a kid known as classic. I still have many of them including the Black Seas Barracuda. So much fun and this book took me back to the hours that I spent with my Legos.

[Matthew Fleming · Rating 5 out of 5]

A forensic and brilliant examination of a plethora of great Lego sets - both myself and my six year old pore over this daily!

[Nathan · Rating 3 out of 5]

So. Much. Nostalgia.

Great LEGO Sets is a great course in LEGO history. I loved the insights into the design process of specific sets and sets in general, and the timeline at the front of the book gave a wonderful overview of LEGO's evolution. Content wise, I would have done some things differently (for example, I would have chosen Fort Legoredo to represent the Western theme; included the first Adventurers subtheme as more than a passing reference; and not represented the year 2014 with three sets from The LEGO Movie), but with so few pages to cover so much material, DK Publishing did a fine job offering something to every LEGO fan. I enjoyed the walk down memory lane, and also gained a better appreciation for themes I previously cared little about (namely Ninjago and Legends of Chima).

Now to dig out all those old sets....

[Dina · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting compendium of Lego sets. At the beginning of the book there is a visual timeline as well as an essay describing the process of developing a set. The visual history itself follows, focusing on individual sets with additional info about it as well as quotes from the creators for some of the sets. The history is divided by decades, starting with 1950s-1960s and culminating with sets from 2015. I must admit I learned quite a bit from this book, and enjoyed the process. I especially enjoyed learning more about some of the sets I own.

[Mehsi · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful book featuring several gorgeous LEGO sets, definitely a recommendation if you are a LEGO lover like me. :D