Collecting Gadgets & Games from the 1950s-90s

by Daniel Blythe

A nostalgic celebration of collectible treasures through the decades. Daniel Blythe takes a trip down memory lane with his first book for Remember When, focusing on toys, games, and gadgets from our youth; from Simon to the ZX Spectrum, from the Walkman to the boom box, from the Batmobile to James Bond’s Aston Martin and the TARDIS. From gadgets everyone had to those they desired to own, this is the book on big boys’ toys and their value. Whilst firms such as Sony focus on toys of the future, the latest Playstations and XBoxes, the author looks at the forgotten gadgets, the early MP3 players and radio sets and shows how to turn them into ready-money or future collectibles. He also reveals what makes a future collectible and discovers which action heroes are better than others when it comes to the collectibles world. 

224 pages, ebook

First published June 1, 2011

About the author

Daniel Blythe was born in Maidstone and educated at Maidstone Grammar School and St John’s College, Oxford. He is the author of three Doctor Who novels including Autonomy, as well as the novels The Cut, Losing Faith and This Is The Day. He has also written the non-fiction books The Encyclopaedia Of Classic 80s Pop, I Hate Christmas: A Manifesto for the Modern-Day Scrooge, Dadlands: The Alternative Handbook For New Fathers, the irreverent politics primer X Marks The Box and the collectors' guide Collecting Gadgets and Games from the 1950s-90s. In 2012, Chicken House published his book for younger readers, Shadow Runners. His Emerald Greene books for younger readers are also out now. Daniel now lives in Yorkshire, on the edge of the Peak District, with his wife and two children.

Reviews

[Carmen Tracey · Rating 1 out of 5]

Reads like an unfunny Boomer's gripe list, taking trite pot shots at everything from Care Bears and Cabbage Patch Kids to e-books and the Spice Girls. This might have been tolerable in an avuncular, out-of-touch way, if not coupled with the fact that this book contains little in the way of actual pricing information or collecting resources. Certainly nothing you couldn't find on the internet, and with less tired, snarky bloviating as well. Bonus: the entry on the 90s Sega Genesis features what looks like a modern Mini Genesis version, the type with pre-loaded games but the purports is the original. Embarrassing! I'm left wondering why someone who treats collectibles with disdain and carelessness would care to write a book on them, let alone why someone would publish it.