Back From the Future: A Celebration of the Greatest Time Travel Story Ever Told

by Brad Gilmore

The ultimate guide to the classic time travel trilogy by the host of Back to the The Podcast--"Great Scott, this is a must-read" (Ken Napzak, author of Why We Love Star Wars).

The Back to the Future series of films is, in a word, timeless. From the original films to spin-off cartoons, toys and more, generations of fans never seem to get enough of Marty McFly, Doc Brown, and their adventures through the space-time continuum. In this celebration of all things Back to the Future, author Brad Gilmore discusses the films, the fascinating history behind them, and why they mean so much to so many.

Pairing his knowledge with his passion for the films, Gilmore explores aspects and movie trivia you won't hear about anywhere else. He dives into fan theories and provides answers to many questions readers have--because, as a superfan himself, they are the very questions he has asked himself.

This volume
Completed timelines of all the main characters from the franchise
In-depth studies of various Back to the Future fan theories that will surprise and intrigue you
A detailed comparison of the films' predictions of the future to our world today

Genres: Nonfiction, Audiobook, Time Travel

164 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 14, 2020

Reviews

[TraceyL · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great read for fans of the Back to the Future movies. I already knew most of the information included in this book, but I did learn some new things and it was entertaining to read an author talk about a subject they really love. I'll probably check out author's podcast, too.

[Ben A · Rating 4 out of 5]

An incredibly fun and entertaining, love letter to the Back to the Future trilogy of films and beyond. All the updates enhanced this already amazing book.

Special Thanks to the Mango Publishing Group and Edelweiss Plus for the digital ARC. This was given to me for an honest review.

[Matt · Rating 2 out of 5]

As others have said, a bit of proofreading wouldn’t have been a bad idea.

It’s not so much a book about the making of the BttF trilogy, more a book about the author’s own experiences and thoughts on the trilogy, which can be a little bit tedious at times.

[Rafal Jasinski · Rating 2 out of 5]

Brad Gilmore ma na koncie już 86 odcinków swojego cyklu "Back to the Future: The Podcast", w ramach którego rozbierał na czynniki pierwsze trylogię Zemeckisa / Gale'a, prowadził rozmowy z współtwórcami i aktorami "Powrotu do przyszłości" i innymi fanami. Więc ciekawostek i wartościowych treści dostarczył niemało. Dość powiedzieć, że jego seria audycji jest uznawana za światowy "numerem jeden", jeśli chodzi o tematy związane z "najlepszą trylogią filmową wszech czasów".

Szkoda więc, że książka daje niewielką tylko próbkę tego, czego dostarcza jego podcast i trochę żałuję, że zabierając się do publikacji, nie zebrał, nie uporządkował i nie zawarł w niej wywiadów i całej masy innych wartościowych treści, dostępnych w jego audycjach. W tej formie książka ta stanowić może raczej reklamę i zachętę do odsłuchu jego podcastów i być może taki był zamysł?... W każdym razie próbka ta przynosi kilka ciekawostek i teorii fanowskich - które dla wielbicieli trylogii nie będą stanowić wielkich niespodzianek - oraz przekonuje i wzbudza sympatię do samego autora (i znów - do jego podcastu), ponieważ bardzo dużo tu osobistych i bardzo emocjonalnych wątków z jego życia (a właściwie tej jego części, która związała się tak mocno z "Powrotem do przyszłości"). Książeczkę jednakowoż polecam a jeszcze mocniej sam podcast...

[Kathleen Garber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Are you a Back to the Future fan? If so this is the book for you. I loved the movies and have seen them multiple times but even I learned new things. I guess I’m not a superfan. I had no idea there were theme park rides or that there was an animated tv show.

This is a little book so it won’t take you too long to read. It’s still chock full of information for the Back to the Future fan.

The book talks about all three movies, the animated series, the toys, the theme park ride, Future Day and more. What a cute little book. I remember Future Day aka October 21, 2015, the day they travelled to in the movie. To me it was just a cute “Oh look it’s the date from Back to the Future!” day. I had no idea there were celebrations or special events happening. The book talks all about that.

The book also talks about Biff more than I’ve ever seen anywhere else. I have never put much thought into his character so it was interesting.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Jeatherhane Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't really connect with this book. No wonder. I was a 14-y-o girl with Michael J. Fox posters on my wall who went to the theatre to watch Back to the Future on its release date. Brad Gilmore was a gr. 1 student in 1999 who watched the trilogy on the Disney channel. Back From the Future contains lists, so here is a list of why this book did not make me nostalgic for the 80s:

5. This book is kind of a tribute to Bob Gale and Robert Zemeckis (aka "the Bobs") While these guys did make a great movie, I was not interested in reading about the Bobs in my Teen Beat magazine.

4. Most of the quotes about the making of the movie are taken from the bonus material in the special edition DVDs of the movies. Why not just watch those features?

3. Ranking of the best versions of the time machine and Doc Brown's inventions. Not my top concerns.

2. Ranking the best characters without including Marty, Doc, George, Lorraine, or Bif.

1. Gilmore admits his favorite movie in the trilogy is #2. 😜

Given that The Karate Kid and Back to the Future were released a year apart, in 1984 and 1985 respectively, I expected both of these books to be a blast from the past. I even had a bit higher hopes for Back From the Future. But I was wrong.

I recommend Waxing On to GenXers who love 80s movie culture, and I recommend Back From the Future to Millenials who love cool gadgets and fandoms.

[Aaron Peck · Rating 3 out of 5]

Let's get this out of the way at the start: Back to the Future is the greatest movie ever made.

That said, I was kind of psyched to find out about this book's existence. I think I first heard about its publication when I saw a YouTube video conversation between Roxy Striar and the book's author, Brad Gilmore.

As a book, I enjoyed the content, the information, and the author's anecdotes surrounding his own love for the Back to the Future trilogy. I can't say I didn't have problems reading it, though.

My problems, I'm certain, have nothing to do with the author or his writing style. No, my problems lie with anyone who was assigned to edit this book before it went to print. So. Many. Errors. Writers make mistakes, that's expected. But isn't the point of having someone edit a book to catch those little typos and misspellings?

I enjoyed the book, I really did. But the fact that so many small mistakes slipped through the editing process almost caused me to quit reading a third of the way in.

If you like Back to the Future, I'll go ahead and recommend this book. Especially if you aren't as OCD as I apparently am when it comes to pointing out every time they forgot to include the E at the end of Lorraine's name.

[Nick Atkins · Rating 2 out of 5]

Reads like a blog rather than an actual book - the author tries to tell a "cute" anecdote about Oct 21 2015, which is where I called it a day. As other reviews have noted, the book is also badly in need of an editor. Disappointing.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s hard to believe, but it’s been almost 40 years since we first got to see the adventures of Marty McFly and Doc Brown on the big screen in the “Back to the Future” films and its many spin-offs, from theme park attractions to Saturday morning cartoons and comic books. Over the years, the franchise has built up a large community of fans, who can be found all over the world every October, celebrating the “anniversary” of the night Marty went back in time in Doc’s DeLorean. Learn about the movies and what they inspired in this brief but fun look at the movies and the fan community.

“Back From The Future” is a book written by a fan for the fans. Although Brad Gilmore didn’t experience the films until years after their release, he’s become a big part of the BTTF community, even publishing a blog sharing fun facts about the franchise. In this book, he brings readers some of his favorite stories, from memories of how the original movie was created and written by “the Bobs” (Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale) to theories on what a deleted scene from “BTTF Part 2” tells us about what might have happened to a main character. A section of the book is an almanac of the author’s favorite BTTF lists, like Doc Brown’s greatest inventions and the top 5 versions of the time travel vehicles seen in the films. From the story of the actor who was Marty McFly before Michael J. Fox assumed the role to the, uh, future of “Back To The Future”, there are a lot of fun stories in this book.

A fair bit of warning: If you’re looking for the definitive history of the filming of the film trilogy, that’s not this book; consider grabbing “We Don’t Need Roads” by Caseen Gaines in addition to this book to get more of the story behind the films. Alas, the book’s a little out of date, having been written about 5 years ago; the Broadway musical is mentioned as something still in development (someone needs to grab the DeLorean and go back to 2020 and publish an update). If you’re a fan of the franchise, then Great Scott, put down your Pepsi Perfect and start reading this book! Recommended.

[Dave Grone · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a quick, fun, easy read. That said, it’s probably strictly for the diehards like myself given the way it’s written, & no real new, groundbreaking information (not surprising given the movie is almost 40 years old, so this isn’t meant as an indictment of the author).

I did get a chuckle out of the acknowledgements when the author mentioned he’d never written a book before, because, no shade intended, it kinda shows 😉

All of that said, it’s still fun, I still LOVE Brad Gilmore, & I love his Back to the Future podcast even more. If you read this book, & haven’t yet checked out his podcast, remedy that, STAT! It’s an absolute blast😁

[Bargain Sleuth Book Reviews · Rating 2 out of 5]

For hardcore BTTF fans only. I loved the movies and own them, but I also don't take them out several times a year and watch them. They were part of my formative years and I have great memories of the first time I watched the movies. (At the time, my friends told me #2 was so bad, I didn't need to see it to understand #3, and they were right. I watched #2 years later and I really didn't miss much.)

The writing is in bad need of an editor, and the tone is of a fan-boy who watched all the bonus material from the DVD/Blu-Ray release and regurgitates it here. Not a very professional effort by any stretch of the imagination.

[Steve Danner · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for any super fan of the BTTF franchise! Gilmore goes through several aspects of the making of the movies, the pop culture references, memorabilia and more. It's put together coherently in that it doesn't jump around and it's organized into well thought out chapters. It's a short read too, so you definitely won't get bored. The best part is that Gilmore never misses an opportunity to generously throw movie quotes into this book whenever he possibly can, but always correctly and tastefully!

[Nate Balcom · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great love letter of a book! Back to the Future was probably my most beloved movie as a child. It's the first movie I had memorized line-for-line, from the start "October is inventory time" to the finish, "Roads? Where we're going we don't need roads."

This movie had a huge impact on my life and is still one of my favorites. This book collects some great information about the film as well as other media in the franchise. And of course the first thing I did after reading... rewatch the film!

[Roderick Vonhogen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very enjoyable book for fans of the Back to the Future series. The author is a huge fan himself, and his passion for the stories reminds me of my own enthusiasm for Star Wars (and also for the BTTF movies). As a fan myself, I already knew quite a few of the anekdotes and behind the scenes stories in this book, but there was also a lot of information that was new to me. Interesting to read about the animated series and the comic books that continue the stories or fill in the blanks in what we know of Marty McFly and Doc Brown.

[Charlie · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you're expecting a hard core explanation of the movie trilogy, you're in the wrong place. This book is exactly like the summary says: from a fan and for fans. When author explains his encounter with the movie, and when he shares the funny anecdotes with us, I had a great laugh. But the reference to the MCU universe and all those comparison are kind of boring. I'm looking for a behind scene story, maybe a little character analysis. However, this book is none of those but a combination of everything I didn't ask for. Overall, it's a fun read.

[Charlie Parra · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Roads? Where we're going, we don't need roads"

That's probably my favorite movie line ever. I'm a huge fan of the Back to the Future trilogy. It is my favorite movie, and it is close to my heart.

Brad wrote this book as a fan, for fans. Sure, most of the things he mentioned I already knew, but there were some others that came as a nice surprise. Fully recommend for all of you fans out there.

[Tony Cottam · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun read, but typo central as other people point out. While the lists were fun, it did feel like shoehorning some content in to up the word count. I would have liked more depth in some parts of the book, as I do like the author's "voice" but the book was frustratingly short and finished in one sitting!

[Elisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the movies, but I was expecting more about them. There is a lot of information about how the films were made, the actors and screenplays but there is also too much personal stuff from the author. Like his top ten supporting characters, which is his own opinion and adds little to the movie enthusiast looking to learn more about the history of Back to the Future.

[Josh reading · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a fun trip down memory lane Brad Gilmore provided in this fun retrospect into the Back to the Future trilogy and related content. There are some wonderful little known nuggets of information shared and it was delightful to hear some interesting insights into the production from the cast and crew.

[Matt Lorenzen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fan's fitting love letter to one of the all "time" greatest film trilogies in cinematic history. As one who grew up during the films releases, it is interesting to hear from a fan born after the films. Many of the nuggets you've probably already heard or learned before as a fun, but Brad does provide additional facts and trivia, as well as content from interviews you've likely not heard.

[Jeffrey Nichols · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short read with abbreviated story

I picked this book up as I am a fan of Back to the Future. I originally thought this book would go into alot of details, but it mainly hit on things that are known. I felt the book could have had more in it. Having said that, it is a quick read that any fan would enjoy.

[Roberta Westwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fab

I was going to give this 4 stars, because I wasn’t into this movie series (though I think I saw them all), and I couldn’t possibly appreciate this as much as a truly avid fan would. But.., it was so well done that I didn’t miss as much as I thought I would, and found it entirely enjoyable. True fans are going to have to give it a 6 out of 5.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you are a fan of the Back to the Future Trilogy, you will like this book. Full of trivia and back stories and character analysis.

Interesting if you like the movie. Well-written. Author also does a podcast.

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

An extremely shallow dive into the BttF franchise, providing little beyond two things:

1. A potential push to seek out more.
2. Some directions to the aforementioned "more".

Not a waste of time. Just don't go in expecting a definitive treasure trove of history and trivia.

[Clark Comstock · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not terrible, but could have been so much better. I did enjoy Gilmore’s take on the movies, but it always felt like something was missing. Also, there are a ton of typos, though admittedly any more than zero in a published book is too many for me.

[Samuel Lam · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun book for fans of the franchise. It's still somewhat Gilmore's personal story about his connection to the films but you still get some cool facts that might not be common knowledge. It's a little piece of fandom you get to share with him. Worth a read for any fan.

[Zachary Shelton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. Was totally engaged with more about the history, lists, and how the film is portrayed off screen

[W · Rating 3 out of 5]

A light, quick read. Found a few spelling and grammatical errors.

[Adam · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun read for fans of the film but nothing overly new or insightful. Lots of typos too, sadly.

[Kat Foster · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a great accompaniment to the movies!