Customer Reviews

The Man Who Changed How Boys and Toys Were Made: The Life and Times of A. C. Gilbert, the Man Who Saved Christmas

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Bruce Watson has taken a mostly forgotten american hero and brought him to a new audience. With detailed precision, an alarming wit and an insight that childhood makes the man, Bruce Watson here writes of a long lost era in American history and the paradigm shift that Alfred Carlton Gilbert wrought.

America needs an industrial hero, now. And this book tells of one man who deserves more recognition. A very good read. Not a hobbyist checklist or price-guide, "The man who changed how boys and toys were made" is a warm fuzzy that in reality tells of the reasons why American ingenuity had a boost that lead the pathway to landing on the moon, and hints at why the great American engineering triumphs of the 20th century might be lost in the 21st. Highly reccommended read, far more than a "toy" book.

This book should be required reading for industrial designers, toy designers and anyone else involved in design, marketing or production of consumer goods. This is a very important look into market forces, consumer behavior and the importance of placing the consumer first amd foremeost in your product design.

The book may be a biography, but is also a textbook for every enlightened designer and marketer. I will make this required reading for the Industrial design grad student I am mentoring.

Add to the fact that the author's style is at times hilarious, sometimes matter of fact, and the bottom of page 208 and page 209 will bring tears of joy and pride to your eyes.

Well written, entertaining and incredibly informative.

A.C. Gilbert wore many hats: athlete, magician, and self-made millionaire - but he made his money by creating the Erector set toy back in 1913, making an invention which changed how boys played. The Man Who Changed How Boys And Toys Were Made isn't just a biography of an inventor; it examines how toys help avert or discharge childhood violence, how high-tech toys may serve a different purpose, and differences between how both sexes play.

Bruce Watson takes the reader from AC Gilbert's childhood to his days at Paradise. He explains how this industrial legend developed and advertised his "Toys for Boys". And Mr. Watson explains the reasons why Gilbert's toys were not as popular for the 60"s child. A good read.

Although I was born too late for the Erector set boom, I, for the most part, enjoyed this biography on toy magnate A.C. Gilbert. Part man, part boy, part inventor, part showman and all business, this gave good insight into the man behind the legendary toys. Again, I'm a little out of the loop as far as Gilbert's toys go, but I'm willing to wager that this would be much more enjoyable for somebody who grew up with Erectormania.

Not just a good read, this book is full of insight into a man who really had a handle on what boys needed. I found myself wondering how my life might have been different, had I not had my American Flyer layout, Erector set, and even my Chemistry set ( My mom just knew I was going to blow up the house.)

I purchased this book after seeing "The Man Who Saved Christmas" on TV in December. My older brother, now in his 60's, was a huge erector set fan as a kid and grew up to be an engineer. He said he actually remembered Gilbert's name from the ouside of the set's box! Anyway, he really got a kick out of the book. Gilbert's true-life story is remarkable and particularly inspiring for those of us who grew up in the Kennedy days of trying to be the "best and the brightest." It also would make a great gift for any academically inclined young person.

I enjoyed the TV secial many years ago and wanted to know more aboutthe life and times of AC Gilbert. I loved the science and chemesrty sets of my child hood. This is a great book if you like company and biographies. This is a great addition to the American Flyer Model train collectors libary. I bought it for my brother who used to be an American Flyer fan ( I was into Lionel). I kept the book - maybe I will get him one for next year!

This book is being hawked to book club types who read widely if not deeply, but it seems to have missed its intended audience. The first clue is it has two subtitles. The second appears when you crack the cover. Watson seems to have reprised the successful writing style of his other books. What results is neither fish nor fowl.

The few black and white pictures will have toy collectors salivating for more. Any serious? afficianados will be put off with Watson's frequent recourse to pop psychology and his continual penchant to restate the obvious. What this book makes you want is a full scale, photo-drenched guide to the A.C. Gilbert toy company and especially erector sets.

Erector sets also have a long, speckled history, being bought at one point by Meccano, the British equivalent, and recently reissued by various companies who apparently just bought the name. As with Johnny Lighting, Aurora Models and Lionel Trains, Erector longs for some toy lover to bring back the real thing: kits that build various structures and vehicles and especially robots, not those currently in vogue with nostalgic adults (but ignored by creative kids) that only construct one rickety model.

That said, this book does a great job of recreating the possible environment of A.C. Gilbert's company and how he lived and breathed toys. As one subtitle suggests, he ought to be every toy lovers' hero for the way he saved Christmas in 1918 from a proposal that would force parents to buy war bonds rather than toys for their kids. Rather than appearing in circulating libraries and book clubs, this book needs to be redone with far more graphics and toy pics and aimed at toy collectors who would discover in A.C. Gilbert a mentor and hero.