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The Steampunk Bible: An Illustrated Guide To The World Of Imaginary Airships, Corsets And Goggles, Mad Scientists, And Strange Literature

Steampunk—a grafting of Victorian aesthetic and punk rock attitude onto various forms of science-fiction culture—is a phenomenon that has come to influence film, literature, art, music, fashion, and more. The Steampunk Bible is the first compendium about the movement, tracing its roots in the works of Jules Verne and H. G. Wells through its most recent expression in movies such as Sherlock Holmes. Its adherents celebrate the inventor as an artist and hero, re-envisioning and crafting retro technologies including antiquated airships and robots. A burgeoning DIY community has brought a distinctive Victorian-fantasy style to their crafts and art. Steampunk evokes a sense of adventure and discovery, and embraces extinct technologies as a way of talking about the future. This ultimate manual will appeal to aficionados and novices alike as author Jeff VanderMeer takes the reader on a wild ride through the clockwork corridors of Steampunk history.Praise for The Steampunk Bible:"The Steampunk Bible is an informed, informative and beautifully illustrated survey of the subject." -The Financial Times"The Steampunk Bible is far and away the most intriguing catalog of all things steam yet written." -The Austin Chronicle  “It’s hard to imagine how VanderMeer and Chambers could have put together a stronger collection. Its publication marks a significant, self-conscious moment in the history of the movement.” —PopMatters.com

Hardcover: 224 pages

Publisher: Harry N. Abrams; 6th edition (May 1, 2011)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 0810989581

ISBN-13: 978-0810989580

Product Dimensions: 7 x 0.9 x 10 inches

Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)

Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (141 customer reviews)

Best Sellers Rank: #79,466 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #43 in Books > Literature & Fiction > History & Criticism > Genres & Styles > Science Fiction & Fantasy #45 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Science Fiction > History & Criticism #8159 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Fantasy

I bought this sight unseen at a Steampunk convention just days after it's release. It is very lovely, full of pretty photos and some nice articles. I have to say it does try to cover a lot of ground, and there is just no way to cover everything, even with as ambitious an undertaking as a genre "bible"... It manages to be pretty comprehensive, even if you can actually get a lot more details on every little bit online, it would be sort of preposterous to ask that a printed book cover the vastness of the internet resources on a subject as individual and hard to pin down as Steampunk. What disappointed me, really, was the most un-steampunk tonality of many of the articles. Every convention and event I have attended featured friendly, outgoing, DIY-loving people eager to help each other and share their crafting knowledge, musical interests, literary loves... many sections of this "bible" take a very demeaning tone, describing what is "absolutely NOT steampunk" and telling you what you "MUST NOT" call steampunk-- as though a collection of people who have more financially invested in a fantasy genre than you have the right to dictate how you should view the entire movement. For example, the section by "reknowned" author Cathrynne M. Valente is particularly condescending and vitriolic; mainly decrying the use of *gears* in artwork and fashion as childish and overdone, implying that there is a frosty clique of elite and erudite steampunks tittering behind their hands at anyone who is so uncouth as to wear a *gear* on their clothing. Oddly, this snide little section didn't stop the editors from including an awful lot of gear imagery in the book. It's funny, another reviewer also felt that some of these people were WAY TOO INTO IT....

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