08-28-2002, 06:51 AM
These are interesting books. I recently met with the author, Laszlo, in Budapest. He is a very, very nice guy.
However, the caveats. Both books are full of many, many errors. These are mostly errors of identification - the photos themselves and uniforms shown are mostly fine. As an example, in volume one there is a photo showing many supposed 1920s cavalry hats. In reality these are hats from a variety of odd branches and services from the WWII era and even the post-WWII era.
These books are not alone in that way. The Webster & Nelson book has over three dozen errors in it and a few fake uniforms.
The book is not good if you want to quote with absolute authority on something. However, it is still a good overall book.
I especially like three things about it, first it covers the entire 1917-1991 period, second it has good photos, and third it has a lot of "common" stuff. Too many books out there have nothing that the begining collector can identify with. Books on WWII general's uniforms are of little interest to someone who is very proud of their first 1980s officer hat. This book shows a lot of stuff which a begining collector can acquire easily and relatively cheaply.
Shawn
However, the caveats. Both books are full of many, many errors. These are mostly errors of identification - the photos themselves and uniforms shown are mostly fine. As an example, in volume one there is a photo showing many supposed 1920s cavalry hats. In reality these are hats from a variety of odd branches and services from the WWII era and even the post-WWII era.
These books are not alone in that way. The Webster & Nelson book has over three dozen errors in it and a few fake uniforms.
The book is not good if you want to quote with absolute authority on something. However, it is still a good overall book.
I especially like three things about it, first it covers the entire 1917-1991 period, second it has good photos, and third it has a lot of "common" stuff. Too many books out there have nothing that the begining collector can identify with. Books on WWII general's uniforms are of little interest to someone who is very proud of their first 1980s officer hat. This book shows a lot of stuff which a begining collector can acquire easily and relatively cheaply.
Shawn
