Luxury Watches: A Beginners Comprehensive Guide

Great Read.

This is a small little booklet (14cm x 21cm) that I’m not impressed with, even the content the layout affirmed that it’s not worth my $.If I have seen this book physically I definitely will not have bought it, the overall feel of the book is like a free book.Just my 2 cents worth and maybe it’s just me.

It's more of a pamphlet than a book. Good info, a few pages tops on some top brands but I suggest buying a more substantial book with better and more colour photos and more technical detail. This book is informative but remedial. As always, you get what you pay for.

Right, let's get started at the beginning: (the paragraph below is not in the published item, it’s the main body of the Amazon advert.)This short book provides a beginner look into the luxury watch industry from its inception to today, with a focus on some of the most prestigious watch companies in the world. Here, readers will receive a detailed view of many finely crafted tools of the time. Discovering the difference between movements and design, feel and practicality.A more honest and open statement would be “……. this pamphlet …...” I don’t see how I could describe it in any way as a book! It has 40 numbered pages that include the 1-page conclusion and 2 pages introducing three people the author reached out to; a long-time collector, a master watchmaker and a watchmaker. The last two I think are from two of his local jewellers? I certainly don’t know any of them.If this pamphlet covers luxury watches from inception to today then maybe using 6 pages instead of the 4 used would be useful? It would have certainly provided some space for the many parts of the Horological development excluded; I mean not a word on the original need for use on ships to enable safe and more accurate navigation. The author runs from the 15th century where we discover such ‘clocks’ were the domain of the ‘leisure class’. We now come to the 16th century where reliability was to circa minutes a day and the ‘watch’ had now become a tool. We now come to the 1800s with very little mention of England’s development of the timepiece, I mean GMT doesn’t even get a mention!?I should now point out that the last page of this section was 75% blank, the preceding two pages were a lot about you the reader and Lincoln. It ‘finished’ with the 1st World War and soldiers needing timepieces and those watches to be worn on the wrist. Crikey! There is a lovely story about a Scots man and Hamilton watches and yet not a single mention in the 'Comprehensive Guide'.It would be possible to go on however I will not bother and trust that I have given you a strong idea of the strength of the pamphlet. I purchased this ‘book’ in great hope, I am new to the hobby and still want/need to soak up knowledge, what a disappointment. By the way the pictures……………………………!!

This is a Short 50 page book for an inexpensive price. This Introduced me into the luxury watch space. I enjoyed the historical references to some of the watches and all for the price of a McDonald’s!