A History of Tri-ang and Lines Brothers Ltd

A History of Tri-ang and Lines Brothers Ltd written by Kenneth D. Brown and published by Pen & Sword Books - £20.00 - Hardback - Pages 160

The toy industry and its close relationship with children’s artefacts and equipment made a significant contribution to the light industries which came to increasing prominence in the British economy over the twentieth century as traditional heavy manufacturing declined. The demand for toys, both national and international, accelerated after the Great Exhibition of 1851 and two brothers, George and Joseph Lines, were among the most prominent of the manufacturers to emerge in the Victorian period. However, it was Lines Brothers Ltd., formally incorporated in 1919 by Joseph’s three sons, which very quickly established itself as the leading British toy company, overcoming the vicissitudes of depression and world war to become the world’s largest toy manufacturer by the 1950s. With operations in many parts of the world it was arguably the world’s first multi-national toy company, enjoying something of a golden age before collapsing spectacularly in the face of intensifying international competition and a changing economic climate.

This is the fascinating story of a family business whose iconic Tri-ang trademark was universally recognised and whose most famous products included model railways, Spot-on and Minic cars, soft toys, Pedigree prams, dolls’ houses, Scalextric, and Cindy dolls. It is a serious economic, business and industrial history, touching on important themes such as the interplay between government and business, the nature of entrepreneurship, the significance of company culture and organisation, and the changing nature of childhood. Above all, it is a story of strong personalities, familial tensions, and an underlying determination to bring delight to children.

I read this book because my own father used to be a huge collector of small cars and toys when he was younger, in fact, if I had a look in his loft he might still have a few floating about. So my interest was kind of a shared interest and a hope to see a number of pictures of toy cars and learn more about them. The book is very much a book about the history of a toy company like the title says, it was very much a case of good ideas prospering in a small business doing well to a certain point until other business activities, trends, and society would eventually see the slow spiral downwards to the business coming to an end. This was a nice story about a small business, I would say that this would be a fascinating book for people who knew the company when it was in its heyday or people who like to buy and collect small cars and toys. Whilst I found the book interesting just because I like reading about histories and timelines of companies for some strange reason, what I would have liked to have seen was more pictures of the toys and cars made by the company to see what people, like my Dad actually used to collect or play with.

British Escort Destroyers of the Second World War

British Escort Destroyers of the Second World War written by Les Brown and 

published by Seaforth Publishing - £16.99 - Softcover - Pages 64

The ‘ShipCraft’ series provides in-depth information about building and modifying model kits of famous warship types. Lavishly illustrated, each book takes the modeller through a brief history of the subject, highlighting differences between ships and changes in their appearance over their careers. This includes paint schemes and camouflage, featuring colour profiles and highly detailed line drawings and scale plans. The modelling section reviews the strengths and weaknesses of available kits, lists commercial accessory sets for super-detailing of the subjects, and provides hints on modifying and improving the basic kit. This is followed by an extensive photographic gallery of selected high-quality models in a variety of scales, and the book concludes with a section on research references – books, monographs, large-scale plans and relevant websites.

This volume covers the many variations of Royal Navy wartime escort destroyers, both the purpose-built ‘Hunt’ class and the conversions from older fleet destroyers. The ‘Hunts’ were built in four groups (Types I to IV), while the old ‘V&W’ classes were modified to Long Range Escort, Short Range Escort and ‘Wair’ (anti-aircraft) variants. Also included are the fifty ex-US ‘flush-deckers’ that became the ‘Town’ class.

With its unparalleled level of visual information – paint schemes, models, line drawings and photographs – this book is simply the best reference for any modelmaker setting out to build any of these numerous escort types.

This is the first book in the ShipCraft series from Seaforth Publishing that I have read. Wow, I have really enjoyed reading and reviewing this book looking at British Escort Destroyers in the Second World War. Based on the same basis as the TankCraft books this book is fantastic looking at the various destroyers that made an appearance during WWII. Looking at these Royal Navy fast escorts we learn about the types or classes of destroyer, we also learn about the different paint schemes, models, designs and photographs of the actual ships at sea, but also the models. I would like to thank Seaforth Publishing for allowing me to review this book as I have learnt so much about these ships and the Royal Navy and all about the ships’ specifications, designs and the reasons why. This was a thoroughly interesting read and I would most certainly recommend this book and the series.

Tiger I & Tiger II Tanks

Tiger I and Tiger II Tanks written by Dennis Oliver and published by Pen & Sword Books - £16.99 - Softcover - Pages 64

By the first weeks of 1945, the Eastern Front had been pushed back to the Carpathian mountain passes in the south and Warsaw on the Vistula River in the centre while in the north the German army was fighting in East Prussia. The Wehrmacht's armoured and mobile formations were now employed exclusively as fire brigades, rushed from one crisis to the next as the Red Army pushed inexorably westward. Critical to the German defence were the army's heavy Panzer battalions whose Tiger tanks, with their 8.8cm guns, were almost invincible on the open plains of central Europe. In his latest book in the TankCraft series Dennis Oliver uses archive photos and extensively researched colour illustrations to examine the Tiger tanks and units of the German Army and Waffen-SS heavy Panzer battalions that struggled to resist the onslaught of Soviet armour during the last days of the conflict which culminated in the battle for Berlin. A key section of his book displays available model kits and aftermarket products, complemented by a gallery of beautifully constructed and painted models in various scales. Technical details, as well as modifications introduced during production and in the field, are also examined providing everything the modeller needs to recreate an accurate representation of these historic tanks.

I do love a nice Tiger tank, personally, I think one of the more beautiful tanks, if a tank can be called that. So you can see that if I love a Tiger tank, then I must have enjoyed this book, and I did indeed. As usual with these books, they are very well written and informed, the research that goes into these books, although small is no less than a standard-sized book. You have all the tank dimensions, specifications and theatre of war camouflage, the history and the operations they are specifically well known for. Now obviously, these books are twinned with being aimed at model makers/collectors, now I’m not one of these but this particular section of the books always seems very well done. So in all, this book hits the mark in all ways, another good addition to the range.