James Bond archives by Taschen

Hi all,

I have the 2012 edition of the James Bond Archives published by Taschen. Or should I say, I had… I’ve just had a flood in my basement where I kept some of my books, and it’s been irrevertably damaged… So I was thinking about getting a replacement, and I know there is the newest “NTTD edition” out.

But my question is: I’ve seen various price tags for this book, even on the Tascehn website itself, most notably one for 60€ and one for 150€.
Do you know what’s the difference between the 2? The details show the same number of pages (648 for both, which seems coherent since my 2012 one has approx. 600 pages), and have the same description. So I’m a bit lost as to what could be the difference…

Thanks for your help!

And in order to overcome this trauma, I’ll start reading the whole novels again… I have CR next to me right now!

Sorry for your loss. A flood in the basement is always bad, but as long as it’s limited to “just a few books”…

Anyhow, the difference is quite simple, and as always, it’s in the small print :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

For 150 Euros, you get the large version, the one that doesn’t fit in any shelf and which, at 41.1 x 30 cm and 6.65 kg justifies the term “coffee table book”

For 60 Euros, you get the “small” version (which at 33.7 x 24.6 cm is still quite large), in which everything is scaled down.

As the large version ist the original one, the font sizes are readable in it. These are, of course, scaled down in the smaller version, and so I’d say that one is something for the younger generation who doesn’t spend half the day looking for that frickin’ pair of glasses… :nerd_face:

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Thanks! Very useful.

The one I have is the large one. Indeed it doesn’t fit anywhere, and that’s actually why it was stored downstairs… But it does send that “serious business” vibe.
It also has the frame from Dr No on the first page. I hope the new edition does have that too!

Content-wise, do you know if the latest edition is the same as the old one, only with additional material to cover SP and NTTD? I.e, does it have everything the old one had (Fleming Playboy interview, etc.)?

I also noticed that for the edition I have, there was softcover and hardcover. From what i gather from the Taschen website, it seems that the latest one only has softcover

A softcover of the large version? Never heard of, and I also can’t find that information on their website. Are you sure you didn’t misread something?

Thing is, producing a book of that size and weight (even without the heavy hardcover) as a softcover would be utter nonsense, as the book would most likely not survive one single reading. The spine would immediately become rounded and wrinkled and eventually break in several places, with the possible result of losing pages. And if it doesn’t happen immediately, it will after a year or two, when the glue has embrittled. A cheap product not worth the money, or as my mom would say “not worth carrying it home”.

I have the XXL versions of the two Star Wars Archives books from Tashen and they are massive. I had to get a plastic box and slide them under my bed because they’re too large to go on a bookshelf. I plan to pick up the latest smaller version of the NTTD edition of the Bond Archives and even that still might be too large for my bookcase.

I’m hoping Tashen releases an Indiana Jones Archives.

Keep in mind that some smaller size Taschen editions do not have all of the text from the larger originals. This is the case with Taschen’s smaller Mickey Mouse book for example, which cut more than a chapter from the larger original. I wouldn’t be surprised if the smaller Bond book also has a pruned text.

Yep, sorry, my mistake. The french version of their website says “relié”, which usually translates as “softcover” (as opposed to “broché” which stands for hardcover). But their English version does say hardcover…

This is my fear also. But I checked their website and both versions have 648 pages. So I trust it’s the same, only smaller

Actually that’s the reason I stored it in the basement; it was too large to have it on my shelves or lay around in the living room. Maybe the smaller version would be more convenient indeed.

Only the first print of the first edition has the Dr. No “frame”, all other editions doesn’t.

Thanks. That is indeed what I gathered eventually after checking all the descriptions. Makes it even more frustrating to have the book ruined. But at least I managed to salvage the frame; I guess that’s something.

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