Reviews
"My dad referred to Mickey Mouse as 'a little creature dedicated to the purposes of laughter.' He also advised us to remember that 'It all started with a mouse' . . . the empire that resulted that bears his name. Mickey means different things to different people, and Garry Apgar has compiled a fascinating selection of essays on The Mouse by some very important people. On Mickey's behalf, I am very impressed." --Diane Disney Miller (1933-2013) was president of the Walt Disney Family Foundation and co-founder of The Walt Disney Family Museum, This book does a good job curating particularly significant pieces about the Mousefrom such noted writers as John Canemaker, John Culhane, E. M. Forster, John Updike, M. Thomas Inge, Charles Solomon and our own Jim Korkis, among many others. The highlights for me are reading the older pieceswith such noted authors as Irving Wallace or a screenwriter like Frank S. Nugent discussing the evolution of Mickey Mouse in the 1940swritten at a time when the maturing studio was still in a golden age.And there is also some real meat hereArthur Manns 1934 article for Harpers Magazine on Disneys finances and distribution is a real find. Just when you think youve read it all, A Mickey Mouse Reader will indeed add to your knowledge of the Disney studio and its most famous creation. This is a good one, and I recommend it.Jerry Beck, Cartoon Research (9/10/14), A Mickey Mouse Reader is a seminal book which will delight both casual Mickey Mouse enthusiasts and Disney history scholars. Thanks to Garry Apgar, no serious research about Mickey will ever be undertaken from this day forward without first absorbing the fascinating content of this delightful book.Didier Ghez, author of Disneys Grand Tour and editor of the Walts People book series, " A Mickey Mouse Reader is a seminal book which will delight both casual Mickey Mouse enthusiasts and Disney history scholars. Thanks to Garry Apgar, no serious research about Mickey will ever be undertaken from this day forward without first absorbing the fascinating content of this delightful book." --Didier Ghez, author of Disney's Grand Tour and editor of the Walt's People book series, "In his introduction to A Mickey Mouse Reader , editor Garry Apgar advises readers to enjoy the book's segments at random, but I didn't follow his suggestions. I found this much more fascinating to read all the way through. As someone who rarely lets a quality Disney book or research work go by without devouring it, I found it more fun and interesting to see how the Mickey Mouse phenomenon grew from hot new fad to artistic triumph to passé to dismissible to artistic and important over the decades. Having read many works that have excerpted selections from many of these essays, it was nice to read them in context, because it really drives home the cultural dynamism of Mickey Mouse and the Disney empire, as well as its effect on those who lived through the various eras. Apgar created a fine assemblage of writings that are a good reference for enthusiasts and perhaps an eye-opener for those who can't understand all the fuss about Mickey." --Greg Ehrbar, Blog Tracks (10/31/14); co-author (with Tim Hollis) of Mouse Tracks: The Story of Walt Disney Records, In his introduction to A Mickey Mouse Reader , editor Garry Apgar advises readers to enjoy the book's segments at random, but I didn't follow his suggestions. I found this much more fascinating to read all the way through. As someone who rarely lets a quality Disney book or research work go by without devouring it, I found it more fun and interesting to see how the Mickey Mouse phenomenon grew from hot new fad to artistic triumph to passé to dismissible to artistic and important over the decades. Having read many works that have excerpted selections from many of these essays, it was nice to read them in context, because it really drives home the cultural dynamism of Mickey Mouse and the Disney empire, as well as its effect on those who lived through the various eras. Apgar created a fine assemblage of writings that are a good reference for enthusiasts and perhaps an eye-opener for those who can't understand all the fuss about Mickey., In his introduction to A Mickey Mouse Reader , editor Garry Apgar advises readers to enjoy the books segments at random, but I didn't follow his suggestions. I found this much more fascinating to read all the way through. As someone who rarely lets a quality Disney book or research work go by without devouring it, I found it more fun and interesting to see how the Mickey Mouse phenomenon grew from hot new fad to artistic triumph to passto dismissible to artistic and important over the decades. Having read many works that have excerpted selections from many of these essays, it was nice to read them in context, because it really drives home the cultural dynamism of Mickey Mouse and the Disney empire, as well as its effect on those who lived through the various eras. Apgar created a fine assemblage of writings that are a good reference for enthusiasts and perhaps an eye-opener for those who cant understand all the fuss about Mickey.Greg Ehrbar, Blog Tracks (10/31/14); co-author (with Tim Hollis) of Mouse Tracks: The Story of Walt Disney Records, "This book does a good job curating particularly significant pieces about the Mouse-from such noted writers as John Canemaker, John Culhane, E. M. Forster, John Updike, M. Thomas Inge, Charles Solomon and our own Jim Korkis, among many others. The highlights for me are reading the older pieces-with such noted authors as Irving Wallace or a screenwriter like Frank S. Nugent discussing the evolution of Mickey Mouse in the 1940s-written at a time when the maturing studio was still in a "golden age." And there is also some real meat here-Arthur Mann's 1934 article for Harper's Magazine on Disney's finances and distribution is a real find. Just when you think you've read it all, A Mickey Mouse Reader will indeed add to your knowledge of the Disney studio and its most famous creation. This is a good one, and I recommend it." --Jerry Beck, Cartoon Research , 9/10/2014, A Mickey Mouse Reader is a quintessential text for anyone interested in American culture, animation, or Disney studies. Garry Apgar's contribution reminds audiences that what Creighton Peet wrote in 1930 remains true today: 'There is but one Mickey Mouse. Amen.', "In his introduction to A Mickey Mouse Reader , editor Garry Apgar advises readers to enjoy the book's segments at random, but I didn't follow his suggestions. I found this much more fascinating to read all the way through. As someone who rarely lets a quality Disney book or research work go by without devouring it, I found it more fun and interesting to see how the Mickey Mouse phenomenon grew from hot new fad to artistic triumph to pass to dismissible to artistic and important over the decades. Having read many works that have excerpted selections from many of these essays, it was nice to read them in context, because it really drives home the cultural dynamism of Mickey Mouse and the Disney empire, as well as its effect on those who lived through the various eras. Apgar created a fine assemblage of writings that are a good reference for enthusiasts and perhaps an eye-opener for those who can't understand all the fuss about Mickey." --Greg Ehrbar, Blog Tracks (10/31/14); co-author (with Tim Hollis) of Mouse Tracks: The Story of Walt Disney Records, My dad referred to Mickey Mouse as a little creature dedicated to the purposes of laughter.He also advised us to remember that It all started with a mouse. . . the empire that resulted that bears his name. Mickey means different things to different people, and Garry Apgar has compiled a fascinating selection of essays on The Mouse by some very important people. On Mickeys behalf, I am very impressed.Diane Disney Miller (19332013) was president of the Walt Disney Family Foundation and co-founder of The Walt Disney Family Museum, This book does a good job curating particularly significant pieces about the Mouse--from such noted writers as John Canemaker, John Culhane, E. M. Forster, John Updike, M. Thomas Inge, Charles Solomon and our own Jim Korkis, among many others. The highlights for me are reading the older pieces--with such noted authors as Irving Wallace or a screenwriter like Frank S. Nugent discussing the evolution of Mickey Mouse in the 1940s--written at a time when the maturing studio was still in a 'golden age.' And there is also some real meat here--Arthur Mann's 1934 article for Harper's Magazine on Disney's finances and distribution is a real find. Just when you think you've read it all, A Mickey Mouse Reader will indeed add to your knowledge of the Disney studio and its most famous creation. This is a good one, and I recommend it., "This book does a good job curating particularly significant pieces about the Mouse-from such noted writers as John Canemaker, John Culhane, E. M. Forster, John Updike, M. Thomas Inge, Charles Solomon and our own Jim Korkis, among many others. The highlights for me are reading the older pieces-with such noted authors as Irving Wallace or a screenwriter like Frank S. Nugent discussing the evolution of Mickey Mouse in the 1940s-written at a time when the maturing studio was still in a "golden age." And there is also some real meat here-Arthur Mann's 1934 article for Harper's Magazine on Disney's finances and distribution is a real find. Just when you think you've read it all, A Mickey Mouse Reader will indeed add to your knowledge of the Disney studio and its most famous creation. This is a good one, and I recommend it." --Jerry Beck, Cartoon Research (9/10/14), " A Mickey Mouse Reader is a book that commands attention for many reasons, but not least because it is a continually surprising pleasure to read. There is in the book much that is worth reading for its own sake, and not just as a record of how critical and public sentiment have changed in the more than three-quarters of a century since Mickey's debut. Apgar's own commentary gives the book a reassuring "spine" of informed judgment; that is, his authorial persona--especially his sophistication as a scholar in the visual arts--encourages the reader to accept his choices of what to include in the book. He has taken seriously the job of choosing the contents and as a result has come up with many fascinating items, including some originally published in other languages, that a less industrious compiler would have missed." --Michael Barrier, author of The Animated Man: A Life of Walt Disney, A Mickey Mouse Reader is a book that commands attention for many reasons, but not least because it is a continually surprising pleasure to read. There is in the book much that is worth reading for its own sake, and not just as a record of how critical and public sentiment have changed in the more than three-quarters of a century since Mickeys debut. Apgars own commentary gives the book a reassuring spineof informed judgment; that is, his authorial personaespecially his sophistication as a scholar in the visual artsencourages the reader to accept his choices of what to include in the book. He has taken seriously the job of choosing the contents and as a result has come up with many fascinating items, including some originally published in other languages, that a less industrious compiler would have missed.Michael Barrier, author of The Animated Man: A Life of Walt Disney
