Collectible Plastic Kitchenware and Dinner-Ware, 1935-1965 by Michael J. Goldberg (1997, Paperback)

Having just finished reading though my copy of this book for the first time, I have to admit that I am sorely disappointed with it. It has incredible pictures & great information, but the value guide is the most complicated I've ever come across. The values are not listed with each item. They are in the back of the book. The values are listed in the author's code - you have to have the page number and figure out which picture he's referring too (T=top, C=Center, B=Bottom, etc). And some of the pages were't even numbered, so you had to go back or forward a page or two and count to see which page you were on for the sake of using the guide. Now, I'm not an easily confused person, but this really had me all mixed up. Who wants to go through all that complication to find a general value on the item in the picture?? I saw loads of things I was interested in seeing the value on, but didn't bother looking it up due the the complicated procedure I had to endure to find the values. I would be MUCH happier with the book had the author simply placed the values underneath each picture.
There were two other things I found a little annoying about this book as well, however they are so minor, they wouldn't effect my rating of the book itself. First was the fact that I couldn't believe he had pictured just a few nasty looking plastic pieces. Those were things I would have thrown away, and still would regardless of how much he thinks their worth. Plastic that is heavily worn and terribly discolored simply cannot be considered collectible (a stained and discolored plastic baster and spatulas? Collectible?). That's just crazy, but that's also merely my opinion.
The second thing I found annoying was that he kept mentioning how these plastics should NEVER be soaked overnight. He never explained why anywhere in the book. I've soaked many pieces of White Melmac and other pieces of clear plastic overnight with a denture tablet or two and it worked beautifully. I had no problems at all. I wouldn't try it with colors for fear of removing the color, but I've had great results with soaking the white melmac and clear plastics. I can't understand why he says not to.
Overall, I say the complicated value guide is my biggest turn off to this book. If I had the opportunity to see this book previous to purchasing, I would have removed it from my collector book wish list and would have never considered it again.

The most outstanding feature of this book is that it covers a such a wide range of plastic items, not just table dishes by a handful of well-known manufacturers. It also provides a concise, yet interesting history of the origins of plastic as a volatile explosive weapon during WWII, its development for household use, the manufacturers who produced it and a reflection of the times when our parents and grandparents lived.

The most annoying feature of this book is the arrangement. Instead of the price guide being included along with the text and photos, it is tucked in the back. It is a struggle to flip back and forth between the information pages and the list and then figuring out the code to pinpoint the correct price and the correct item. I use clothespins to hold the pages open.

The good far outweighs the bad. If you are a serious collector or dealer of vintage plastic kitchenware and dinnerware, this is the best on the market so far.