A new book started this trail because after reading it, I wandered through some of my favorite movie books again. ;-)

Hollywood Musicals: Year by Year, by Stanley Green. From 1927 to 1989, including animated films, this is a great index of the musicals. It's one of my favorite reference books.

Walt Disney's Bambi: the Story and the Film, by Ollie Johnston and Frank Thomas. One of my favorite all time Disney movies, the original book by Felix Salten is also very good. This book is filled with the artwork, including sketches and how they developed into moving images. It is as fun to read as it is to just look at the pictures.

The same may be said for Walt Disney's Fantasia, by John Culhane. I remember seeing this movie in the theater and wanting to see it again and again. Now that I have the dvd I may do so whenever I want! As with Bambi, the book explains how the film was made, how the music was selected, and how they got that wonderful 3-D effect when the monks were walking through the woods with the candles. All without the use of computers!

I used to watch "The Muppet Show" every week, so when 'Dark Crystal' came out, I was one of the first in line. What an amazing movie! I was just as thrilled with The Making of the Dark Crystal: Creating a Unique Film, with text by Christopher Finch. It shows how the sets (incredibly detailed) were designed, the critters (big and small) were created and how the puppeteers worked their magic. For the Landstriders they were running on their hands and feet, on stilts!

'Tron' was almost as intriguing to me ... not only is it about computers and those who work with them, but it takes place inside the computer! The Art of Tron, by Michael Bonifer explains just how this was done.

When 'Jurassic Park' came out, I'd like to think it wowed everyone who saw it ... from the amazing score by John Williams, to the wonderful work by the actors, to those awesome (using the original definition of the word) dinosaurs, it was a movie worth seeing on the big screen more than once. The Making Of Jurassic Park: an Adventure 65 Million Years in the Making by Don Shay and Jody Duncan explains it all, from start to finish.

And, finally, the book that started me back on this trail: Mom in the Movies: the Iconic Screen Mothers You love (And a Few You Love to Hate) by Richard Corliss. They're all here ... good moms, bad moms, overbearing moms, supportive moms, science-fiction moms ... This is a great romp through the mothers (and sometimes aunts or step-mothers) of the silver screen from the silent films through 2013, complete with a wonderful collection of photographs. (Not to mention, a timely read for Mother's Day).

Reading Hermit With Dog