Customer Reviews
Disappointing. A very dumbed down edition for children - By: Richard Maple, 31 Oct 2008 
I have had several editions of the Guinness World Records over the years & they have generally had a huge amount of content. This edition is much more like children's enclopedia than a serious books of records. There is much less material than normal & what little there is seemed to have been plucked almost at random & is poorly organised.
It may still appeal to children because of the numerous pictues. A few of these are 3D as advertised on the cover, & 3D glasses are includedin the book so they can be veiwed.
Sport fans may appreciate the tables of sports records which is the only area where any of the formerly comprehensive coverage remains.
Readers who want a comprehenesive book of records would be much better off with a secondhand copy of an older edition.
The Best yet - By: Mrs. A. M. Guntrip, 19 Oct 2008 
I have collected plenty of copies of GWR but this excels all. The 3-D glasses bring the book to life.
The best gets better every year - By: J. R. Martel, 02 Oct 2008 I still buy & read the Guinness Record book every year, because it's become like an old friend that I like to catch up with, but I have to disagree with Birch East. I like the way it has changed & brings out a fresh look each year. The changes, like holograms, 3D whatever, make it fresh every year. My nephews also are big fans of the 3D gimmick.
I do agree with the recommendation for Getting Into Guinness: One Man's Longest, Fastest, Highest Journey Inside the World's Most Famous Record Book, the new book by Larry Olmsted about the history & culture of the Guinness World Records book. After reading his review I snapped up a copy & it is great--very entertaining & a fun read! I have read the record book for years but never stopped to wonder where it came from (Guinness Stout of course!), how it got so big, & how large a role it has playedin pop culture, & just how crazy some of the record holders seem to be. Getting Into Guinness is the story behind the records & a fun, well researched, adult read.
Always the best, but this year I discovered something that makes it even better - By: Birch East, 28 Sep 2008 I first read the Guinness Book of World Records when I was kid backin the 70s, & it's comforting to see it still going strong. I'll say that I definitely preferred the old school text-heavy versions from backin the day to the flourescent lime, 3D photography, picture-fest of today. It's a new world we livein now, so I guess it's hard to fault the Big G for keeping up with the times.
As much as I've long loved the Guinness book itself, I was always a little disappointed that there wasn't a good resource written ABOUT Guinness -- its history, evolution, & especially about how it became the phenomenon that inspires people to carry out such dedicated acts of nuttiness. A few weeks agoin New York, I saw a book profiledin the newspaper titled GETTING INTO GUINNESS by Larry Olmsted. Olmsted is a journalist as well as a two-time GBWR record-holder, & I gave it a try. Well, it's the perfect companion piece to the Guinness book; it puts everything into context & lets you feel like a real insider. 300 pages of fascinating real life stories about the quest for Guinness recordhood, & Amazon has it for under nine pounds. I'll be giving them together as a gift to my nephew. Buy them as a tandem (which is what I should have done) & you'd even get free shipping with Prime! Getting into Guinness: One Man's Longest, Fastest, Highest Journey Inside the World's Most Famous Record Book
No wonder this is the world's best selling book! - By: -J-D-, 23 Sep 2008 After having received Guinness World Records 2009, as a gift, I've realised just how good it is. I wasin Tesco a few days ago, & flicked through it then. I thought it was good. But now I own it, it's enabled me to see the extent of just how good it is.
Saying that it's the best edition of Guinness World Records to date, & it is (no worries there), isn't really that much of an achievement. Saying, however, it's the best book I've ever read...the best book ever made...is.
And this is. It's crammed full of amazing achievements, epic engineering, fantastic feats, & much more amazing stuff to feast your eyes on.
Leaving `Ripley's: Believe It Or Not' for dead, GWR really have excelled themselves this time. It really is astonishing.
This year's edition also includes huge, awe-inspiring fold out 3D features, which are apparently obvious when you wear the 3D-glasses that are provided.
It's awesome!
- Revealed: the world's strongest man
- The record-breaking world of Harry Potter
- Inside the Hollywood Hall of Fame
- The top ten videogames of the year
- Face to face with dinosaursin exciting 3D!
- Plus your favourite records country by country
All this can be foundin the spectacular book that is Guinness World Records 2009.
I'd suggest going over to that bookshop, right this second, & buying a copy.
Guaranteed - you won't be disappointed.
