Rating: 
Summary: Not quite perfect
Review: A few of the pictures are grainy, and some of the shots are unappealing. But of the good ones, they are truly unique gems of glamour photos. The models in this book are all beautiful, healthy, sexy; and they all have a very positive outlook in their eyes. A very pleasing book to thumb thru on a cold or cast down day.
Rating:
Summary: Very nice!
Review: A few of the pictures are grainy, and some of the shots are unappealing. But of the good ones, they are truly unique gems of glamour photos. The models in this book are all beautiful, healthy, sexy; and they all have a very positive outlook in their eyes. A very pleasing book to thumb thru on a cold or cast down day.
Rating: 
Summary: Decades of Male Fantasy Photographs at the Beach
Review: Caution: This book contains many images of naked and near-naked female models in sexually provocative poses. If the book were a motion picture, it would be required to carry an "R" rating. The title of the foreword by Frank Deford says it all: "The Bare Facts." Mr. Deford describes the annual swimsuit issue of Sports Illustrated as "walking a fine line between smoldering sex and suitable taste, lust and love, seduction and salubriousness." That balance is maintained by having women plan the issue, men photograph it, and the models being attractive young women who are "sexy and fit." He points out that the more modest Miss America contest has lost its audience while the racier Playboy has too. Yet, the audience for this issue has grown, now reaching approximately 56 million Americans a year and many others outside the U.S. for the magazine's foreign editions. At the same time, catalogues for lingerie are doing well, too. The book is mostly devoted to oversized one and two page photographs from the various swimsuit issues, concentrated in the last ten years. These images are reproduced on better paper and in larger sizes so that their color makes them more vibrant than in the original magazine versions. Little peeks at female anatomy become larger as a result, making these images seem more like pulchritude than All-American Girl Next Door. The two page spreads are often awkwardly truncated across the middle of images. To me, the most appealing images were those which emphasized the intelligence and personality of the model as opposed to her physical outline and skin quality. For a lighter touch, there are famous quotations scattered throughout the book, as well as bits and pieces of letters about the swimsuit issues in the past. The photographs are appealing mostly because of two characteristics, the unusually attractive female models who appear in them and the natural beauty of the settings that frames them. These same images taken with women of average appearance in a studio would usually be unremarkable. The appeal of the images to an American audience says a lot about American culture. The images seem "out there" even though you would see more skin at a typical French beach resort. They seem to appeal to a desire for a more exotic and sensual lifestyle than a typical American ever experiences. I was reminded of the old television show, Fantasy Island, where magical changes in life could happen to any visitor. These images are mostly dreams of what could happen to women on a vacation to a little-known island. That angle helps explain the appeal to the many women who enjoy these images each year, more than twenty million of them. Mr. Deford's essay also points out that the feature has grown. Originally, it was just a few pages. In recent years, the special has turned into a complete issue. Presumably, someday there will be a magazine with 52 issues a year comprised just of these bathing beauties. I could not help but think that the most lasting impact of these images is the way that they have helped build the careers of some of the most famous and successful female models, such as Cheryl Tiegs, Christie Brinkley and Kathy Ireland. The book will also arouse some nostalgia in you, if you are like me, as you recall what you were doing and how old you were when you first saw these photographs. I suspect this book will be a very popular gift this Christmas for young bachelors who like the annual swimsuit issue. After you finish viewing these images, think about what your idea is of an ideal woman. What are her qualities? How importance is her appearance? How would she grow better with age? What is her personality like? Look for lasting beauty in all forms among those around you!
Rating: 
Summary: Wow!
Review: I think this is a beautiful collection of some of the all time great SI Swimsuit photographs, reproduced as never before; large, and on great paper. Frank deFord has written a really interesting history of how the SI Swimsuit edition got started. But basically it's about the photographs - lots and lots of them. I have missed Kathy , Stacy, Elle, and all the other SI Swimsuit greats, now I have them all in one stunning edition. A great gift for any guy.
Rating:
Summary: Important and beautiful cultural/design record
Review: I'm not the "target" audience, have never really paid much attention to the swimsuit issue. But I will in the future. The book is not only a celebration of the female figure, it's also a real gem in terms of design -- stunning, smart, sophisticated. Anyone who appreciates design/beauty/fashion/art will find this book a keeper.
Really intriguing to see the history of swimwear fashion, and more importantly, the history of the female figure.
Hoffman and Deford have juxtaposed the images interestingly; sometimes one is compelled on a level of pure design/beauty -- how a curve in the landscape, the female figure, or the swimsuit itself mirrors a curve in the image on the opposite page. Sometimes it is interesting just to see how a model or suit from the sixties so starkly contrasts with a model or suit from the nineties. I look at this book as an important cultural record. The quotes are also interesting, well chosen and a great complement to the images. A gift that I was surprised to receive, I found the book compelling enough to write my first review for amazon.
Rating:
Summary: Important and beautiful cultural/design record
Review: I'm not the "target" audience, have never really paid much attention to the swimsuit issue. But I will in the future. The book is not only a celebration of the female figure, it's also a real gem in terms of design -- stunning, smart, sophisticated. Anyone who appreciates design/beauty/fashion/art will find this book a keeper. Really intriguing to see the history of swimwear fashion, and more importantly, the history of the female figure.
Hoffman and Deford have juxtaposed the images interestingly; sometimes one is compelled on a level of pure design/beauty -- how a curve in the landscape, the female figure, or the swimsuit itself mirrors a curve in the image on the opposite page. Sometimes it is interesting just to see how a model or suit from the sixties so starkly contrasts with a model or suit from the nineties. I look at this book as an important cultural record. The quotes are also interesting, well chosen and a great complement to the images. A gift that I was surprised to receive, I found the book compelling enough to write my first review for amazon.
Rating:
Summary: Great Collector's Item, a must have for the bookshelf
Review: I've been subscribing to Sports Illustrated for over 6 years, and it's been amazing to see how the "evolution" of the Swimsuit issue has gone through the years. It was a treat to see the some old favorites, going from Christie Brinkley and Elle McPherson to current cover girls Heidi Klum and Daniela Pestova. Great addition to the library!
Rating:
Summary: 5 decades of best swimsuit ever
Review: If you love sport Illustrated swimsuit edition, or if you simply love model Photography, this book is simply the best i've found.
Hardcover, excelent print quality, intereting stories, and best of all.... Some of the Best pictures Sports Illustrated has published in the las 5 Decades. If you whant the best coffe table book to own, this is it.
Rating:
Summary: Not quite perfect
Review: Some great photography of some beautiful subjects. If you've seen the swimsuit issues you know the style. The photos range from around the days of Brinkley to Casta. The only reason I say it's not quite perfect is that they seem to have been a little too ambitious on the size of the book. Almost every photo is stretched to the limits of the pages, which can make for great impact, but some of the photos have lost a little quality being blown up that much. You can see some graininess in several of the shots; I think most of them are the older ones. Most of the pages are fine however. It would also have been nice to see some of the body paint pics in here but they are absent. Overall a nice book.
Rating:
Summary: Magnificant girls, lousy binding
Review: The women in this book are sexy and classy. It can't be easy to combine dignity and a bikini but they manage. The binding seems kind of weak.
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