Rating: 
Summary: A hodgepodge!
Review: Schizophrenically edited. Derivative of the other Eve Zibart Disney World "Unofficial Guide" series. About 3/5ths of this book is interesting and entertaining, but the rest is confusing (Animal Kingdom will be built, is being built, is open, goes back to will be built... all in the course of the same chapter) or mean-spirited. Whoever wrote the "America's Adventures in Wonderland" chapter has a chip on their shoulder - they must be the type of person who goes about searching for reasons to feel slighted and insulted. (Hint to the author: Disney World is a theme park, not a state textbook hearing.) Buy this book for the history and trivia, but if you're looking for a guide to Disney World, look elsewhere.
Rating:
Summary: AUTHOR DOES NOT MAKE THE CUT
Review: This book COULD have been so much better. This book SHOULD have been a lot better. I am a big Disney World fan, and was looking forward to reading this book when I first saw it, but I was very disappointed in it. The author in this book, Eve Zibart, is not very good. She shares her opinions way too much, which don't even make sense, and she is trying to write this book like she is turning it into her english teacher. The phrases and words she uses are too complicated at times, and again, do not make any sense. You get the feeling she is trying to impress someone with that. Those kind of things are not suited for this type of book. Also, she does not cover nearly as much as she should in a book like this. This book is a great concept, and if done right, would have been very interesting. I was expecting to learn some behind-the-scenes things about Disney World, but throughout the whole book I probably learned one thing. If someone else writes a book with this same concept, I would love to read it, but I do not recommend reading this one.
Rating: 
Summary: Outdated and incomplete
Review: This book is filled with so many typos and bad writing, that it is an insult to the professionalism of Walt Disney World. Chapters make no sense as to why they are called what they are called, and topics drift every which way but loose. There are much better books out there that help people realize the magic.
Rating:
Summary: Holy bad writing Walt!
Review: This book is filled with so many typos and bad writing, that it is an insult to the professionalism of Walt Disney World. Chapters make no sense as to why they are called what they are called, and topics drift every which way but loose. There are much better books out there that help people realize the magic.
Rating:
Summary: Outdated and incomplete
Review: This book is of lesser quality than other Disney unofficial guides. Information on resorts is incomplete and antiquated (such as there only being one All-Star resort). I was highly disappointed. I have found better Disney guides and information on the Internet than I did from this book.
Rating:
Summary: Wow, what a let down
Review: This could have and should have been a good book. It fell quite short of the mark. Walt Disney was one of the most interesting men of our time, and from the title of this book I was prepped and ready to learn more about him and DisneyWorld. It wasn't very far into the book that I realised just how misleading the title is. It should be sub-titled the MEN behind the mouse because just as many if not more pages are written about Michael Eisner as are about dear old Uncle Walt. While I have nothing against Eisner, if I wanted to read about him I would read his biography, not a book alledged to be about Walt. Large sections of this slim book are dedicated to other branches of the Disney empire and not to the parks as is indicated in the title. Again, if I wanted to read about Dsiney's accquisition of ABC, the development of the Disney channel, Disney's ownership of sports teams and the like I would seek out such materials, but I certainly did not expect them to pop up in a book about Walt and the Magic Kingdom. Indeed, there was very little information about Walt or how he put the magic in the Magic Kingdom. Nothing new anyway. Everything presented is such common knowledge that even someone with only a mild interest in Disney would already know it. There is a chapter about the Imagineers who helped and still help to make WDW magical. Their contributions are so great far more than a scant chapter is owed to them. There is a chapter dedicated to hidden Mickeys that is so disjointed it is nearly impossible to follow. Had these hidden Mickeys been put in a simple list form this would have been a much more effective addtion to the book. There is a WDW timeline at the end of the book that is quite good and is the only reason I am giving this book 2 stars. Aside from all its other faults, it needs serious updating. Some of the attractions mentioned have been closed for sometime now, The book mentions the All Star Sports and Music resorts, but no mention is made to the All Star Movies or soon to be completed Pop Century resort. The new Animal Kingdom Lodge isn't mentioned either. Mention is made to attractions under names that have been changed years ago, and still other comming attractions mentioned have been cancelled. If this book is to go into additional printings it needs some serious editing and updating. Oh, and lots of pixie dust.
Rating: 
Summary: Buy the Guide instead and it will be fine.
Review: This is a quick read, poorly edited (as noted in a number of the reviews), and typeset poorly. Its format is paperback and likely may be read on a plane, or in your hotel room as a light supplement to the guides and actual tours. For most Disney addicts the information inside is simply recast trivia and general factoids you already are likely to know. If you are an expert, there will be conflicts inside...Horizons in Epcot closed when? According to the book, two years before I first rode the attraction...HUH? So, if you are curious, and a first-time Disneyophile, this is a fine start. If you are an expert there are plenty of better books on Amazon (Vinyl Leaves is just one; the Culture America series on Euro Disney another). Teens interested in learning about Disney, or college students contemplating an internship might use this book well to cram.
Rating: 
Summary: A Fun and Interesting Read
Review: This little book is packed with lots of fun and interesting history and trivia about Disney. It covers everything from parks to rides to hidden Mickeys to the main players such as Walt Disney and Michael Eisner. I've read many books about the parks, Walt, Eisner, etc., and I honestly expected this to be a condensed re-hash of all that. I am pleasantly surprised to find that's not the case. I am also surprised that some of the other reviewers mentioned negativity on the part of the author. I didn't find it negative at all -- and as a Disney enthusiast, I surely would have picked up on that! In contrast, I found it fresh and just an incredibly FUN book. And the price can't be beat!
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