I mentioned before that all my kids love the Guinness World Records book and there does not seem to be any sign of them growing out of it. JJ is now 12 and the girls 8 and it is as popular as ever.
When the 255 page book arrived at my house a couple of weeks ago there was a scrum to see who would read it first. JJ being the biggest won and it remained in his bedroom for over a week. Each time I popped my head in his room he was buried in the book and told us the girls could not have it yet as he was busy reading and he was no-where near finished. This week I got a bit firm with him and now the girls have it back in their grips. This means the next few weeks of school car journeys will be full of chatter with all the kids I drop off discussing this years records and interesting facts.
The GWR team have hit on a winning formula in the last few years and I think this years book remains very much in the same vein, that is not to say it is boring or repetitive because it is not. Each year the book is fresh and full of different content, presented in slightly different ways. This years cover is a very sparkly yellow and I'm pleased to see it is still a sturdy hardbound book with high quality coloured pages.
This years book has 11 main sections - Earth, Animals, Humans, Modern World, Science & Engineering, Sports, Adventurers, Media & Leisure, Extreme Exploits, Humans in Action and Construction. There is also online bonus content and I like that you have to use the book to solve the clues to be able to unlock the content online and to read that too - there is image galleries, behind-the-scenes footage and record holder interviews.
The Guinness World Records 2016 book is available in all good book stores and I have seen many excellent deals ready for Christmas including WH Smiths where it is just £10 at the moment (half price!) and there is a great offer to buy the Gamers Edition with it and get the both for £14.99 - bargain!
Guinness World Records 2016 - Gamers Edition
We also received a copy of the Gamers Edition for review and this is something JJ has been waiting to get his hands on for such a long time. Why has he been so keen? Because he heard about the brand new dedicated section for Minecraft fans - it has a mega-showcase of the greatest construction records, in-game tips and lots more blocky goodness. He is in joint GWR and Minecraft heaven. I saved this book to give him for his birthday and it became clear pretty quickly that this was one of his very best presents. Others got cast aside in favour of constant reading.
The GWR Gamers Edition 2016 is 215 pages, and as with all GWR books, these are thick glossy pages of a book that is built to last. JJ loved the book because as well as the records there are also lots of interesting facts and figures about the games. There is a whole range of games discussed and reviewed but of course JJ's favourite by far was the 22 page Minecraft section as this is the game he loves and loses too much time in! He is busy getting stuck into the 10 exclusive Minecraft challenges as I type!
I think this book makes a perfect Christmas present for a gaming fan or a teenager, it has a soft cover and the pages are presented in a manner similar to a graphic novel or annual, so it hits the mark with this age group.
Stephen Daultrey, Editor of the Guinness World Records Gamer’s Edition said “This year’s Guinness World Records Gamer’s Edition 2016 is packed full of incredible feats that show the sheer scale and diversity of the gaming industry and its superfans. It’s a fantastic collection of exciting records and features on everything from speed-runners to social media superstars, eSports champs and the developers themselves, who continue to make great, bounding strides with their creativity, technical prowess and innovative titles. Whether you’re a hard-core or novice gamer, the Guinness World Records Gamer’s Edition 2016 is guaranteed to entertain with its range of trivia, facts, stats and gaming craziness.”
Disclosure: We were sent both of these books for the purpose of this review. I have not been instructed what to write and I remain honest.
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