Apt Indeed: Book of Cool
If you give your product a name like The Book of Cool, you are practically forcing readers to have high expectations. After all, it’s a ballsy title, but the idea itself ups the ante: a book and DVD that contain tricks from masters in various areas.
Juggling? Pool shots? Cards? Frisbee tossing? The book looks like something from a boy’s dream of strictly extracurricular talents to pursue. Gun tricks, pen spinning, ropes and whips, even bar flairing are given the Book of Cool treatment. The book (317 pages) is basically pictures with a few labels indicating important things to remember, and a corresponding demonstration and commentary on the DVDs.
The book, unfortunately, doesn’t come with any extra tools- just the 3 DVDs and the book in sleek black packaging. The production is pretty high-caliber, with some great photos and decently directed action on the DVDs. I would’ve liked to see a “best of” roll, showing the top-notch tricks. Also, a basic rating system describing the difficulty level (or practice necessary) would’ve been helpful- some of the easy-looking stuff requires tons of practice, and some of the tougher-looking tricks aren’t all that bad.
It’s great to see professionals getting a forum to show off- people like Mike Massey, an amazing pool trick shooter, and Christian Delpech, 8x World Bar Flairing Champion. There isn’t much bio here about the experts, it’s strictly business, and densely packed with more tricks (250 or so) than you’ll probably ever want to try. $40 is a bargain for this kind of education- even if you don’t plan on trying them out yourself. There’s a trailer on their website, plans for the second edition are in the works, and it’s available online. The Book of Cool is one that lives up to it’s title.
