Defined as a book for beginners, its 200 pages offer a lot more – insights, a wide variety of worthy films, cultural references, creative stimuli, love and passion for animation.

Tsvika Oren, www.asifa.net (Association Internationale du Film d'Animation / International Animated Film Association)

This is the must-have book for the stop-motion animator who wants to learn what it is to be a professional.

Pike Baker, www.stopmotionmagazine.com

If you are interested in stop-motion animation, this is where you want to begin, even by the end of the first chapter you will find yourself wanting to start experimenting with different ideas. This is not simply a book you will read once. As you grow as a film maker you will come back again and again, always finding something new to try, and always be left wanting to try more.

www.animatormag.com

Who better to guide us through the history of the medium, the techniques and the process of filmmaking than master animator Purves (Screen Play) himself... A good basic text book for any student of the art form, and a great read for those of us who simply enjoy watching it.

www.cartoonbrew.com

I wish I had a book like this when I was starting out, because what Mr. Purves writes about is not only a fine introduction to the craft, but also a compilation of the kind of wisdom and insight that one can usually only gain over a very long period of time making films. And Mr. Purves' ability to boil things down to a few essential sentences on such matters as: Point of View, The Illusion of Movement and Making It 'Read,' is why this book is an interesting read as well enlightening. To say this book is a perfect companion for anyone interested in stop-motion at any level is a tremendous understatement.

Mark Osborne, co-director of DreamWorks Animation's Oscar-nominated Kung Fu Panda (www.awn.com)

People who want to know about the stop-motion process would be hard pressed to find a more definitive book to answer any questions that they might have. It is a most engaging read and is imbued with a real sense of wonder at the art. I have read a number of books on this topic over my (rather lengthy) career and this avoids the trap most writers fall into; of creating a dry and technical volume that fails to inspire. This book is just the opposite of that. If you are remotely interested in stop-motion, then this would certainly be an inspirational read as Barry, with his years of experience in the field, knows intimately what it is about stop-motion that appeals to both audiences and practitioners. He elegantly and eloquently describes this in great detail.

Michael Cusack, www.anifex.com.au