Negative Positive
Title: Excellent Starter
Review: This is a grand primer for those who have just begun to be interested in heraldry. It has clear black & white line drawings and concise non-stuffy text descriptions of heraldic elements, with some basic rules for assembling them and describing the results. "An Heraldic Alphabet" is aimed primarily at English modern heraldry. It does not cover every possible charge; it does not cover continental variations in style or rules. It is a great place to start, before jumping into more comprehensive (and more expensive) sources, such as Stephen Friar's "History of Heraldry", Arthur Charles Fox-Davies' "A Complete Guide to Heraldry", or "Heraldry Sources, Symbols and Meaning" by Neubecker, Brook-Little, and Tobler. Those interested in medieval heraldry, and medieval recreationists, will need guidance from other sources, such as the other books here mentioned and from their re-creation group's particular rules.
Is the review positive or negative? 