NONFICTION - Nov. 24, 1985

WIND-UPS: TIN TOY DREAMS by Teruhisa Kitahara (Chronicle: $8.95, illustrated). “Wind-Ups” is not a book of words, but 128 pages of imagery. More than 250, bright, colorful photographs display more than 200 Japanese wind-up toys in very sharp detail. The love Teruhisa Kitahara has for his collection of 10,000 old toys comes through in this presentation from his garden of tin delights. Selected toys span the 1880s to the 1950s. You’ll find rare robots, dancing dolls, sparkling fire trucks, ships, planes and skiing penguins. At a time when Japanese toys and design have yet again captured the fancy of the world, this book proves an invaluable source to a cross section of Japanese production in the past. For the toy connoisseur, young and old, here is a striking, well-produced collection--a way to possess some of Kitahara’s treasures. And for the man or woman who has lost the ability to pick up a toy and play with it, this book offers many windows to a joyful past. It is, after all, a celebration of that which is bright and simple and fun. If the old proverb, “He who has the most toys wins,” is true, then this volume is certainly a primer for success.