Here are reviews of many books and other must-have theme park and vacation travel items for every fan of the Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando theme parks.

The books and other items listed here are in no particular order and have been used by me personally*. New visitors to the Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando theme parks can benefit greatly from many of these books and items, while seasoned travelers and those looking to get more out of the parks whether it's through trivia, Disney secrets, hidden Mickeys, or even concept art and stories behind the lands and attractions can benefit greatly.

Walt Disney World books:

	"The Imagineering Field Guide to Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World" - If you're a fan of the Magic Kingdom, then you absolutely must get this Imagineering field guide to the number one theme park in the world! This field guide presented to us by the seemingly mythical and mysterious Disney Imagineers takes a look at the current state of the park and offers behind-the-scenes looks, concept artwork, and tips about the different lands and rides in the theme park. From "Mickey's PhilharMagic" in Fantasyland to "Cinderella Castle" on Main Street to "The Magic Carpets of Aladdin" in Adventureland, this guide covers all areas of the Magic Kingdom.
	"The Imagineering Field Guide to Epcot at Walt Disney World" - This Imagineering field guide for Epcot is chock-full of great information about various aspects of the Future World attractions and World Showcase countries. You can read about the inspiration for the "Maelstrom" boat ride in Norway, take a look at the now-extinct Wonders of Life area and even learn about the differences in design between Future World East and West.
	"The Imagineering Field Guide to Disney's Hollywood Studios" - Finally released in July of 2010, this is the fourth of the incredibly popular Imagineering field guides to the Walt Disney World theme parks in Orlando, Florida. Go behind the scenes with the Imagineers as they take you through popular attractions such as "The Twilight Zone: Tower of Terror," "The Great Movie Ride," "The Magic of Disney Animation," "Star Tours," and "Toy Story Midway Mania!"
	"The Imagineering Field Guide to Disney's Animal Kingdom at Walt Disney World" - Like the Imagineering guides to the Magic Kingdom and Epcot, this is another necessary book for those Disney theme park fans thirsty for more information about the fourth theme park at Walt Disney World. From concept art sketches to personal stories about how certain rides and areas were created, this little book is packed with lots of great information. This covers all of the current rides from the new show, "Finding Nemo - The Musical," to the thrilling roller coaster "Expedition Everest - Legend of the Forbidden Mountain" to everybody's favorite safari ride in Africa, "Kilimanjaro Safaris."
	"The Disney Mountains: Imagineering At Its Peak" - If you're craving more of the behind-the-scenes stories about how the Disney roller coasters were created, and LOTS of concept artwork to go along with the stories, then get this book immediately! This is an excellent book that takes a look at the designing of the famous Disney mountain range around the world from "Matterhorn Mountain" in Disneyland, to the different versions of "Space Mountain," "Splash Mountain" and "Big Thunder Mountain" around the world, to "Expedition Everest" in Disney's Animal Kingdom and even the incredibly themed "Mount Prometheus" at Tokyo DisneySea. Being a roller coaster fan and one of those people always on the lookout for more concept artwork and stories about the creation of attractions, I cannot emphasize this book enough! It came out in the Fall of 2007 and has blown me away with all of the information and concept artwork for two of my favorite rides, "Space Mountain" and "Big Thunder Mountain Railroad." NOTE - This is mainly a concept art book and has very few actual photos of the rides.
	"Pirates of the Caribbean: From the Magic Kingdom to the Movies" - Do you think you know everything about the incredibly popular "Pirates of the Caribbean" boat ride in the Magic Kingdom? Well guess again. Don't let the title of this book fool you into thinking it's mainly about the making of the recent live-action movie trilogy. This book is 2/3 about the attraction and 1/3 about the movie. This book is an incredible wealth of information about the pirates ride from its concept as a walk-through museum-type attraction to its current state as a boat ride. This also takes a look at the ride from through each and every scene and points out differences between the California, Florida, Tokyo, and Paris versions of the ride. To tell the truth, I've read through the attraction part of the book dozens of times and have yet to read the last part about the making of the movie. This is a must-have book for anybody even remotely interested in the famous "Pirates of the Caribbean" boat ride in the Magic Kingdom, whether or not the Magic Kingdom happens to be in one of several areas around the world.
	"The Haunted Mansion: From the Magic Kingdom to the Movies" - Like the "Pirates of the Caribbean" book above, this is another must-have book for fans of the classic "Haunted Mansion" dark ride. Again, about the first two-thirds of the book covers the concept, history and a detailed look of the spooky ghost house and the last part covers the making of the live action movie. See how this ride was originally going to be a walk-through guided tour and how it evolved into the current Omnimover system of "doom buggies" that it uses today. The detailed guide to the ride is excellent, and the old West version of "The Haunted Mansion" in Disneyland Paris just blows me away! Like with the pirates book, I only keep re-reading the first half of this book over and over, and it's one of several books that always go with me to Florida on each trip. It's that good!
	"Hidden Mickeys, 4th Edition: A Field Guide to Walt Disney World's Best-Kept Secrets" - A "hidden Mickey" is the three circle shape of the world-famous Mickey Mouse head intentionally put into certain locations throughout the Disney theme parks and resorts. Some of the hidden Mickeys are more elaborate than others. Some are also more obvious than others. But what you don't know is just how many of them are out there. That's where this handy "cheat sheet" guide for finding them throughout the parks and resorts comes into play. It's surprising how much fun it is to spot the hidden Mickeys while waiting in line or walking through the parks. A few hidden Mickeys are in the pictures already posted here at Florida-Project.com, but there are many, many more of them out there just waiting to be discovered.
	"Birnbaum's Walt Disney World Guide - 2011" - If you're planning on making a visit to the Walt Disney World Resort this year, then the 2011 edition of the legendary Birnbaum guide is the book for you. What sets the Birnbaum guides apart is that it has official information right from the Walt Disney Company, and not second-hand information or opinions from the so-called "Disney experts." If you've never been to Walt Disney World before or haven't been there for quite some time, get the official Disney travel guide from Birnbaum with real information straight from the source. Birnbaum has been publishing these official Walt Disney World guides forever, and my family has been collecting them for nearly as long.
	"Birnbaum's Walt Disney World For Kids 2011" - This official guide by Birnbaum goes along with the one posted above. The only difference is that this is one of those by-kids-for-kids guide to Walt Disney World. Obviously not all kids are the same and they may find some rides boring that your kids may love, but this gives you an idea of what to expect when planning a trip to Walt Disney World with children, like about 90% of all of the visitors. It gives you a survival guide for handling the parks with toddlers and small children, to tips and pieces of advice for those traveling with teenagers looking for thrills and adventure. If you're planning a trip to Walt Disney World with children and haven't been there for a while (or at all), then this is definitely a guide that you should consider purchasing. Use it wisely and plan out activities and rest periods to maximize your positive experience in the theme parks.
	"Birnbaum's Walt Disney World Pocket Parks Guide 2011" - Take the fun of the regular Birnbaum guide to Walt Disney World and shrink it down in size to a version small enough to fit in a purse or large pocket. That's basically the new pocket parks guide to Walt Disney World by Birnbaum. Combine this book with the pocket-sized Hidden Mickeys, 4th Edition, and you'll be greatly enhancing your trip to the Walt Disney World theme parks, resorts and Downtown Disney.
	"The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World - 2011" - For every official travel guide, you can always find dozens of unofficial guides. Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando are no exception, and there are probably two dozen or so unofficial guides to the Central Florida theme parks. The best unofficial WDW guide is this one, The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World, 2010. This book is packed with good information about the different rides and shows, and it'll greatly help new and even semi-knowledgeable theme park lovers beat the crowds and maximize their time in the parks. The stories submitted by readers are often amusing and should be taken with a grain of salt.
	"Walt Disney Imagineering: A Behind-the-Dreams Look At Making The Magic Real" - This massive book is really the starting point for those people looking for more behind-the-scenes information and concept artwork for the Walt Disney World theme parks in Orlando, Florida. It was worth its weight in gold back when the hardback edition was first published in the early 1990's, and for a price of about $75 it nearly cost that much. Back then the book was worth every penny as it was filled from cover-to-cover with concept artwork, stories about how attractions were designed, alternate versions of today's rides, and construction photos of various projects throughout the resort. Luckily for us, the paperback version came out about ten years ago, and for a brand new price today of about $20, this can easily be added to the collection of every Disney fan and those looking for more information about the Disney theme parks. Do not pass up the chance of owning this legendary book!
	"Building a Dream: The Art of Disney Architecture" - This classic "designing Disney" book takes a look at the Disneyland, Walt Disney World, and Disneyland Paris theme parks and resorts from an architect's point-of-view. Let me tell you that I'm certainly no architect myself, but this book gave me a much better appreciation of the designing techniques used to create the theme parks and resorts. This book also gets into the stories behind some of the buildings and resorts, showing how the Disney Imagineers looked at everyday examples of real places and used that as inspiration for the parks and resorts that we know and love today. This architecture book also takes a look at concept artwork for the Walt Disney animation studios in Burbank, California along with excellent photos and an inside look of some of the various buildings on Disney property that many people never visit, such as the Team Disney Building that looks like a cruise ship to the Walt Disney World Casting Center where all future Cast Members visit before becoming employed at Walt Disney World.
	"Since The World Began: Walt Disney World: The First 25 Years" - For those people looking for an excellent look at the early years of Walt Disney World, then this is the book for you! This book is a nearly complete look at the Magic Kingdom, Epcot, and Disney-MGM Studios as well as the various resorts and the Disney Village Marketplace as it evolved over the first twenty-five years of operation. That said, this book is itself a historical item as it was published in 1996 and many changes have occurred to the theme parks and resorts since then. This is an excellent way of taking a look at the Walt Disney World Resort as it was seen in its glory days those many years ago.