General Information:

Media Type: Book
Type: Parks - Picture
Release Date: 2009-08-25

Geek's Thoughts: It has been just over two years since the third edition came out and in this new, 4th edition, of the fan favorite they added about 100 new Hidden Mickeys bringing the total to nearly 900 for the book. To accommodate this the book is now about 30 pages longer. The format, functionality, and fun have stayed the same as the previous version with the only noticeable changes being the new additions and updates. This includes new Mickeys found at the recently opened Kidani Village expansion at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. One thing that struck me, especially for repeat visitors who may want an updated book, was it might be nice to indicate when the Mickey was first printed/discovered. That way you would know what is new.

 

My original thoughts on the first edition I read:
Hidden Mickeys are part treasure hunt and part obsession for some. They have found a niche with several disneygeeks out there. Whether its for fun, sport, or something to pass the time the quest for Hidden Mickeys seems to have grown in recent years. For those of you who are unsure exactly what I am talking about, a Hidden Mickey is defined in this book as "a partial or complete image of Mickey Mouse that has been hidden by Disney's Imagineers and artists in the designs of Disney attractions, hotels, restaurants, and other areas."

This field guide is a great resource for those of you who want a little help (or to check what you have found) or want to play the point based scavenger hunt suggested in the book. The book is by Steven Barrett. There is also a companion website http://hiddenmickeysguide.com that has even more Hidden Mickey information.

I found the format of this book very easy to flip through and locate clues/solutions. It is small enough that you could easily carry it around the parks with you. The book is organized into two part chapters for each themepark, one for resorts, and one for everything else. The first part of each chapter is a scavenger hunt that consists of clues as well as a point value for that particular Mickey. The second part consists of hints or clues to help you locate that illusive Mickey. There is also a complete index in the back of the book so as you roam the parks you can quickly/easily locate the clues

I have to admit that I have not really gotten into the whole hidden Mickey crazy over the years. I find them interesting to stumble upon and almost any time I go to the park with a less frequent guest they ask me about them, but for some reason I do not actively search for them. I am more interested in the obscure references, nods to the past, inside jokes, etc.. that Imagineers place in the attractions, or in many cases the back story of the attraction, land, park. For that reason the tag line of this book does not sit that well with me.. it is: A Field Guide to Walt Disney Worlds Best Kept Secrets. This reminds me a lot of the Vacation Club slogan of the Best Kept Secret, which of course the time shares are not a secret anymore and are advertised all over the place. I think the tag-line works, as these are secrets but I just do not care for it.