The Target Book p/b

Paperback edition of the popular and acclaimed guide to the Doctor Who Target paperback range of novelisations. With an additional Appendix covering audio releases and the 2016 BBC reprints of the books.

From 1973 until 1994, the Target Doctor Who paperbacks were a mainstay of the publishing world. From humble beginnings, they grew into a list running to 156 individual titles and selling over 13 million copies world-wide.

This is the story of Target Books. Noted researcher and historian David J Howe chronicles the origins of the imprint, speaking to all the major players in its development, from editors to art directors, managing directors to artists and authors, and charts the books’ critical reception as well as the fortunes and failings of the many publishing houses involved in their production.

Profusely illustrated with all the covers, plus rare and unseen sketches and unused concepts and ideas, The Target Book is the definitive guide to a range of books which shaped the reading habits of a generation.

‘This book is an indispensable guide to anyone who grew up with, and feels nostalgic towards, these books.’ Christian Jones, Starburst Magazine

‘If you’ve not got a copy, and you either love the books themselves, the art from them, or the audio versions, then get ordering now!’ Paul Simpson, SciFiBulletin

‘This is still a truly indispensable guide to a hugely important part of the older Doctor Who fan’s childhood years, and it’s still a contender for the greatest Doctor Who book ever produced.’ Daniel Salter, Sci-Fi Online

‘This is a must have book for those who grew up with the Target books, those they inspired to create in some fashion, those who know the phrase “a wheezing and groaning sound…”‘ Krewe Du Who

‘This is a very attractive and well constructed book, sure to have wide appeal and look good on your coffee table.’ Rachel A Hyde, Myshelf.com

‘Well worth adding to your Whovian reference collection.’ Nicholas Whyte

176pp. Large format 22cm x 28cm paperback. Fully illustrated in full colour throughout.
ISBN 978-1-84583-184-4
Published originally in hardback 22 April 2016. POD hardback with identical content available 26 October 2018.
This paperback edition published 03 March 2021

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

David J Howe has been involved with Doctor Who research and writing for over 30 years. He has been consultant to a large number of publishers and manufacturers for their Doctor Who lines, and is author or co-author of over 30 factual titles associated with the show. He also has one of the largest collections of Doctor Who merchandise in the world. David was contributing editor to Starburst magazine for 17 years from 1984-2001. From 1994 he was book reviews editor for Shivers magazine until it ceased publication in 2008. In addition he has written articles, interviews and reviews for a wide number of publications, including Fear, Dreamwatch, Infinity, Stage and Television Today, The Dark Side, Doctor Who Magazine, the Guardian, Film Review, SFX, Sci-Fi Entertainment, Collectors’ Gazette, Deathray and the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.

He edited the bi-monthly newsletter of the British Fantasy Society from 1992 to 1995, and also edited and published several books for them, including the British and World Fantasy Award shortlisted Manitou Man, a limited edition hardback and paperback collection of short fiction by horror author Graham Masterton. He also edited the BFS’s fortieth anniversary anthology, Full Fathom Forty, published in September 2011.

He wrote the book Reflections: The Fantasy Art of Stephen Bradbury for Dragon’s World Publishers and has contributed short fiction to Peeping Tom, Dark Asylum, Decalog, Dark Horizons, Kimota, Perfect Timing, Perfect Timing II, Missing Pieces, Shrouded by Darkness and Murky Depths, and factual articles to James Herbert: By Horror Haunted and The Radio Times Guide to Science Fiction. He wrote the screenplay for Daemos Rising, a film released on DVD by Reeltime Pictures in 2004.

He wrote about Doctor Who merchandise for Doctor Who Insider magazine, and contributed liner notes for AudioGO’s range of Doctor Who novelisation CDs.

He is currently Editorial Director of Telos Publishing Ltd, a UK based independent press specialising in horror/science fiction novellas, crime novels, and guides to a variety of film and TV shows. In 2006 the company won the World Fantasy Award for their publishing work, and in 2010 celebrated their tenth anniversary while also receiving the British Fantasy Award for Best Small Press.