Customer Reviews
Amazing!! 
2008-05-09
This book is awesome! I love all the concept art and stories behind all the attractions. Very good buy!!
A Great Book for Fans of Disney Parks 2008-03-09
I really enjoyed this book. This the third book Jason Surrell has written about rides in the disney parks and although it isn't the most detailed of the three, it's still excelent in it's own right. His first two books,
The Haunted Mansion: From the Magic Kingdom to the Movies &
Pirates of the Caribbean: From the Magic Kindom to the Movies (Welcome Book)
are excelent very detailed stories of each ride at the various parks. The only reason The Disney Mountains comes in 3rd, is because it covers ten different rides (One of which, never came to be) and obviously cannot fit the same amount of detail in a book the same length as the previous two. Still though, a great read and fun for people that love the Disney Parks.
Mountains in the USA 
2008-02-28
The book list the "mountains" that have been build inside the Disney theme parks. Most thrill rides in these parks are located in mountains. SpaceMountain, SplashMountain etc.
Disadvantage is that the book mainly focus is on the American Disney Parks, HongKong, Tokio and Paris are hardly mentioned.
The book contains nice artist impressions of the Disney imagineers. However the technical drawings that are also interesting are missing.
Conclusion nice coffee table book, that you probably will read just once.
A great book about mountains that are not real 2008-02-09
If you are Disney Theme Park Fan. A fan who loves the mountain ranges of Disneyland, then this book is for you. A lavish book that covers all the Mountain Ranges in all the Parks. Amazing drawings and explanations of all these fantastic mountain based rides in the Disney Theme Parks. This is a great behind the scenes look at some of the best Disney Thrill Coasters and a complete look and how they were designed and built. Excellent!
Fabulous Book! 2008-01-21
I thoroughly enjoyed the book. It was an easy read, but had a lot of detailed information on how the Imagineers took Walt's original ideas and made them into reality. It has a lot of great original concept art as well as photos of the original models that were constructed of each project. If you are a Disney 'Geek', you will love this book.
Another success. 2008-01-17
How high? How fast? How'd they do that? The top favorites at any Disney Theme park always include the roller coasters.
The Disney Mountains: Imagineering at Its Peak will tell you that and more-not only about the current Disney mountain range and its show enhancements, but about mountains unclimbed and mountains yet to be. Attractions include:
Disneyland: Matterhorn Bobsleds, Space Mountain - old and new, Splash Mountain; Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.
Never built: Big Rock Candy Mountain and the Western River Expedition
Disney's California Adventure: Grizzly Peak and Grizzly River Run
Tokyo Disneyland: Mysterious Island (Journey to the Center of the Earth)
Disneyland Paris: Big Thunder Mountain and Space Mountain
Walt Disney World: Space, Splash, and Big Thunder at Magic Kingdom Park; Mount Mayday and Mt. Gushmore, and the latest mountain-Expedition Everest at Disney's Animal Kingdom Park
Interesting artwork and fun facts make an easy read 2008-01-15
I am a big Disney theme park fan. I try to read everything that comes up about its creation and operation. This book doesn't shed much new light on Imagineering, but it does narrow the focus to just thrill ride attractions that are mountain based. I learned information about the "Everest" attraction that I've been on at Disney's Animal Kingdom, so that was well worth it. I also learned about the upcoming attraction at Disney Sea. If the theme park interests you, then this will make for an easy, painless, and fun read, that may tide you over until you can take an actual vacation.
Great read! 2008-01-04
I saw alot of mixed reviews for this book, and decided to see what it was like for myself. I don't see why it has received a large amount of average/bad reviews. This is exactly what I was looking for, a book that gives background info on the Disney mountains and stories about how they were each put into production.
It is true that there is a great deal of info that Disney purists already know, but I still had a great time reading this book and hearing some of the stories behind the mountains, especially the Matterhorn mainly because it showed Walt's views on it. Granted, the book may not go into expansive details about every nook and cranny, but it still shows things about the mountains that arent obvious and gives great backstories, and has some beautiful images and artwork (well worth the money alone). For under $20, I don't see how any Disney park enthusist couldnt buy this book.
I Had Higher Expectations 2007-12-06
Normally, I'm one of the first to post a rave review on Jason Surrell's work but this book just didn't live up to his previous excellence. The main let down was that there were very few (actual) pictures of the newest Disney mountains (and let's face it, not all of us can afford to travel to Japan to see these works of wonder). Don't get me wrong, I love seeing the concept drawings before they actually become a reality, but seeing the finished product to compare it to would have been better. Also missing was a lot of behind the scenes and little 'tributes' that go with each ride.
I will admit that the in-depth backstories on Space Mountain and Expidition Everest were highly detailed but some of the other mountains received little exposure.
If Mr. Surrell reads these reviews, here is a small request - please do a book on the Dark Rides - You could call it Disney Dark Rides: From the Movies to the Rides.
The Disney Mountains - Imagineering at its peak 2007-11-29
Being in the theme park design business, we at Denny Magic Studios always pay attention to anything that Disney releases, especially "tell all" books which help with our ongoing education regarding the design of theme park rides, and attractions. This book is another fine example of that, as it provides additional insight into how Disney creates and designs. We think that this is a good choice if you are looking to further your education with regards to theme park design. We also think that the general population who may only be Disney fans, will certainly appreciate reading about how these wonderful designs (rides & attractions) came about.
Lastly! Bravo to the author... Jason Surrell; who has a number of excellent books out, all of which we highly recommend.
