If you love reading and love luxury watches too, the industry offers tons of publications, and some of them are truly exceptional in quality, photography, and written content. Whether you're approaching the world of luxury watches or are an expert, many are the books capable of pleasing your appetite for watchmaking, that cover every expectation in terms of price and content. Whether you're stepping into a bookstore, or you're an avid online book reader, the offering is full: some books cannot miss in your private library, other publications are available online, and some of them are free to read and download too. The offering also includes catalogs and yearbooks, last but not least, those publications edited by watch brands themselves.
Monographs are among the most engaging books you might ever read: some, as mentioned, are curated by watch brands and contain valuable and hard-to-find elsewhere information about the history of that brand. The Omega book, for example, we purchased some years ago while visiting the Omega museum in Bienne, is among the best examples of a collector-ready publication, and by far the most complete if you want to discover the full story behind the Speedmaster or the Seamaster. Another excellent example of a not-to-be-missed book is the series curated by the experts of Moonwatch Only. Omega is just one of many to have a remarkable history. How cannot we mention Panerai and its military foothold? Take, for instance, the book dedicated to the history of Eilean, a historic sailboat that, a few of you readers are aware, also appeared in the video "Save a prayer" by Duran Duran, filmed in the eighties. Another excellent example of a monograph is the collectors-ready Cartier book, which tells the story of the French brand through never-seen-before pictures, and last but not least, the book Audemars Piguet introduced to describe its most advanced and famous mechanical complications created in Le Brassus.
Freelance journalists and their publications.
The printed press, in Italy, especially, plays a key role and offers a great selection of high-quality books to read. Some publishers like Mondani Editore, for example, boast the largest selection of thematic books, like those dedicated to Rolex and Tudor, others like PucciPapaleo offer thematic publications whose quality is simply stunning and above the competition. Among Papaleo's latest releases, I'd mention "Fero" published by our friend and expert journalist Paolo Gobbi, or, if you're into Rolex, "Daytona Perpetual," that is expected to be released on November 25, 2019, and is available for pre-order. Paolo Gobbi edited it along with Ross Povey, owner of TudorCollector.com, and photographer Fabio Santinelli.