I have a son who lives and breathes the Pokémon TCG, so it made sense that we check out the Pokemon Timelines book. We have a similar Star Wars title that is excellent, so I had high hopes for this one. It did not disappoint
What Is Pokémon Timelines?
The first thing to say is that Pokémon Timelines focuses on the stories outlined in the animated series. It does not draw on the myriad games available—console or card. Of course, if you play any flavor of Pokémon avidly, you probably have an interest in the animations that describe the wacky world in which Pokémon exists. I’m constantly astounded by the amount of information my son can retain about Pokémon and wish he could apply it to his schoolwork!
The book follows Ash and Pikachu’s journey through all eight Pokémon regions and charts the course of the animated series to its culmination. Spoiler Alert: This book is full of spoilers!
The book is broken down into a section for each region, with each one detailing the major events of Ash’s time there, as well as pointing out key Pokémon and artifacts from the region in question. If you want to understand the lore of the world of Pokémon then this is the book for you!
It’s worth bearing in mind that whilst the Pokémon animations lasted for 25 years, 10-year-old Ash barely changes over the course of the series. The “timeline” here is a loose construct, but essentially the book tells us the Pokémon story from beginning to end.
The book closes out with a glossary and a comprehensive index.
Why Read Pokémon Timelines?
The most important review of this book is from my son, who says it’s very good—with “All the information you need about the Pokémon story arranged in an easy-to-read manner.”
The timelines are well laid out and it’s easy to follow what happened in a particular region. As you might expect, the book is stuffed full of pictures of Pokémon and includes lots of stills from the animation. Many of the trainers, friends, and enemies that Ash meets are detailed too.
To the uninitiated like myself, Pokémon often seems like a random series of nonsensical events. Pokémon Timelines lays the story out to show that there was some method beyond cute monsters with amusing names.
The book, of course, is not aimed at me. It’s aimed at Pokémon fans old and new. They will find much to love here, whether it’s reminiscing about forgotten or favorite storylines or learning about the Pokémon backstory for the very first time. It’s a perfect addition to any Pokémon fan’s collection.
If you would like to pick up a copy of Pokémon Timelines, you can do so here in the US and here in the UK. (Affiliate Links)
If you enjoyed this review, check out my other book reviews.
I received a copy of this book in order to write this review.
