The Target Book:  A History of the Target Doctor Who Books, by David J. Howe. Telos.

First published by Telos, 2007. This edition published 2016.

176 pages, oversized hardback. Cover by Alister Pearson.

The Target Doctor Who books. For a generation of pre-video Doctor Who fans, the Target books were the only way to get episodes of Doctor Who they either hadn’t seen in years or hadn't seen at all. Some were, and still are, some they’d never actually get to see due to being lost, presumed destroyed.

David J. Howe tells the story of Target and the beloved Doctor Who books from their meager, but earnest, beginnings through their rise to fame, in their niche-within-a-niche, to the very end. From 1973 to 1994, the Target books developed an almost cult following of their own. Howe takes us on a nostalgic journey through interviews with managers, editors, authors, artists, and other behind-the-scenes people involved in the history of the Target Doctor Who books.

It’s a beautiful book full of gorgeous cover art. You can hear the nostalgia in the voices of those interviewed. The book reviews are the most surprising, not because of the content, but because of the names of the reviewers. There are names modern-day fans might know, and fans in the “wilderness years” will certainly know.

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…”

For more information:

http://tardis.wikia.com/wiki/The_Target_Book

https://telos.co.uk/shop/doctor-who/the-target-book-hb/