A gorgeously illustrated history of the literary, film, and arts counterculture--now in paperback!

Simultaneously a literary movement, ultra-hip subculture, and burgeoning cottage industry, steampunk is the most influential new genre to emerge from the late twentieth century. Spinning tales populated with clockwork leviathans, cannon shots to the moon, and coal-fired robots, it charts alternative histories in which the British Empire never fell and the atom remained unsplit.

Spectacularly illustrated and international in scope, this comprehensive history explores steampunk's many intricate expressions in fiction, cinema, television, comics, and video games, and traces its evolution into a truly global aesthetic that has made its mark on art, architecture, fashion, and music.

From the classic science-fiction of Jules Verne, H. G. Wells, and Mary Shelley, through the dystopian futurescapes of Cyberpunk, to the otherworldly imaginings of Hayao Miyazaki, Alan Moore, and China Miéville, author Brian J. Robb sets the key works of steampunk squarely under the lens of his brass monocle and ventures into a world where airships still rule the skies.

Brian J. Robb is a New York Times/Sunday Times best-selling author. Among his works are Timeless Adventures: How Doctor Who Conquered TV, a critical and cultural history of the TV series (Kamera, 2009), A Brief History of Star Trek (forthcoming, Constable & Robinson, 2012) and A Brief History of Star Wars (forthcoming, Constable & Robinson, 2012). He has also written Silent Cinema (Kamera, 2007), Counterfeit Worlds: Philip K. Dick on Film (Titan, 2005), and Screams and Nightmares: The Films of Wes Craven (Titan, 1998). He is the biographer of River Phoenix (Plexus, 1994), Heath Ledger (Plexus, 2008), Brad Pitt (Plexus, 2001), Johnny Depp (Plexus, 2006) and Keanu Reeves (Plexus, 2003), among others. He's also written books on Laurel and Hardy (Pocket Essentials, 2008), Ridley Scott (Pocket Essentials, 2005) and James Cameron (Pocket Essentials, 2002).Paul Simpson has written official guides to the TV series Farscape and Smallville and the movies The Hitchhikers' Guide to the Galaxy and Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, as well as unofficial books on subjects as diverse as James Bond, Nicole Kidman, and the TV series The O.C.

James Blaylock is one of the originators of Steampunk science fiction. He is the author of The Narbondo Series, including The Digging Leviathan, Homunculus, Lord Kelvin's Machine, The Adventures of Langdon St. Ives, The Ebb Tide, The Affair of the Chalk Cliffs, Zeuglodon, and The Aylesford Skull; The Balumnia Trilogy, including The Elfin Ship, The Disappearing Dwarf, The Stone Giant, and The Man in the Moon; The Christian Trilogy, including The Last Coin, The Paper Grail, and All the Bells on Earth; The Ghosts Trilogy, including Night Relics, Winter Tides, and The Rainy Season; plus The Complete Twelve Hours of the Night, Land of Dreams, The Magic Spectacles, 13 Phantasms, On Pirates, The Devils in the Details, In for a Penny, The Knights of the Cornerstone, and The Shadow on the Doorstep.

Jonathan Clements is the author of several works on eminent Victorians and Edwardians, including Darwin's Notebook; Mannerheim: President, Soldier, Spy; and Admiral Togo: Nelson of the East. He also wrote Red Devils, the first of the Space: 1889 audio plays for Noise Monster Productions, and numerous Doctor Who audio adventures for Big Finish Productions. An expert on Japanese art and culture, including the country's particular brand of Steampunk, Jonathan has translated dozens of anime from Japanese and is the author of Schoolgirl Milky Crisis: Adventures in the Anime and Manga Trade and co-author of The Anime Encyclopedia: A Guide to Japanese Animation Since 1917. Jonathan lives near the ruins of London's Crystal Palace, which was once a home to aeronauts and an experimental pneumatic railway. Brian J. Robb is a New York Times/Sunday Times best-selling author. Among his works are Timeless Adventures: How Doctor Who Conquered TV, a critical and cultural history of the TV series (Kamera, 2009), A Brief History of Star Trek (forthcoming, Constable & Robinson, 2012) and A Brief History of Star Wars (forthcoming, Constable & Robinson, 2012). He has also written Silent Cinema (Kamera, 2007), Counterfeit Worlds: Philip K. Dick on Film (Titan, 2005), and Screams and Nightmares: The Films of Wes Craven (Titan, 1998). He is the biographer of River Phoenix (Plexus, 1994), Heath Ledger (Plexus, 2008), Brad Pitt (Plexus, 2001), Johnny Depp (Plexus, 2006) and Keanu Reeves (Plexus, 2003), among others. He's also written books on Laurel and Hardy (Pocket Essentials, 2008), Ridley Scott (Pocket Essentials, 2005) and James Cameron (Pocket Essentials, 2002).