Best Pop-Up Books of 2023 | Collector’s Guide
Beautiful Pop-Up Books 2023
Jump to books on this page: Garbage Pail Kids | Minecraft Pop-Up | Harry Potter: A Pop-Up Guide to the Creatures of the Wizarding World | The Nutcracker | Edvard Munch | Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban | Paws, Claws and Snapping Jaws | New York: A Pop-Up Book | Dungeons & Dragons | Graphic Pops | Disney Little Mermaid | Transformers | Pop-Up Forest | Teeth, Tentacles & Tail Fins
Foreign Titles: Open Chongqing | Romance of the Three Kingdoms | Approaching Sanxingdui | Les cousins lémuriens
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Introduction
Lots to entertain various franchise fandoms this year, with some of favourite pop-up titles including the Harry Potter Guide to Creatures and Dungeons & Dragons, both of which were filled with fun easter eggs to entertain fans. I also particularly loved MinaLima’s third (but sadly last) interactive Potter book, the Prisoner of Azkaban and for nature-lovers, Pop-Up Forest is a real treat.
List of books
Garbage Pail Kids: Pop-Up Yearbook
Foul, fan-favorite Garbage Pail Kids like Adam Bomb, Leaky Lindsay, and Bony Joanie are brought to three-dimensional life in this 1980’s-style pop-up yearbook. You’ll see the kids get an education in wreaking havoc with vomit in the cafeteria, mucky experiments in science class, and stink bombs in the locker room. Also includes bonus removable, interactive GPK cards.
Paper Engineer: Matthew Reinhart, illustrated by Joe Simko
Publisher: Insight Editions
Publication Date: Dec 2023
➤ Amazon | B&N | Blackwells
ISBN: 9798886631135
Minecraft: The Official Pop-Up - Matthew Reinhart
Features five pop-up spreads across different biomes, which allow readers to take on creepers, zombies, and endermen. Original illustrations give new depth to favorite mobs and creatures, caves, and dungeons, while experiences range from surviving the first night to building a unique base. ISBN 9798886630978 (US) / 9780008626495 (UK).
Paper Engineer: Matthew Reinhart
Publisher: Insight Editions (US) | HarperCollins (UK)
Publication Date: Oct 2023 (US) / Apr 2024 (UK)
➤ US Edition: Amazon | B&N | Blackwells
➤ UK Edition: Amazon | Waterstones | Blackwells
Harry Potter: A Pop-Up Guide to the Creatures of the Wizarding World
A pop-up tour through the wizarding world’s boundless menagerie of magical creatures. Five intricately detailed pop-up spreads showcase creatures from the Harry Potter films in beautifully illustrated scenes that leap from the pages, accompanied by behind-the-scenes facts from the making of the film series – including fantastic beasts like the Basilisk, Buckbeak, and the Hungarian Horntail dragon. Filled with Reinhart’s signature interactive features like pull tabs and hidden pops.
Paper Engineer: Matthew Reinhart, text by Jody Revenson
Publisher: Insight Editions (US) | Titan (UK)
Publication Date: Oct 2023
➤ Find US edition at Amazon | B&N | Waterstones | Blackwells
➤ Find UK edition at Amazon | Waterstones | Blackwells
ISBN: 9798886631135 (US), 9781803368627 (UK)
Hoffmann's The Nutcracker - Gilded Fairytales
A magical pop-up edition of The Nutcracker with intricate folksy illustrations. ISBN 9788293560357.
Paper Engineer: Richard Ferguson, illustrated by Zanna Goldhawk, text by Steve Patschke based on the original story by ETA Hoffman
Publisher: Templar Books
Publication Date: Oct 2023
➤ Find it at Amazon | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay
☞ In series with a very pretty pop-up version of The Snow Queen illustrated by Lesley Barnes.
Edvard Munch Pop-Ups
Showcasing one of Modernism’s most significant artists, this book creates three-dimensional representations of The Women on the Bridge, Woman with Poppies, The Building of the Winter Studio, Children in the Forest, The Yellow Log and of course the iconic Scream, accompanied by explanatory texts and sketches by Munch. ISBN 9788293560357.
Paper Engineer: Courtney Watson McCarthy, text by Bjørn Arild Ersland
Publisher: Munch Museum
Publication Date: Oct 2023
➤ Find it at Amazon | Waterstones | Blackwells
☞ In series with McCarthy’s other art pop-up titles, including Hokusai Pop-Ups, Leonardo Pop-Ups and Dalí Pop-Ups.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
The third book in the Harry Potter series, richly illustrated in brilliant full colour by MinaLima and featuring eight interactive paper-engineered elements, which include unfolding the Marauder’s Map, looking inside the Knight Bus, the Grim in a teacup, a spinning Time-Turner, and more. This is a hardback with the original unabridged text accompanied by 190 full-colour illustrations (nearly every page). ISBN US: 9781338815283; UK: 9781526666321.
Paper Engineer: MinaLima, text by JK Rowling
Publisher: Scholastic (US) / Bloomsbury (UK)
Publication Date: Oct 2023
➤ Find US edition at Amazon | B&N | Blackwells | Abes | eBay
➤ Find UK edition at Amazon | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay
➤ Signed bookplate copies of the UK edition are also available from MinaLima direct.
☞ Read more about the MinaLima Interactive Children’s Classics series.
Paws, Claws, and Snapping Jaws: A Rainforest Predators Pop-Up
An introduction to more than 20 rainforest predators from the Amazon to the Congo Basin. Spreads include an endangered Amazonian jaguar leaping out at the readers, snapping crocodiles, slithering eels, and a majestic tree canopy spilling out on the turn of a page. ISBN 9798886630831.
Paper Engineer: Matthew Reinhart, text by Lori C. Froeb
Publisher: Insight Editions
Publication Date: Sep 2023
➤ Amazon | B&N | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay
☞ In series with Reinhart’s other nature pop-up title Teeth, Tentacles and Tail Fins.
New York: A Pop-Up Book
A selection of New York’s most iconic settings and architectural wonders unfold in seven pop-ups contained in a charming pint-sized package (the small size is intended to make it easy to carry along while traveling). The book is designed with a retro feel and features vintage-style street maps as backgrounds for each two-page spread, which deliver an iconic building or monument accompanied by text profiling the historical background and cultural significance of the structure or scene depicted in the pop-up. Scenes include the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, the Guggenheim Museum, Times Square, Brooklyn Bridge, Freedom Tower, and the Oculus. ISBN: 9780789339782.
Paper Engineer: Dominique Ehrhard
Publisher: Universe
Publication Date: Sep 2023
➤ Find it at Amazon | B&N | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay
☞ In series with Ehrhard’s other travel titles Paris Pop-Up and London Pop-Up.
Dungeons & Dragons: The Ultimate Pop-Up Book
An innovative pop-up tour through the world of D&D, including fantasy locations such as Waterdeep and Neverwinter, and fantastical creatures such as mind flayers, dragons, mimics, owl bears, and beholders, there are easter eggs hidden behind interactive doors and flaps like beloved characters Drizzt and Guenhwyvar. Includes five detailed pop-up spreads, with text written by Dungeons & Dragons Young Adventurer’s Guide Series authors Jim Zub and Stacy King in conjunction with paper engineering wizard Matthew Reinhart, and featuring dozens of characters and locations rendered by Brazilian artist Claudio Pozas (whose work can also be seen in several D&D 5E books). With a resurge in interest in the game driven by the release of the new Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves film, and newly acquired Stranger Things fans, first printings of this title are likely to disappear quickly. ISBN US: 9781647226206; UK: 9781803366104.
Paper Engineer: Matthew Reinhart, written by Jim Zub & Stacy King, illustrated by Claudio Pozas
Publisher: Insight Editions (US) / Titan (UK)
Publication Date: Jul 2023
➤ US edition: Amazon | B&N | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay
➤ UK edition: Amazon | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay
Sherlock Holmes: The Hound of the Baskervilles (Classic Pop-Ups/Graphic Pops)
A graphic adaptation of the classic Sherlock Holmes mystery, with comic-book style illustrations, giant pop-ups and fold-out pages on every spread. ISBN 9781645178231 (US) / 9781398808225 (UK).
Paper Engineer: David Hawcock, illustrated by Anthony Williams, text by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Publisher: Canterbury Classics (US) / ARC (UK)
Publication Date: Jul 2023 (released in the UK in 2021)
➤ US edition: Amazon | B&N | Blackwells | Abes | eBay
➤ UK edition: Amazon | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay
Frankenstein (Classic Pop-Ups/Graphic Pops)
A graphic adaptation of the classic brooding science fiction tale, with comic-book style illustrations, giant pop-ups and fold-out pages on every spread. ISBN US: 9781645178224; UK: 9781398808218.
Paper Engineer: David Hawcock, illustrated by Anthony Williams, text by Mary Shelley
Publisher: Canterbury Classics (US) / ARC (UK)
Publication Date: Jul 2023 (released in the UK in 2021)
➤ US edition: Amazon | B&N | Blackwells | Abes | eBay
➤ UK edition: Amazon | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay
Dracula (Classic Pop-Ups/Graphic Pops)
A graphic adaptation of the classic gothic vampire mystery, with comic-book style illustrations, giant pop-ups and fold-out pages on every spread. ISBN US: 9781645178217; UK: 9781398808201.
Paper Engineer: David Hawcock, illustrated by Anthony Williams, text by Bram Stoker
Publisher: Canterbury Classics (US) / ARC (UK)
Publication Date: Jul 2023 (released in the UK in 2021)
➤ US edition: Amazon | B&N | Blackwells | Abes | eBay
➤ UK edition: Amazon | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay
Up Pops: Paper Engineering with Elastic Bands
Each of ten basic mechanisms is illustrated by a working model which you can cut out and make. When finished, each working model glues back into the book on a special tab and folds away to make a kind of three dimensional dictionary or encyclopaedia. For each working model there is also a page called technical considerations which points out important features of the mechanism and suggests how it might be used to create original designs of your own. ISBN 9781913565497.
Paper Engineer: Mark Hiner
Publisher: Insight Editions
Publication Date: Jul 2023 (originally released 1993)
➤ Find it at Amazon | B&N | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay
Disney: The Little Mermaid Pop-Up Book
A pop-up celebration of the Disney Princess interpretation of the original Hans Christian Andersen tale, The Little Mermaid. This edition includes 5 pop-up spreads, original artwork and Reinhart’s signature ‘hidden surprises’ on every page. Reinhart is a master of the craft, so you know it’s bound to be excellent. ISBN 9781647227593.
Paper Engineer: Matthew Reinhart
Publisher: Insight Editions
Publication Date: May 2023
➤ Find it at Amazon | B&N | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay
Transformers: The Ultimate Pop-Up Universe
Paper Engineer: Matthew Reinhart
Publisher: Insight Editions
Publication Date: May 2023 (originally released in 2013)
➤ Find it at Amazon | Blackwells
About
Transformers shift, change, and rise to battle, including pull-tabs that let you watch the pop-ups cleverly change into entirely new paper creations. Features more than 35 iconic Transformers characters, including Optimus Prime, Bumblebee, Megatron, Starscream, and more. Original publication date October 2013.
Review
The paper engineering is fantastically impressive, as the pop-ups cleverly and completely transform, just like the original Transformers themselves. The enormous Autobot Omega Supreme seems almost too tall to fit back into the book as he towers up out of a two-page spread to smash the Decepticons. The paper is relatively robust for an adult collector, but the book would require care in the hands of children, particularly as some of the tabs are quite stiff. (Review based on my original 2013 edition.)
Pop-up Forest
Everything you’ve always wanted to know about forest ecosystems around the world with fact-packed text, lively and colorful illustrations, and delightful pop-up forestry. Discover what happens when trees communicate with each other; the kinds of creatures that live in them; and what the Scandinavian legend of Yggdrasil has to do with it all. ISBN 9780500653081.
Paper Engineer: Tom Valliant, illustrated by Bernard Duisit, written by Fleur Daugey
Publisher: Thames & Hudson
Publication Date: Mar 2023
➤ Find it at Amazon | B&N | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay
☞ In series with Pop-Up Volcano, Pop-Up Earth and Pop-Up Moon, all of which are also excellent titles.
Teeth, Tentacles and Tail Fins: A Wild Ocean Pop-Up
Pop-up master Matthew Reinhart explores an underwater world where creatures such as the colossal squid, the anglerfish, and the goblin shark lie in wait. Majestic pop-up spreads, pull-out flaps and moving tabs are accompanied by fascinating facts about underwater animal behavior and anatomy.
Paper Engineer: Matthew Reinhart
Publisher: Insight Kids
Publication Date: Jan 2023
➤ Find it at Amazon | B&N | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay
Foreign Language Pop-Ups
Open Chongqing: The City of Mountains Pop-Up (Chinese: 打开重庆)
Chinese text: Chongqing is known as ”The City of Mountains“ for its rugged beauty. This title showcases seven classic landmark scenes in pop-up format, including a panorama of the mountain city, Hongyadong, Ciqikou Ancient Town, Jiefangbei, Dongzi Hotpot, Liziba and Raffles, and Sichuan Fine Arts Institute.
Paper Engineer: Star Shen
Publisher: Chongqing Publishing House Creation, 9787229181765
Publication Date: 2023
➤ Find it at Amazon | Starry House Studio
Romance of the Three Kingdoms (Chinese: 三國演義)
Chinese text: Romance of the Three Kingdoms is acclaimed as one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature – it’s a 14th-century historical novel attributed to Luo Guanzhong. This pop-up adaptation includes six scenes across the era, along with a 70-minute recording of the story being read aloud and other audio accompaniments accessible via QR code.
Paper Engineer: Zhou Meiqiang, based on the story by Luo Guanzhong
Publisher: Heliu Cultural Creation, 9786267160787
Publication Date: 2023
➤ Find it at AliExpress
Approaching Sanxingdui (Chinese: 走近三星堆)
Chinese text: Named on China’s list of “Good Books for Children” in 2022, and a finalist in the 2023 Meggendorfer Prize for Movable Books, this book explores the 4000-year old historical relics and archaeological excavations of the Bronze Age Sanxingdui site in modern Guanghan, Sichuan, China. The book can be disassembled and rebuilt into a large flat-lay.
Paper Engineer: Wang Wei
Publisher: Beijing Times Christian Press
Publication Date: 2023
➤ Find it at AliExpress
Les cousins lémuriens
French text: “The ring-tailed lemurs send their cousins out to search for fruit in the jungle.”
Review: Delightful bright and colourful 3D jungle scenes with a bonus section at the end to help identify all the flora and fauna.
Paper Engineer: Philippe UG
Publisher: Grandes Personn, 9782361937034
Publication Date: 2023
➤ Find it at Amazon
