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Many cookie jar books are available for collectors, they all have their strengths and good points. If you are a serious collector, the price of all the books combined would be less than the price of one good jar. I feel an assortment of cookie jar books should be on your bookshelf. But, if you are a new collector or just want to know more about cookie jars in general, the book to have is The Complete Cookie Jar Book by Mike Schneider.

Schneider, a free lance writer from Ohio, has written several books on collectibles. Every one of them appears to be very well researched, with good pictures, resources, and tons of information.

The first edition of this book was published in 1991 as a hardcover and, although the book was definitely worth it, the price scared many away. Now with the revised editions available at a much lower price, there is no reason not to add this to your library.

Editions two through four are soft-covered, prices are updated, and new jars were added. Another difference from the first book is the prices are shown with the jars, no more flipping back and forth from the picture to the back of the book.

During a chat with the author, Schneider related that the newer editions have definite value changes -- depicting the changes in the cookie jar market. He cited the vast Internet resources and reproductions that have caused the value changes. Many collectors are finding that jars are just not as rare as we previously thought and because of the number of reproductions, many collectors rethink spending hundreds of dollars for a jar.

When asked about any new books, Schneider said no more books are on the horizon. This is unfortunate for collectors who looked forward to taking advantage of his excellent research that goes into new books.

Schneider's book is laid out in several sections and the most important ones are:

Section One
This section's titles are "A History of Jars," "Types of Ceramic Jars," "Decoration," "Prices," "Condition," "Counterfeits, Reproductions and Fakes," and "Problems of Collecting." This section is worth the price of the book alone and answers many general questions asked about jars, how to care for them and different things to watch out for.

Section Two
Titled "The Cookie Jar Giants," this section includes information about McCoy and American Bisque jars. Each chapter has a short history of the company along with timelines. The pictures of the various markings on jars are the most important part of this whole book. Schneider devotes many pictures showing the bottoms of the jars. When you are confused about markings or a new collector, this is extremely important.

Section Three
This section explores other major American producers from Abingdon to Twin Winton. Again the brief histories, time lines and markings make this an invaluable resource.

The other section titles are "Other American Producers," "Cookie Jar handlers," "Character Cookie Jars," "Studio Artists," "Foreign Cookie Jars," "The Mystery Cookie Jars," and "Non-Pottery Cookie Jars." The Appendixes in the back include Sources, Ceramic Mold Companies (a terrific resource), and McCoy Cookie Jar Designs by Year.

If you are a new collector, wanting to know more about the companies and producers of jars, this should be the first book on your shelf. If you are a longtime collector and do not have this book, delay no more.