RAVE REVIEW FROM FARM INDUSTRY NEWS, MARCH 2001

NOT JUST FOR DEERE HUNTERS

You don't have to be a year-round "Deere" hunter to enjoy the extensive collection of John Deere memorabilia in JOHN DEERE COLLECTIBLES. The new 128-page coffee-table book has many rare finds that may surprise and delight you.

Author Brenda Kruse says she has her father-in-law to thank for her first book. "Every time I went home for the holidays, we would show me some of his Deere collection," Kruse says. "He encouraged me to write this book, because he and his friends ­ who are some of the most respected collectors of John Deere memorabilia ­ had no resource to check for information on their collections."

Most of the items in the book date from the 1860s to the 1960s and are from the collections of Kruse's father-in-law and his friends and from the Deere archives.

"Dating by the deer" can help you date some of your items just by learning when a certain Deere logo was used. Other tips from the author: "The round, desk mirror (circa 1910 or 1912) on the bototm left corner of the cover and any ephmera printed in color in the 1800s are prized and really rare."

Kruse says that because Deere is now licensing its logo to manufacturers, there will be many new lines to watch fob. And hang on to.

By Roxanne Furlong