The Black Book

The Ultimate Guide to Alternative Inventions
We came across hundreds of inventions that were genius, curious, or surprising, but unfortunately, never became part of our life. We decided to shed some light on them and create The Black Book. We didn't just make this book an encyclopedia of those inventions; we also tried to imagine what the world would be like with them.

The Black Book: The Ultimate Guide to Alternative Inventions is an illustrated book about inventions that almost changed the world - but didn't.

It brings together unusual machines, ambitious prototypes, and strange engineering ideas that were once taken seriously: flying tanks, floating tunnels, collapsible aircraft carriers, armored vehicles, and other concepts that now feel almost fictional, even though they were real.

The book looks at why these ideas appeared, what their inventors were trying to solve, how the inventions worked, and why they never became part of everyday life. Some were too expensive, some too complicated, some arrived too early, and some were simply too strange for their time.

Rather than treating them as failures, the book presents them as part of the wider story of innovation. Many of these inventions reveal genuine imagination, technical skill, and a willingness to experiment at the edge of what seemed possible.

Each invention is brought to life with detailed hand-drawn illustrations, based on patents, photographs, and historical references. The result is a book about engineering curiosity, forgotten ideas, and the strange beauty of things that almost existed.

UK Delivery:

• Free delivery on all orders of £10 or more.
• £1.49 delivery fee on orders below £10.
• UK orders are shipped via Royal Mail 2nd Class.

International Delivery:

• Flat rate delivery charges vary by country.

Dispatch and Delivery Times:

• All orders are shipped from our warehouse in Northampton, UK as soon as stock is available.
• UK mainland orders typically arrive within 3-7 working days via Royal Mail 2nd Class.
• International estimated delivery times:
• Europe & Channel Islands: 7 to 10 working days
• USA: 7 to 15 working days
• Rest of the World: 9 to 30 working days

View our full delivery infomation here.