STRANGER THINGS: WORLDS TURNED UPSIDE DOWN

“Do you copy? this book is for nerds. Repeat. This book is for nerds.” So say Stranger Things creators the Duffer brothers in their foreword to this official behind-the-scenes companion, and they’re not lying. It’s so packed with details about the making of Netflix’s ’80s-set show that come the end, you’ll know more about Hawkins, Indiana than the people who live there.

The prose may be functional rather than sparkling, but this is much more than your average Making Of. There’s loads of input from the key players, but what really sets the book apart is the attention to period detail: stuff like a guide to the Duffers’ favourite films presented as a Betamax ad, or character profiles as high school yearbook entries. The guide to the Upside Down, meanwhile, is literally upside down.

It’s also peppered with footnotes that expand the cultural background of the show: the movies referenced, the historical context and even a guide to the ’80s mullets that inspired Steve Harrington’s magnificent ’do. The last chapter reveals more intel on next year’s Stranger Things 3 than you’re likely to have seen elsewhere. In fact, the only thing it’s missing is a free pack of Eggos. Richard Edwards