I love retro computing history and every time I see a new Book coming out I get excited and hope it is really good! Yesterday a new book came out – Breakout: How Atari 8-Bit Computers Defined a Generation.

The history of Atari is already told by the excellent Atari Inc. Business is Fun. However, a more straightforward approach to Atari 8-bit computers was overdue and Breakout is right there to fill that void.

Written by Jamie Lendino, Editor-in-Chief of ExtremeTech.com, the book looks back at how the Atari 8-bit lineup came to be, how it was designed, and its entire 13-year production run, from the original 400/800 through the XL and XE lines. The book also details over 100 of the best games available for the platform and what makes them significant.

If you are uncertain about the book, the ExtremeTech website has published an article containing a free chapter. It is a good way to see if you like the writer’s style and evaluate the quality of the book.

Breakout costs US$17 in paperback and US$14 for Kindle.

Link: ExtremeTech.com