Utah Books

The atlas was great. The box it was shipped in was crushed, therefore my order was creased in two spots. I did send one back since it was a gift, (they did replace it) although I just kept the Utah atlas due to a time factor. Not packed very well the first time. They do have a great return policy!

Pick this one up, and you'll never look at the DeLorme one again. Once again, Benchmark/Raven show that maps can be both functional and beautiful. By far, it is the best single resource in print on backcountry roads, terrain, land ownership/administration, and sites of interest. I take whenever I'm going to get off the freeway.

Of course, it's not perfect. I've found a few mistakes, but they're mostly things that only map geeks would notice.

This book is the baseline reference for any naturalist seeking to better understand the southwestern landscape. I refer to mine often. Be sure to get the companion map.

Brown's book provides a good overview of biotic communities in an easy to understand and organized format. It serves as an excellent introduction to plant communities of the Southwest, with secondary references to animal populations. The drawback is that all references to elevation and precipitation are in metric units with no parenthetic conversion to feet and inches.

I was delighted to find this book in the Hovenweep National Monument visitor centre bookstore. I had already photographed the wild flowers of Arches, Canyonlands and Colorado for my website. Now I could identify them. The book organises the flowers by colour which is good for an amateur like me. Now, I have to admit that I could not identify all the species I photographed, but I was pleased when I could. A big thank you to Damian Fagan for this book, I thought I might be a little bit too excentric hunting for new wild flowers in Canyondlands and Arches National Parks, even worse photographing wild flowers during my lunch hour while working in Colorado.

The Colorado Plateau country of southern Utah, western Colorado, and northern Arizona is justifiably famous for its magnificent scenery, but the stunning wildflowers are less widely appreciated. Fagan's "Canyon Country Wildflowers" is the best guide to these treasures that I've yet seen. The photographs are absolutely top-notch (sometimes I browse the guide, just daydreaming...), often showing the entire plant in its natural habitat. Likewise, the collection is relatively complete. Flowers are organized by colors and typically easy to find. To top it off, the book is relatively compact and durable in the field. Nowadays, I don't head south without it. -William Adair, Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Utah State University

This is a true "sleeper" book. Well written, fascinating and real. A pure joy to read for any whitwater enthusiast and anyone who loves adventure. It is too bad that it is out of print. I think that with proper marketing this could be a great bestseller! Highly recommended!

This just the type of book I like to read at night before going to sleep. The exploits are of a kind I would never attempt, and just the contemplation of them makes me at once weary and exhilarated.

In the early seventies the author resolved to kayak down one of the most forbidding rivers in the world: the Apurimac in Peru. In two trips, in 1974 and 1975, he did just that. The Apurimac is the longest tributary and hence considered the source of, the Amazon (River). It is forbidding due to the extreme ferocity of its cataracts, and also due to the fact that in many places along its course climbing out of its canyon or going back upstream would be impossible. Thus, the discovery by Giddings and his companions of a scenic forty or fifty foot waterfall on the unexplored sections could well have been a death sentence.

While all the kayakers did make it out alive, things were not always hunky-dory between them. Giddings comments frequently on his team's lack of teamwork and his submerged tensions. Reading this a quarter century later, I felt he could be right or maybe wrong, but I had almost nothing by which to draw any conclusions. The author gives only the most cursory description of the other members of his party (5 besides himself), then launches into the chronicle. This information deficit is never cured. We are not told the age, the religion, the education, the job, the background, the biases--nothing of any of these five other men on the journey, which makes it impossible to become involved as a reader in the psycho-drama that seems to have played out on the river. One cannot even attempt some judgement based solely on appearance because although the book has many photos, it lacks a portrait of the group, which one would think basic in a work of this kind. The reader can only glimpse three of the five members in individual pictures.

So the question remains. Were they really a band of males of the stand-up comedy stereotype: egotistical, enamored of tools and technological playthings, but unable to talk about their feelings round the campfire or work together as a unit on the river? Were they even aware of any potential for their expedition to turn into a disaster of the kind portrayed in the movie Deliverance (a hit of that era)or the more recent catastrophes on Everest? Or is there another side to the story that Giddings chose for one reason or another not to reveal?

I was interested to learn that someone apparently familiar with Mormon culture and teachings would write a book about Mormon pioneer women with the paradoxical title "Faithful Transgressions." I was curious to learn how the title applied in these women's lives. I was also curious to discover more about the author - who is she, and why is she saying these things?

The book turned out to be much different from my expectation. I naively imagined a compilation of selections from the six autobiographies, book-ended with short intros and conclusions giving Bush's personal views and interpretations on each story. I was not prepared for the amount of careful, detailed analysis or the effort that would be needed to get through it - this was not "light" or casual reading!

I thoroughly enjoyed Bush's own (too short) autobiographical preface, "Gender Trouble and My Hybrid Life." It helped answer some of my questions and established a solid credibility, even trust, which in turn motivated me to continue reading. That trust and motivation became essential in the next section, "Autobiographical Constructions of the Mormon Self(s)." This was not so much an introduction to the rest of the book, as to the entire field of autobiographical analysis and related literary theories. Fine for the academically inclined, but rather heavy for casual readers (go ahead and skip past it if you like; the rest of the book will still make sense - and you can always come back to it later).

Things lightened up once I got into the heart of the book - the actual stories of these six women. The detailed, academic analysis persisted, but made much more sense when wrapped around the actual narratives. Ultimately, it made the experience much more interesting and enlightening. By the time I reached the last chapter, "Training to Be a Good Mormon Girl While Longing for Fame", I found myself again reading slower and slower - but this time it was because I didn't want the book to end, I was enjoying it so much.

I benefited in several ways from reading this book. My understanding of the field of study of "autobiographical acts" was greatly expanded (it didn't exist before). It was interesting to look at familiar themes (Mormon pioneer struggles) from a different perspective - even from a "feminist scholar's" perspective. My appreciation for the challenges and perspectives facing pioneer LDS women in polygamous marriages (and other challenges in more recent times) was opened up enormously, and (best of all) not in the ways I had anticipated. I was not "surprised" at anything I read, but I was enlightened, and gained new appreciation for each of these women, not so much as icons or characters from stories, but as 'ordinary' (i.e., real, like you and me) people.

In her preface, Bush states that she has "tried ... to strike a balance between celebrating Mormon women's writing accomplishments while also critiquing the Mormon context within which each of them writes." She did a very good job of maintaining that 'balance.' Clearly she has her own perspectives, but her objective and well-documented approach builds opportunities for understanding, and avoids needless polarization. Rather than seeking to antagonize or attack, she chooses to illuminate.

As an "active/practicing" member of the "Mormon" Church, I found the book and many of its ideas challenging, but not "threatening;" Bush explores both sides without "taking sides." I did not agree with all of her views ... but I found myself respecting them and appreciating their origins and potential. Her even-handed and well documented approach made it much easier to allow my mind to open and contemplate new perspectives, ideas and opinions.

My favorite quote from the book is found in the preface (p. xvii): "... Ulrich declares, 'Feminism may be larger than they imagined and Mormonism more flexible'." To me, that quote represents a profound statement of faith and hope (although it may be a long time before the different 'camps' realize its truth).

Sometimes you know that you are unlearned and uninformed of a particular subject, but assume you know what it is that you would learn, if you were to study that topic in more depth. Its fun to take that step and discover something completely new and different. That happened with "Faithful Transgressions."

Laura L. Bush examines six twentieth-century autobiographies by Mormon women--Mary Ann Hafen, Annie Clark Tanner, Wynetta Willis Martin, Terry Tempest Williams, and Phyllis Barber--each of whom adopts a sympathetic, yet critical view of the Mormon religion. In documenting their lives, these women wrestle with issues of gender, (...), family, and marriage (either monogamous or polygamous). Individual autobiographers also address such diverse matters as pioneer life in the West, the relation between the Mormon church and African Americans, and the ecosystem of the Great Salt Lake.

Bush uses advanced theoretical frameworks--feminism, ecofeminism, and critical race theory among them--and harnesses them effectively while investigating the six texts. While environmentally minded readers will be especially interested in Bush's astute treatment of Terry Tempest Williams's REFUGE--one of the best autobiographies ever written by an American--Bush writes very cogently and sensitively about all these women's accounts of their lives.

Not the least advantage of this book is its combination of incisiveness and fairness in its treatment of Mormonism. Balanced appraisals of the LDS church are difficult to find, and Bush's book is one of the very best.

You can never go wrong with the Frommer's Park Guide series. We just got back from visiting Bryce Canyon and Zion Parks (and the surrounding areas). We brought this book with us and were very satisfied with it. We LOVED the compactness of it (easy to throw in a backpack/carry on bag). It gives a good overview of each of the parks as well as some of the surrounding sites and areas around the parks. The description of the hikes were accurate as were the resturant/hotel reviews. The downside (as is the aase with all of the Frommer's Park guides) is that it offers very little background history on the parks. You might want to pick up a book about each of the parks when you get there if you want some geological and historical background. Otherwise, I highly recommend this book!

NOTE: I HIGHLY recommend taking the River Hike in Zion. Just bring a pair of old sneakers and you're good to go. Our two children (ages 4 and 8) did just fine (it has a somewhat rocky bottom). We saw people doing the hike in sandels and even barefoot, though I wouldn't recommend it. Also, we stayed in the Canyon Ranch hotel in Springdale (Zion) and LOVED it! Large, clean rooms set far back from the road. We stayed in Bryce Country Cabins located in Tropic (Bryce Canyon). Great for a family with kids or if you want to escape the "riff-raff" of the Rudy's Inn complex and want a more quiet place to stay.

This guide is smaller than the typical Frommer's and can fit handily in your back pocket. There is plenty of coverage on the best hiking trails and scenic drives through both Zion and Bryce National Parks as well as easy side trips you can make while visiting. There is also full coverage of the hotels and restaurants in the area. As always, Frommer's also includes a "Best of" section to help you zoom in on the best options for the things you're most interested in.

Overall, this guide is very helpful. In addition to the basics, there are plenty of helpful tips on how to avoid crowds, what to bring with you, how best to see animals, etc. The authors cover all the bases clearly and concisely and make planning a trip to these beautiful national parks a much easier process.

"We all declare for liberty, but in using the same word we do not all mean the same thing." - Abraham Lincoln (1864)

Lincoln's aphorism is the pivotal crux of U.S. history explored by Professor Foner in this first-rate textbook for upper-grade high school students or freshman and sophomore college students.

Foner explores how and why the meanings of liberty and freedom changed throughout American history. In examining any particular period, he asks the crucial historical questions:
What new ideas about liberty and freedom circulated? What new circumstances generated them?
How did they expand/develop or contract/regress?
What groups or individuals supported or thwarted them?
Why did they find fertile ground or face hostility?

Foner asserts that three (3) dimensions of liberty and freedom have been critical in American history:
1) the (contested) meanings of liberty and freedom;
2) the social conditions that made liberty and freedom possible; and
3) the boundaries of liberty and freedom that determined who was entitled to enjoy freedom and who was not.

As summarized by David Hackett Fischer, "what made America free, and keeps it so, was not any single version of liberty and freedom but the interplay of many visions."

It is a book that has all the facts of US History. It gives extra details to place every detail given in the right place. It is also very easy to read and would go along great with a lecture class. Personally I read this book with Howard Zinn side by side so I could get the facts and opinion at the same time. Very good book.

The interest in the seemingly never-ending myths and legends about river trips through the Grand Canyon continues to grow. One of the enduring controversies that continues to surface among Colorado River historians is the question of who really was the first to travel the river through the Grand Canyon. Historically, the credit is given to John Wesley Powell for his amazing feat in 1869. However, there is, and always has been, a dispute about whether or not a Colorado prospector named James White may have actually made the first descent two years earlier than Powell, in 1867. If this is true the legend and accolades surrounding the Powell trip, while significant, will have to be revised to take into account White's accomplishment.
Eilean Adams is the granddaughter of James White and has written the first complete account of the controversy surrounding her grandfathers claim to have traversed the river through the Canyon in eleven days, two years prior to Powell's trip. It is an amazing story that was originally widely believed and publicized. White had been prospecting with another man near the San Juan River in Colorado when they encountered hostile Indians. His partner was killed and White claims to have fashioned a raft and began an eleven-day journey down the Colorado to eventually wash up on the shore at Callville, Nevada.
In a highly readable, absorbing manner Adams has written a compelling account of White's life and journey that is meticulously researched and provides a plausible and compelling case that White did in fact accomplish the unbelievable. The story will appeal to the reader favoring a good mystery as well as those hooked on historical events and legends. The book is well documented with chapter notes; references, sources, and other related documents that provide the reader with the first comprehensive account of a story that will not die. Was James White really the first person to traverse the Grand Canyon via the Colorado River? If so, why do historians insist on giving the credit to John Wesley Powell? The answers to these and other questions make this book a first rate addition to the literature of the West.

Western history says that John Wesley Powell was the first man to boat through the Grand Canyon, but this book is PROOF that that is incorrect. After reading this well-written, insightful, thoroughly researched, extremely readable examination of the James White story, I am convinced, now more than ever, that James White was the first man to raft down the Colorado. Eilean Adams's writes well of the people, throughout history, who worked to discredit James White's story, and in turn (justly) discredits them.
James White supposedly built a raft and took to the Colorado River to escape some Indians, and my only problem with this book is that she didn't examine why he didn't get off his raft farther down the river, where the canyon walls opened up--at a place like Lees Ferry, for example.
Aside from that though, this book is first-rate. Even if you know nothing of his story, or of Western history, the book is a thrilling adventure tale I would recommend to anyone.

The map is beautiful and (reasonably) accurate, but its small scale limits its use for hiking. Many of the contours are so closely spaced, faint, or interrupted by text that they are nearly useless. The publishers tried to squeeze the entire national monument onto one map sheet, which makes for a good overview and planning map, but a poor hiking map.
Unfortunately, you have rather limited options, at least when it comes to paper maps: The USGS 7.5 minute topo sheets are great, but they don't show the trails, local hiking maps are hit and miss (some can be great). State-wide mapping software that lets you print customized hiking maps might be the way to go, but I haven't tried them yet.

This map is part of the Trails Illustrated series covering many national parks. These are all sturdy and convenient.

Your map choices are essentially this one, the National Park Service map, and USGS topos. The NPS map is fine if you're staying at Rock Harbor Lodge and doing light day activities from that base.

If you're backpacking, or doing long day hikes, the Trails Illustrated map is absolutely essential because the USGS topographic maps are outdated. For example, the topo shows a no-longer-existent East Feldtmann trail on the southwest part of the island.

The topo also shows inaccurately the trail that goes over White Oak Ridge in the same area. The Trails Illustrated map shows the trails correctly.

This map also shows (1) group and individual campsites and (2) distances between trail junctions that accord with the NPS signage. Both features make it useful for planning your trip.

A very usefull mountain guide (just a little bit to big for travelling with!!!). Some description is not very recent...

Since this book covers the entire world, each mountain route is not descibed in detail, but this book is truely amazing. There is no other more comprihensive guidebook out there and this book may be one of the all time classics of any guidebook out there.