Connecticut Books

There are now more than 13,00 miles of open rail-trails across the country. The Rails-to-Trails Conservancy is an organization of more than 100,000 members and a leading advocate for trail and greenway 'recycling' of obsolete railroad corridors and rights of way. The official guidebook of the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, "Rail-Trails: New England" is a thoroughly 'user friendly' guide to railroad related trails in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. Profusely illustrated with maps, as well as black-and-white photographs, "Rail-Trails: New England" is the perfect planning guide for biking or hiking along pathways created from unused railroad corridors that have been converted to recreational use by the public. some rail-trails are paved and run through scenic parts of New England townships, others are unpaved paths through scenic countrysides. Enhanced with detailed maps for every rail-trail (plus driving directions to trailheads), "Rail-Trails: New England" also features icons indicating each trail's use, along with succinct descriptions written by truly knowledgeable and articulate rail-trail experts. If you are planning to avail yourself of the recreational and exercise opportunities of rail-trails anywhere in the New England region, then begin with a careful browse through the pages of "Rail-Trails: New England"!

I love the Easyfinder laminated maps from Rand McNally. They are extremely durable, meaning I won't have to repurchase a map that gets torn, spilled on, or just plain worn out. Even better, I can mark my routes & destinations on them with dry erase marker, then just wipe off when no longer needed. Great for local tag sale bargain hunting or longer trips. Map detail is top notch, as you would expect from Rand McNally. 5 stars, definitely my favorite maps. From Wooster Square to Lighthouse Park, from East Rock to West Rock, this is the map that goes with me.

We've all heard the old saw that those who ignore the mistakes of the past are doomed to repeat them. As we face growing environmental crises throughout the globe at the outset of the 21st century, it's critical for those who hope to maintain our planet's delicate balance to understand the history behind environmental movements of the past, and where reformers have succeeded and failed in their efforts to confront a rapidly changing society's impact on the natural world.

In Reasonable Use, Cumbler, an environmental historian at the University of Louisville, traces the dramatic shift New England experienced between the Colonial era and the pre-World War II period. Focusing mostly on the 19th century and the impact of industrialization, overfishing, deforestation and the arrival of dams and cities along the Connecticut River during that time period, Cumbler describes not only how states like Massachusetts, Connecticut and New Hampshire reacted to increased pollution but also the characters who drove the responses and how each of the major players reflected broader themes and approaches to humans' role in the natural world.

The major players - people like Henry David Thoreau, Henry Ingersoll Bowditch, George Perkins Marsh and Theodore Lyman - represented the range of elite thinking during that time. The questions they faced regarding the value of fish to an ecosystem, the effect of pollution on populations, the problem of waste disposal and - most important - the comparative merits of industrial progress versus a clean environment, are all questions that we still confront today. Though the unobservant reader may miss it, Cumbler also offers particularly pointed commentary on the critical lessons those who hope to effect environmental reforms today should learn from the failures of those who sought to go up against the entrenched powers of industry in 19th century New England.

So while the casual observer may mistakenly assume that this book will appeal primarily to those with a regional interest in the area and era, in fact Cumbler offers a wealth of judiciously documented thoughts on the nature of the relations of power, paarticularly as they interact when the object of the struggle - the environment - cannot speak for itself.

Also, besides delivering an engrossing and thoughful historical document, Cumbler additionally weaves a compelling tale that maintains the readers interest, even as he shares scientific data regarding such esoterica as the composition of dissolved oxygen in a water system or the workings of fishways in a dam. The book is well-written and deserves a broader audience than merely environmental history buffs. We can all pick up a thing or two from Henry Bowditch et al, and John Cumbler makes the lessons easy to learn.

Covering hundreds of Revolutionary War veterans of Fairfield, Connecticut, this book contains abstracts of pension records that were originally on file at the old Pension Bureau in Washington, D.C., including soldiers' and widows' applications, bounty land warrants, and rejected pension applications. Packed with information--much of it deriving from affidavits provided by friends and relatives in support of the veteran's application for a pension--the abstracts include some or all of the following data: name of pension applicant, place and date of birth, age, dates of enlistment and discharge, service record (sometimes very detailed but always interesting), place of residence before and after service, distinguishing characteristics, name of spouse, date of marriage, names of children, and names of parents and other family members. Technological advances notwithstanding, nowhere else can the researcher find so much information so quickly on Fairfield's Revolutionary War pensioners.

In addition to the pension abstracts, this work also contains an exhaustive collection of muster rolls of Fairfield soldiers in the militia and Continental Army. Roll by roll, Fairfield men are identified by name, rank, and dates of enlistment and discharge, and occasionally by other details such as company, regiment, engagements, injuries, and pay. With references to about 7,500 individuals, the muster rolls and pension abstracts give a comprehensive picture of Fairfield's contribution to the war effort. Both sections of the book are completely indexed, with soldiers set off in a separate index.

Readers may be surprised to learn that this work was originally published in 1932 as Volume III of Donald Lines Jacobus' History and Genealogy of the Families of Old Fairfield. Unlike the first two volumes of that famous compendium, however, it has never been reprinted. Not a compendium of family histories but a collection of source records, it stands completely independent of the first two volumes and is available now as a separate and distinct contribution to Revolutionary War genealogy.

This CD contains a massive amount of information easily searched from the software on the disk. The over fourteen thousand pages contain enough facts and information to keep me busy for a long time to come. If you have roots in Connecticut prior to 1850 I would definitely recommend this CD.

I liked the first two Dr. Risk books very much and kept waiting ... and waiting ... for another. Then I decided to do a search and, shazam, found The Risk of Fortune. Lucky me. Good for Bob Berger for having sufficient faith in both his character and his writing talent to go the print-on-demand route.

Publishing has become a crazy business and too often authors rise or fall on computer numbers. In recent years any number of good writers have gone the way of the dodo bird because of those computer numbers. And that's a pity, because someone as good as Bob Berger deserves to be read.

Risk of Fortune deals with the pithy issue of Indian-owned gambling establishments. In this outing, the Bearforest Casino stands in for the thinly disguised Foxwoods in Connecticut. And James Denny's dad has a bit of a gambling addiction, which brings James --aka Dr. Risk -- to the rescue. In an effort to regain a big chunk of his parents' pension funds, which Dad has blackjacked away, Dr. Risk signs on with the casino to determine the who and why of the recent murders of two Pelard natives. In a tribe with only 350 members, two violent deaths represent a significant reduction in their number.

Dealing with the much-discussed issue of the morality of native-owned gambling establishments, of gambling addiction (and its effects on the family), Berger writes with gentle good humor; spare prose and a scary cast of villains (bikers, white supremacists) along with a fine feel for pacing add up to a very entertaining narrative.
Highly recommended.

This is a great read which should be of interest to several audiences:
-- If you're paddling/touring along the Connecticut River in NH/VT.
-- If you're car camping or inn hopping along the Connecticut.
-- If you're thinking about river running part or all of the Connecticut.
-- If you're interested in fishing along the Connecticut.

Author travels the Connecticut River from source to sea mostly by canoe, some kayak segments and a few powerboat trips. This is not a continuous river trip -- he does it in segments over time, but he does indeed cover essentially the entire river.

If you're planning a trip on the Connecticut this will inspire you and it serves as a good companion to the Connecticut River Boating Guide:
The Connecticut River Boating Guide, 3rd: Source to Sea (Falcon Guide)

"... a great pleasure to read, even if you're not looking for a place to stay. You can feel the authors were bent on romance... not just filling up the book. Accommodations are described in charming detail, also meals, with the occasional recipe. If you contemplate a getaway in new England, this is the book to take along." Travel Writer Marketletter

"[The] captivating prose invokes the spirit and visual appeal of the places described. [The book] provides perfect fodder for couples [and is] an indispensable planning assistant." About.com

"Where to eat, where to stay and what to do are covered. The Foulkes also throw in tidbits such as tasty regional recipes, a bit of poetry by Emerson and a love letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne." Chicago Daily Herald

This is far more comprehensive than other books in this area -- it's well written and the layout made it easy and a pleasure to read. The recipes and maps made it practical and much more interesting than a typical travel book.

A selection of recommended inns, delightful restaurants, resorts, festivals, the best places to stroll together under the stars or have a secluded champagne picnic - the most romantic places. This book visits special spots in in Maine, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire and Vermont. Each place has been carefully selected, making sure that it offers something special - in-room fireplaces, four-poster beds, Jacuzzis, enchanting gardens, five-star cuisine.

Hi

I'm using my boyfriends login, but I wanted to say what a great job Cindy did with this book. It shows that she put a lot of time and effort in research, with so many great little stories about life in Salem past!! For anyone who enjoys a look back in time, when things were a lot simpler, this is the book for you!! Cindy is amazing in the way she is able to tell a story, with great pictures to boot!! It is with good reason that she was chosen as President of the Salem Historical Society!! Books like her's should be required reading in classrooms, as well as a great way to spend a cold Connecticut evening!!

Nancy

A wonderful Jack London classic. Beautifully illustrated with the colorful artwork of Fletcher Martin. A great introduction by Edmund Gilligan. This oversized book, with heavy cloth boards and green illustrative graphics and gold lettering, is a great addition to any classic library collection.