United States Books

Steinway pianos are my favorite. Being that I am a professional country/blues pianist, if I can't play a Steinway, I would rather not play! James Barron wrote an historical account of the making of a Steinway. The piano is still made the way they started since the 1800's. No assembly line, no plastic parts, and no artificial wood. They are constructed by hand and skilled craftsmanship.

Why buy a $400.00 piano made in China? That is an insult not only to beginning and professional pianists, but an insult to the piano itself. In 2000, the piano celebrated it's 300th anniversary. Piano is the most famous house hold instrument.

This book is enjoyable, and educational even to those who do not play, but love to hear the glorious 88 keys hitting the strings. The harpsichord was a for runner of the piano. The difference was, you may beat the keys as hard as you can, but you still only received one level of sound. Strings were plucked, and the piano was made for the hammers to hit the strings. The harder you played, the louder a piano sounded. The piano changed the history of the world. I think two of the greatest pianist is Floyd Cramer, and Roger Williams.

Steinway takes you deep into the heart of their factory, and shows you how a piano is meant to be built and played. The history is fascinating.

K-0862 became a living...feeling...emotional entity by the end of this book........A very very original idea (to breath life into this piano) and well written. Actually EXTREMELY WELL WRITTEN book...My NEW favorite among all books...right up there with OVER THE EDGE OF THE WORLD......... The two most enjoyable....... educational........ books I have ever read!!!!!! KUDOS!!!!!!! I hated when i got to the end of this one!!!!!!

I took my copy of "Piano: The Making of a Steinway Concert Grand" to the beach with me. I read it in 4 days! Mr. Barron infuses a wealth of information into a wonderful story about this piano,and oh so much more. Before you know it K-0862 is a character you care about. I cannot imagine anyone not finding something to love about this book!!! Masterfully written!

The writing style is very engaging and readable. It is more about the people who build the pianos and the history of Steinway than it is about building a piano, but still a nice read.

After reading this you might be interested in: The Violin Maker: Finding a Centuries-Old Tradition in a Brooklyn Workshop by John Marchese, and then perhaps Guitar: An American Life by Tim Brookes (these two books a longer and more detailed then Piano but are similarly styled).

Excellently and diligently written, this little book tells the story of one Steinway concert grand piano from conception to adolescence. Barron loves the piano, respects the Company, and is dilgent in showing the evolution of Steinway, as well as the creation of one, new opus - a 9 foot concert piano. Barron introduces us to the barons of Steinway and the individual craftsmen who hand make these excellent instruments. To me, the quality and individual character of each Steinway piano are no longer a mystery.

Each time I play my own small grand piano (a quality A B Chase, close replica of the Steinway model S), I think of the efforts that went into it. Unlike Yamahas and such, the Steinway is an almost hand-built piano from a Company which has never relented in its determination to produce the best.

The book also explains why age is not all that becoming in the tonal life of a piano. The instrument has a birth, a development, and an aging process which are measured in tonal character progress, not just years. The aged Steiway seems a time integral of all that has come before - including hundred year old designs and techniques, and all the way up to its last tuning.

If you think a piano is a piano, is a piano, Barron's book will change your outlook.

great for the price and wow very fast shipping very easy to use. If you travel alot get this atlas.

This is a road atlas that has everything I was looking for. I'm glad I bought it and know I will use it for years to come.

Best map of USA I have ever seen. Very up-to-date. Tons of information. This map is a must have for USA trips...

You won't need to worry about getting lost with this in your car!! Wonderful detail. We went from NH to Florida and back without any problems!

This isn't your father's road atlas! This one has RADICAL streets, AWESOME rivers, and COOOOL lakes represented in TOTALLY TUBULAR drop-down 2-D! I should warn you that you may LITERALLY BURST INTO FLAMES when you note the 6 - 6!!!! - main thoroughfares out of Gettysburg, PA. That is but one moment of potential spontaneous human combustion in the Northeast. Do not look at panel A-4 on the Vermont map, WHATEVER YOU DO!!!!

The perfect size to place in your rucksack in your cross-country trek, the Rand McNally Road Atlas will give you much "G Love". By which I mean that you will be grody to the max and will blind multiple people with science. Science. The sweet science of geography.

I wish all college students would read this book. Provides insights and truths about the real world of work. Great examples of individuals who have navigated the world of work, and struggled with their careers. How do people decide on careers, is it okay to change, what if I'm not certain about what I want to do, what if I don't like what I'm doing. This could save many students a great deal of frustration when sorting out their career plans.

Others have written good reviews so I'll keep mine short. This is an excellent book, in part because it's very readable (you don't feel you're being lectured). Also, the lion's share of the book is personal stories of Liberal Arts grads finding their way into career paths, with plenty of ups and downs. If experience is the best teacher, this book gives you the benefit of 30 other people's experience. Highly recommended!

As a sophomore in college, I'm almost to the point of entering the "real world." But instead of feeling unprepared and anxious about this process, I am actually looking forward to it. This is entirely due to Smart Moves, and I cannot even begin to emphasize how much this book has already helped me - even though I'm still 2 1/2 years from graduation!
What really makes this book a pleasure to read is it's format. At the beginning are extraordinarly helpful pieces of advice on what to do in and once you graduate from college. Next, the book goes on to provide real-world examples of people who are enjoying their careers in just about every major field. Smart Moves chronicles their stories while not only including their successes, but their mistakes as well.
At home, my mom and my 17 year old brother looked through the book while it was laying down on the coffee table. They both loved it. Here is what my mom had to say:


"Your purpose in life is not to find yourself...it is to create yourself."
My son, a student at Duke University, received this book from the University the summer between his freshman and sophomore years. He asked me to read it, and I was delighted to find it offered, through biographical examples, some truisms that we had been trying to explain to him.

1. Follow your passion; your happiness and enthusiasm will attract the money you need to survive.
2. Be willing to work hard.
3. It doesn't always matter what you major in, there is a good chance you will change careers several times in your life.
4. Every job you have will teach you something about yourself and give you the experience to make yourself available for the next opportunity.
5. Remain open and flexible.
6. Remain curious and research-oriented.
7. Use your summers between school years to take internships or volunteer in the areas of your interest.
8. Explore the career counseling center early during your undergraduate years.

I felt the lively and entertaining writing style of the authors, Sheila Curran and Suzanne Greenwald, made this book a fun and informative read for both undergraduate students and their families.

Beth Zarian, author, Around the World with Historical Fiction and Folktales.


Once again, I'd recommend Smart Moves to anyone who has an open mind!
-Paul Zarian

A refreshing and timely read for every recent college graduate. Curran helps job-seekers (and their parents!) understand the challenges - sychological, cultural & socio-economic - facing every graduating liberal arts major. Her years of experience counseling the best and brightest of the country's youth has taught her a simple truth - happiness is in doing what you love to do.

What's so fascinating is the complete relevance it has to the day-to-day decisions that my 22-30 year-old peers are making every day. I can't tell you how many times I have felt compelled to share the "Smartest Moves" chapter with colleagues who find themselves "disenchanted,"
"disengaged," or otherwise, with their current career path.

Every college graduate should read this book - and so should their parents.

A college sophomore at Duke University, NC, I received a copy of 'Smart Moves' over the summer, at a time when I was extremely confused over which major I should choose, which career path I should follow etc. That was, until I received this book.
Through the stories of 23 other students, all ranging in a wide variety of careers and fields, I have realized that the next 3 years of my life will be about finding out what my passions are and where my interests for the future lie, rather than about working my way towards a preordained career goal on a predetermined path which I might regret later on in life. Several of my course selections and internship plans are now being reinforced after reading this book.
Smart moves has been a really useful eye-opener and myth buster for me, and I highly recommended to all students in liberal arts colleges, regardless of whether they were in a similar position as I was in or not. Read this book, and you would have made your first of many smart moves.

I read the book SOG, and as with any book relating true life war stories, you try to picture in your mind the people, surroundings and the enemy as they saw it. A Photo History, brought all of this to life for me. Excellent Book !!!

Back in 1997 I picked up a copy of SOG by Major Plaster and quickly became engrossed in the tales within the book that had never before seen the light of day. Later in 2004 came another book, SECRET COMMANDOS, again behind the lines material. But in between these two books came the real blockbuster: SOG--A Photo History of the Secret Wars.

I'm an ex-vietnam era serviceman, early Vietnam being out by 1967, and could not believe the wealth of intel within these three books, much of which was totally new to me. The later SOG book has over 700 photos giving a photo or more to almost every page. The value of this book is not something that can easily be put into words, and with most of these heroic men never coming back, the years have not taken the edge off that. If not for Major Plaster these men would have never gotten much recognition at all. That in itself is not right, but they one and all did their duty to their country and not for a handful of tin medals.

I have many history books on my shelves, some on Vietnam, but I can think of none that I would not part with other than John Plaster's books. These three books burn the secret wars and its warriors into your memory, and at times it defies belief the character of these men.

To read any of these books is to be proud of these men and yet humbled at the same time by their sacrifices. As Admiral Tarrant asks at ending of James A. Michener's THE BRIDGES AT TOKO-RI, "Where do we get such men?"

Semper Fi.

A fantastic book for anyone interested in MACV-SOG and Special forces recon teams. This is the biggest collection of photos I have seen regarding SOG and recon teams. The book is very well done.This is where the Vietnam war was really fought, across the fence.This is a major piece of history that was never really documented and the truth needs to be available to all who have misconceptions and untruths about the Vietnam conflict. These men in special forces are legends. A tribute to those who served on recon teams and most of all those who did not make it back.

This is an incredible book, perfect companion to the other John Plaster books:
"SOG: The Secret Wars of America's Commandos in Vietnam" & "Secret Commandos: Behind Enemy Lines with the Elite Warriors of SOG".
The pictures have great historical value.

This book tells the story of secret ("black") military operations run by the United States during the Vietnam War. Under the name Studies and Observations Group (SOG), the secret was kept so well that few veterans ever heard of it until long after the war.

It was composed purely of volunteers from the best of the American military, including Army Special Forces and Navy SEALs. Their missions involved going behind enemy lines in Laos, Cambodia and North Vietnam, areas officially off limits to US ground troops. That's why all of their missions were classified.

The North Vietnamese went to great lengths to keep the Ho Chi Minh Trail open at all times. Special military units, stationed from one end to the other, had the task of maintaining and defending a 20-30 mile stretch. If the US bombed a particular area one day, it would be fixed and open the very next day as if nothing happened.

The task of a SOG team could be practically anything, from prisoner snatching, to confirming something seen in aerial reconaissance to placing sensors on a road to give Intelligence an idea as to the traffic level. Every mission was meticulously planned and rehearsed. From the moment they were on the ground behind enemy lines, the team members could assume that the enemy was seconds, or minutes, away. A number of teams made it out safely (the only escape route was by air), but they had to shoot their way out. Some teams were never heard from again.

Since their missions were secret, nothing the soldiers wore or carried could be traced to America. There were no dogtags, no obviously American uniforms, and, in many cases, their weapons were foreign modified weapons.

This book also profiles the people who risked their lives day after day. To most people, they wer just American soldiers who served in Vietnam, but, to those who were there, the following names are practically legend: Larry Thorne, Billy Waugh, Walter Shumate, Jerry "Mad Dog" Shriver and Dick Meadows.

When SOG was disbanded in 1972, all the photo files were ordered destroyed. The interesting thing about this book is that the several hundred photos here are not the "official" photos. The photos were taken by the men who were there and kept in trunks and shoeboxes for many years. The author also knows something about SOG, having been a three-tour veteran.

For military historians and those interested in special operations, this book is a requirement. For the rest of us, this is a fascinating look at an unknown part of the Vietnam War. It is highly recommended.

I am starting a small business and have read many of the books on the market for my startup. This by far has been the most helpful. The book is clear and concise on the basics you need to start a business. The Sloan brothers have a great sense of humor and their writing is enjoyable on a subject that at times can be a little dry. Their section on writing a life plan is something I have not read about anywhere else. Very helpful!! Great job guys, I have joined Startup Nation and listen to the podcast now. I give this a top recommendation for anyone starting or thinking of starting a business.

This was a really good book, an easy read. It does a great job outlining how to get yourself prioritized if you're ready to jump off the high dive into the world of owning your own business.

Other than that, they leave it up to you to make that final step off the diving board but with lots of support! I especially loved the web site that is a huge reference to the book. Lots of real personal stories of success and tips.

I was introduced to Startup Nation via the Microsoft Small Business site.
Incorporated in the site was an extract, which I downloaded,of the Sloan brothers new book. Once I read the extract I was hooked.

The Sloan brothers refreshingly simple view point in relation to e-commerce made a novice feel that anything could be achieved. Their advice - excellent!! I recommend that anyone starting an online business buy this book. It's worth every dollar or pound.

Super book....very informative. I didn't even get to finish it as I had a friend beg it off of me. He loved it as well. Good investment.

The book was very inspirational and gave a lot of useful information on how to go about starting up a business, expectations, and how to plan and prepare. I liked the entrepreneurial stories woven throughout the book. However, I was expecting to read more about forming a business plan. I know there is not a one size fits all, but I was looking for some actual examples.

Swami Kriyananda is a modern renaissance man, and in "Swami Kriyananda: As We Have Known Him" tells of author Asha Praver's nearly four decades of experience with Swami Kriyananda, a spectacular man who has written over eighty books and composed over three hundred pieces of music, all while being viewed as one of the leading lights in the spiritual world today as the last living direct disciple of the great master of yoga, Paramhansa Yogananda. "Swami Kriyananda: As We Have Known Him" is enthusiastically recommended across the board for spirituality, religion, and biography community library shelves alike and anyone who just wants to learn more about such a great man.

I received my book Swami Kriyananda: As We Have Known Him through a book club. I picked the book up at home just to glance at the beautiful cover and skim what was inside. Time just flew by. One hour later I was still reading and feeling very inspired. The stories shared about Kriyananda's life not only uplift and inspire but make you feel you have been touched by the life of a saint.

When I first began to read this book, I was surprised by a joyful feeling, coming from nowhere and everywhere, that seemed to wash over me. It was a strong experience; perhaps the most intense I've ever had from reading a book.

It was so pronounced that, a friend, walking by at that moment, gave me a curious look, as if to say, "What on earth has got into you?"

The stories in this book are very special: some are humorous, some are profound, some excel in giving us an example to model our lives on, but they are all inspiring. This is a good book not only for someone interested in Swami Kriyananda, or in disciples of Paramhansa Yogananda, but also for anyone who would like to know what it is like to be with a saint.

The book is well written, and, because of its short-story format, is something that you can benefit from reading even if you only have a few minutes. A warning, though: I found it easy to pick up and hard to put down.

If you listen to his talks, or read his books, Swami Kriyananda seems like almost a normal person: wise, intelligent, clear, and kind, but not *that* different from everyone else.

This book gives another perspective! It can give you an experience of what it is like to be with a great lover of God, as it seemed to give me the first time I read it. Having met Swami Kriyananda, I can say: he is a step above anyone else I have ever known.

If you long to know what it takes to be a true saint and how one lives his life, this book is the key to that understanding. One such as Swami Kriyananda never speaks openly about himself but always draws the listener's attention and devotion to God and his guru, Paramhansa Yogananda. It is therefore, incumbent upon those who have lived closest to him to reveal to others the sanctity of his life. Asha Praver has done a remarkable job of revealing, through the stories of many who have lived close to Kriyananda, what his life of discipleship to God and Guru has been like. The writing is done with clarity and great sensitivity, appealing to both the mind and the heart. If you are sincerely longing to know the truth of life, this book can shed light on one who has found truth and has spent his life sharing it with others. The only challenge I had with the book is that it ended too soon. I hope that others of its caliber will follow!

I found the lecture 'new agey' and boring!
from the book:
p. 316: "Except for Swamiji's voice, the room was silent, the audience spellbound, hanging on his every word. Suddenly, the inward mood was shattered by the ringing of a telephone. ... Sternly, Swamiji asked that the phone be turned off. ... Still the ringing persisted. `Would someone please do something about this matter?' Swamiji said again. Then, with a look of sudden comprehension, he reached into his own pocket. `Oh!', he said, `It is my phone.'
......SO MUCH FOR HIS INTUITION IN THIS PARTICULAR SITUATION!!!!!!

The Swamp is fascinating, relevant, timely, and compelling. It's not just a scientific study of the Everglades but a history of Florida. It's a must read for any Florida resident or anyone with an interest in the Everglades but anyone with an interest in ecology or American history should also enjoy it.

Unlike the broad and shallow Everglades, "The Swamp", by Michael Grunwald, is broad but deep. In a manner that is horrifying, entertaining, and informative, the story is broad, comprehensively covering almost the geologic origins of the southern end of the Florida peninsular through to the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan, aka the Compromised Everglades Replacement Plot, aka CERP. At the same time there is a tremendous depth, from the lowest, basest greed of man, up to the loftiest and most selfless of man's ideals. Some goals for draining the swamp, such as creating arable land for food, shelter and the pursuit of the American dream, appear to be good, even if the plans and programs to achieve the goals are ill conceived, poorly planned and inadequately implemented. Most sides of the issues are treated with sensitivity, understanding and in a equitable manner. While a sad tale of man's relationship to the environment, some hope is presented. For the hope to blossom into actuality you need to read this book and act to avoid the mistakes of the past and make progress to the achievement of a sustainable planet for all of us now, and for our future generations. The Swamp is one really big canary-in-cage-in-a coal-mine.

The information contained the book will allow any reader to develop a comprehensive understanding of the historic and current circumstances affecting the everglades national park ecosystem health. It is also entertaining, a fun read.

Grunwald is a captivating author. The Swamp takes time to digest because it is rich in history but it's well worth it. It's interesting to see how history repeats itself.

The Swamp: The Everglades, Florida, and the Politics of Paradise

Once dismissed as a dismal swamp fit only for alligators, snakes, flamingos and Indians, the Everglades has become a battle ground in Florida's continuing tension between development and conservation.

In "The Swamp: The Everglades, Florida, and the Politics of Paradise," Michael Grunwald writes a well-researched and fluently written history of America's unique ecosystem. The United States bought Florida from Spain for $5 million. A hundred years later, nearly $8 billion was proposed for a comprehensive development and restoration plan for the Everglades that has yet to be completed.
Along the way, a cast of colorful characters influenced the story, including Henry Flagler, John D. Rockefeller's partner and the builder of the "impossible' railroad from Palm Beach to Key West; Spencer Holland, Governor Napoleon Bonaparte Broward, and environmental secretaries from several administrations.
There were villains: "Big Sugar" and other agricultural interests that wanted to dump (and still do) their wastes in the headwaters of the Everglades; the railroads, which consumed rights of way as political payoffs; and the "Plumers," - hunters who almost exterminated Florida's native birds so wealthy women could wear feathers in their hats. Andrew Jackson's administration fought three wars of attrition against the Seminoles in what was America's first Vietnam. And there were heroes and heroines: Marjory Stoneman Douglas, who started out writing public relations pieces for developers and ended up in her `nineties and beyond as "The Mother of the Everglades"; and Ernest Coe, another visionary environmentalist.

The Everglades, and a proposed Jetport within it, influenced the outcome of the 2000 presidential election. It has pitted the powerful sugar industry against environmentalists, but also forged strange political alliances including that of lobbyists for U.S. Sugar and the Sierra Club. Grunwald, a political writer for the Washington Post, interviewed dozens of current and former political leaders to get an insider's picture of the wheeling, dealing, and chicanery that went into the 2000 Florida presidential election in which Al Gore, the Nobel Prize winning environmental champion, found himself on the wrong side of the environmental fence.

In summary, Grunwald has done a yeoman job in compiling this important book based on extensive journalistic and historical research.

-- 30 --
Postscript

"Florida buys Big Sugar" In the July 7, 2008 TIME Magazine, Michael Grunwald writes that the administration of Florida Governor Charlie Crist has made an offer to buy the US Sugar Corporation,including over 180,000 acres in the northern Everglades drainage area, for $1.75 Billion. Grunwald notes that what Crist's deal can do is "change the political ecosystem." He adds "by essentially bribing US Sugar out of business, Crist not only frees up its land but also eliminates an implacable obstacle to restoration."
(Hopefully, similar arrangements can be reached in other states where agribusiness threatens the economy --timber, railroads,chemicals, and so forth)

This book is also one of the best books I've ever read. I've read most or all of Rosemonds books and I've seen him speak at two seminars in my area. I have a 14 year old and this book was full of great information. I wish, however, that I had read this book a couple of years ago. I'm now backtracking some with him but still trying to implement the ways Rosemond says to dicipline. It has lots of relatable stories from people he talks to. I mostly thought he was talking about our family in all the different stories. A very easy read and full of wise information.

I have mastered baby proofing, now I don't need it. Teen proofing? Please, I need help with that!! I only wish I had picked this up about a year ago, my younger children will benefit. There were a few principals here that really changed my way of looking at things. Number one: the difference between self esteem and self respect. That is profound, really. I had not looked at it in that way and it is really a powerful difference with the potential to impact children's lives. Second: not making a scene and trying to force the teen to do as I say, but staying calm and applying suitable consequences (that impact them and not ME) which are not necessarily immediate. The checkmate move, which I've already used is good. Finally, letting the teen have the last word, allowing them to express their anger without joining in, is effective. I have already used the phrase, "I know you hate me right now, I don't blame you at all, I'd be angry if I were you too", without feeling like I have to give in to keep my child from hating me for ever. I had already bought into the idea that too many parents spend their time "serving" their children and not making the transition in toddlerhood from servitude to a helpless infant, to "now I'm in charge and you will listen to me". He has been criticized for being a bit harsh but I think that these principals can be applied with love, and in fact, when I look back on my teen years, that's the way my parents did it.

Whether you buy this book new or used...or borrow it from the library, just read it. You will be pleasantly surprised at how much more pleasant the prospect and actual raising of your teen/s can be.

Just realizing no matter what you do or don't do, they still have minds of their own...is priceless.

Any of his books has the same basic information and applies to all ages...yes, even grown children, spouses, friends, relatives, coworkers, and yourself.

This one simply has more age specific examples of behavior/consequences. The book more than pays for itself.

This is a fantastic book with great idea's. My wife and I are going to implement many if not all of the idea's that are suggested. They all seem like they will be highly effective and will handle many of the problems we are or will be facing.

I really enjoyed reading this book. It is a no-nonsense guide to effective but fair discipline. The humorous writing style also helps make it an entertaining read. I have already begun to adjust my attitude in approaching my 13 year old, and the results are good. I could live without the Christian references in the book, but the author does give a nod to other beliefs as well.

Coach Wooden is the Monet of coaching. His philosophy and work ethic, both as a player and a coach, are unparalled. This book will instruct anyone on how to deal with adversity both on the court and in the game of life.

You can't miss with Wooden's thoughts, words and advice. If you're coaching yong people, he hits home lessons that every player and coach should know and understand. Even if you're just a parent or someone's business supervisor, read this book to learn how to better deal with and motivate those who rely on you for leadership. Don't let the coach down and pass these wonerful skills on to the next generation. Wooden's vision will live long past his coaching days. Find out all about it right here.

I purchased this book as part of a Ph.D. level class as a lesson in leadership. Coach Wooden shows his ability to lead and educate through his expertise in the fundamentals and the basics. He demonstrates his ability to change tactics and styles with different individuals, which is essential in good,effective leaders. I would recommend this book on several levels. At face value, it is an exceptional story about an exceptional coach and man. At a deeper level, I think it portrays a good example of how to lead and and how to set an example for those you are trying to lead.

Excellent book examining the life , philosophy and thoughts behind a great coach. Not just about basketball but good for anyone coaching any sport or anyone wanting insight to a great life.

John Wooden is perhaps America's greatest coach. His UCLA basketball team won ten national championships, including seven in a row. Concomitant with winning was his insistence on character and virtue rather than getting caught up with results.

This autobiography is a fascinating glimpse into Wooden's extraordinary life. It chronicles his life as a player (many forget that Wooden was elected to the basketball hall-of-fame as a player and coach), his coaching days (mostly at UCLA), and a little bit about his activities after his retirement. Interspersed in all of this are Wooden's coaching philosophy, pictures, box scores of the national championship games, and Wooden's opinion on how to improve the quality of NCAA basketball.

They Call Me Coach is tremendous for any sports fan, especially basketball. It can also be enjoyed by those who enjoy reading about what it takes to achieve success. Wooden was not a dictator, but imparted his insistence on doing one's best to his players with meticulous detail.

TCMC is not a complete autobiography, and it omits many aspects of Wooden's life. It is certainly not a "tell-all" account, nor is it perhaps the best book on articulating Wooden's coaching philosophy. For that I would recommend another of Wooden's books, appropriately titled Wooden. There are also others out there.

They Call Me Coach is a wonderful account of a man who as achieved true life success, and you will enjoy this read regardless of your previous knowledge on Wooden or college basketball.

My wife and I love to go on factory tours and visit company museums when we travel. It's corny, I know, but fun. This book gives wonderful examples of some of the best tours and museums around. Whenever we're going on a road trip, we always consult Watch It Made in the U.S.A.: A Visitor's Guide to the Best Factory Tours and Company Museums (Watch It Made in the USA) to help us decide where we might like to go. I would very much recommend it for families with young kids who might enjoy such tours, and probably retirees who have the time and interest for them, as well.

This is an excellent book for anyone who is interested in things made in the USA. It gives a nice description of the facilities, locations, tour times, cost and lengths, age appropriateness, and phone numbers.
We like to travel the country and will use the information to plan our trips. The book is well organized and very helpful.

This is my first review in Amazon.

I am always curious about how things are made,
and after watching many episodes of "How do they do it",
and "How it's made" on discovery Channel.
I started to look for extra resources for a better understanding on these "behind the scenes" mysteries.
Then, I found this book.
And this book is a real treasure!
The book is well organized,
It provides many detail information about the factory tours,
and the brief background of the companies.

Thanks to this book,
now I have some itineraries in mind.
I plan to visit KitchenAid's factory in the near future for my mom.
(My family is in Taiwan)
She is a big fan of KitchenAid mixer. ha.
I will also visit Airstream company as well,
Owning a travel trailer is my dream, and I want to know how it is made,
And I will be more determined to realize this dream!
Maybe one day I will write a similar book "Watch it made in Taiwan" in a mobile trailer office. Who knows?!

Great book, I did not know that a book like this existed. Will definitly come in handy when planning trips. Checked information on places we have already been and information was accurate.

I'm planning to take my two teenagers cross country this summer and this is a GREAT book for finding interesting places to show them. It has excellent maps, clear directions, and well-written descriptions of what you will (and won't) see so I can figure out what sites will best entertain the different family members. I only wish we had time to see more of the places they describe. It even tells you what other nearby attractions there are. Kudos to the authors!