Idaho Books

In the litany of Northwest coast history little has been written about women in the marine environment. This is unfortunate considering the vastness of the coastal waters within which women have operated for years: there are over 800 miles of coastline that stretch from Puget Sound in the south to Prince William Sound in the north. One probable reason for omission is that the realm of the marine environment is "other worldly," "out there," and consequently eludes our focus. Another is the notion that women are naturally more connected to the earth/shore than are men; a fallacy rooted in a patriarchal world-view and one that has limited serious research of women at sea. "Women's literature remains poised at the edge of the water," Pagh writes, "and has not come much closer in this century, to exploring women's real experiences in marine environments." In her book, At Home Afloat, Nancy Pagh rectifies all of that as she examines the roles of women traveling the coastal waters of the Northwest coast. With her careful consideration of travel accounts penned by women marine tourists between 1861 and 1990, Pagh analyzes the spaces that women have occupied on boats and the language they have used to describe their experiences, the natural environment, and their contact with First Nations people.

Her thesis is centered in the ideology of the home. The notion that a woman's place is in the home tends to shape the expectations and assumptions of both women and men regarding the interests and abilities of women on the water. When women step aboard a boat, Pagh notes, power becomes an issue. Traditionally women entered a vessel through the sponsorship of a man and once aboard, operated within a number of limitations. Women were domestically defined, they were thought to be bad luck aboard a boat, and they had less working knowledge and experience of the marine environment than the men who sponsored them. For all of these reason's women found themselves confined within a gendered space. The cabin became their space; this was where they produced the food and tools of comfort, this was the space within which they set about making "a home afloat," this was the only area over which women had relative power.

Marine writers also fell prey to the tenet of women's place. Feminine discourse led female tourists to depict themselves in traditional domestic roles, for they could not construct themselves as an authority on events outside the realm of the home. Hence, they were self-deprecating, often apologizing for the deficiencies in their work. Their portrayals of the natural environment were cursory using descriptors such as "lovely" or "noble," whereas the more familiar human environment was offered in specific detail. They brought their Victorian ideals about home and limiting notions of morals and manners when they wrote about First Nations women. Rather than connecting as women and individuals they considered First Nations women to be lacking in morality and feminine subtlety, making them only a facsimile of a "real" woman. Pagh attributes this to the influence of gendered perceptions and gendered language coupled with the distancing effect of local steamship travel which led to the "othering" of First Nations women. It was not until forms of marine tourism evolved allowing longer, closer contact that travel writers moved away from such a limiting focus.

At Home Afloat has filled a gap that has been woefully evident in women's history. Pagh's writing is engaging and sprinkled with quotes from actual travel writings. At Home Afloat does, however, require careful reading as Pagh winds us through the tenets of feminist geography and post-colonial theory. Her interdisciplinary approach in combination with her scholarly research makes At Home Afloat an important treatise to add to the annals of women's history.

Pagh has shown us that there is clearly a need for serious scholarship in addressing the issues and the lives of women who travel, work and live upon our coastal waters. Perhaps the next step is to look at other types of marine experience and the distribution of power. Questions that we might address are: Does the type of vessel and the needs therein create a different distribution of power? Is power shared more equitably when the demands of being at sea require a partnership of workers? What kinds of restraints do women who work in the coastal commercial sector face and how do they broker power? There are many more question to be sure, for this area of research is just beginning.

This guidebook will help you to find each of the National Wildlife Refuges operated by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service, in the Rocky Mountain states. There are a 3-4 pages for each refuge, focusing on its history, directions to get there, opportunities for driving, walking, and bicycling in the refuge, and a discussion of major wildlife species protected by each refuge, as well as some of the political issues surrounding certain refuges. I had hoped for some general information on Rocky Mountain wildlife; the book was not at all helpful for that, and had very few pictures or photgraphs of wildlife, but it did alert me to a refuge along the route of my upcoming vacation. So without the book I would have missed an opportunity for some spectacular wildlife viewing with only a 27-mile detour. The book accomplishes its purpose very well; I gave it only three stars because that purpose is very limited.

This book is an encyclopedia of Colorado River runners. As such it's not as riveting as any number of books out there regarding the many river expeditions mentioned within its covers. Think of this as a quick reference to river runners or a good directory of places to continue your search of Colorado River history.

Roy Webb also wrote a book called "If We Had a Boat" which I found much more enjoyable - as it tells full stories of early Green River runners.

If you're into Colorado River history - this is an important book, if you're just wanting an adventure read, other books would be better.

The format of this series of guides provides for really limited information, just a list of standard information about public campgrounds.

We only looked at three campgrounds from this book, and in all cases the list of information about them had significant errors.

For example, we stayed in space 25 of a campground listed as having 15 spaces; two campgrounds that we drove to were down dirt roads while the book stated that they were down paved roads; one of these was down a completely different road than the book said.

These might seem like nitpicking complaints about insignificant details, but there is nothing in the book but insignificant details.

It was an okay book but baby island was much better.

This book deserves two separate ratings. Five stars for content and 1 star for the mechanics of writing. The message of being healed from past hurts is right on and in line with scripture. The author demonstrates that past hurts can leave a person in shackles, a prisoner of pain and bitterness. The resulting unforgiveness, anger, depression, and problems (such as eating disorders) are as destructive to an individual's life as the abuse that precipitated them. Ms Brown relates four tools for getting through these things. See the truth, Give ones sin in repentence, forgive, and forget. Throughout the text are woven in personal stories and applicable poetry, for a moving and healing experience through this bible study. However the book is horribly written. Nearly every page has typos and grammatical errors. Even the weekly and daily breakdowns for group study are put in wrongly. The problem is so pervasive that it is very distracting, and made it very difficult to finish the book. I have never seen such a poorly written book actually make it into print.

For several summers I carried the first edition (1973) of the Sierra Club Totebook - Hiking the Teton Backcountry. Long ago I misplaced my guidebook, but recently I found a copy at a local library book sale.

Pocket size, low weight, and durability were its key attributes. The trail descriptions were perhaps too concise, but overall it was a useful guide in the 1970s. Today, this out-of-date, little 160-page book is amusing, and may appeal to collectors.

The sections on hiking gear, food, and trail safety illustrate how much has changed. We are advised that a canteen is not essential as running water is plentiful; no mention is made of treating, filtering, or boiling stream and lake water. Terry stitched socks, either cotton or synthetic fibers, are considered more comfortable than heavy wool socks. Long pants of wool or cotton twill are best. A light down jacket is preferable to bulky, wool sweaters. Packs with light weight, magnesium frames are recommended for heavy loads. A good quality goose down sleeping bag will cost $80 or more. Tents should not be viewed as luxury items as tarps offer too little protection in high mountain country. A tough, light weight, nylon poncho coated with plastic resin is highly recommended. A flashlight is essential; no mention is made of headlamps.

The author, Paul Lawrence, mentions trail foods by brand name: Tang, Milkman (a more palatable powered milk), Perma-Pak (a creamy, powered milk product), Granola cereal, Darigold canned butter, Wilson's bacon bars, Wyler's fruit-ades, Mount Logan bread, and Pilot Biscuits. There is a discussion of "today's wide variety of freeze dried entrees". Lawrence recommends Mountain House products. Bleuet butane stoves are easy to use, but white gas stoves like Svea and Optimus are better at low temperatures.

For those looking for a more current guidebook, I suggest Teton Trails - A Guide to the Trails of Grand Teton National Park by Katy Duffy and Darwin Wile. It offers detailed trail descriptions and updated information on hiking gear, backcountry rules and etiquette.

Well done, very good direections to biriding sites and birds. This book makes birding Idaho for a visitor much easier and enjoyable.

I don't live in Idaho Falls, or even Idaho, but I received this as a gift when I visited there, from my brother who knows I like to know the history of wherever I am.
Idaho Falls seemed like an okay enough place, although strewn with ugly, slapped-up developments and strip malls, but this book made it apparent to me that Idaho Falls is a place with a history, a place with much more depth than you could see just by walking or driving through it.
This book tells the story of the town's earliest incarnations as a Wild West boomtown under two other names, tells of its newspapers, and gathers together a lot of really old and interesting photographs.
Most of the photos seemed to come from the local newspaper archives--the book's author was a newspaperman--and I think it would have benefited from a wider array of sources. Also, scattered throughout the book are new, uninteresting photos that just felt like filler.
For a resident of Idaho Falls, I would practically insist that you buy this book. It will open your eyes.
For anyone else, however, this book--at least to some degree--fails to make Idaho Falls seem like a place that should matter to the rest of the world. But I suppose that's okay.
It's a local history, and for what it is, it's pretty good.

Really injoyed the book even though it's dated and a lot of the sites are now completely gone, it was of great value to find many are still intact.