Arizona Books

This book is a really great book about an astronaught turned CIA agent, David Rogers, and his mission to find out who at Jamison Enterprises is selling missleguiding microchips to the middle east. These mission sends him to the small town of Amen, Arizona to teach at Alma Elementary school to spy on the librarian Libby James a.k.a. Elisabeth Jamison, a very very wealthy buisness woman who has returned to Amen after her parents death. I really liked this book because it kept me interested and guessing who the murderer and traitor to the U.S. was. I finally figured it out when they say that Karlton Fisk dies. I would recommend this book to you no matter who you are!

I just received this book as a surprise birthday gift. I borrowed my sister's copy and just loved it. Libby and David are great characters. I'm so glad I have my own copy now and can't wait to continue collecting Kerry Blair's books. I've read most of them and love them all!

This book is funny, romantic, suspenseful and a real page turner. It is also nice to have a book that a person with religious values can read and enjoy. I had a hard time putting it down!

This is just a really good and encapturing book. One of the funniest things I've ever read. It follows David Rogers, and astronaut turned CIA agent, and his journey to Amen, Arizona where he is to find out all he can about the elementary librarian Libby James. In truth Libby James is really Elisabeth Jamison, a rich successful business woman who has inexplicably moved to Amen after her parents death in a car accident. Rogers is sent to investigate her and gather evidence against her so the CIA can arrest her for laundering money and such into foreign terrorist camps. Rogers soon finds out however that it's not Libby who's doing and decides, after falling in love with her, to prove her innocence and catch the real bad guy. This book is great fun to read aloud and hilariously entertaining. I would recommend this book to anyone enjoys a good laugh and plot.

I'm not a big reader of novels but I couldn't put this one down. The characters are so well developed that you feel you know them. The plot is complete, no loose pieces or stray leads, and it keeps you on your toes figuring out whodunit. A very satisfying read!

Mixing the high-culture art scene of Scottsdale, Arizona with the gristly hard-boiled detective genre, this book gives a reader the best of both worlds. The result is a great read that offers insights into art and life.

The book's punning title is the first tipoff that you'll be alternating mentally between the sculptures of "Art" Russo and the delightful family-centered style of Detective Tony Brannigan--when you get Tony you also get his family. Author Michele Stapley -- a noted Arizona artist in her own right, and whose painting adorns the cover -- wastes no time with flowery descriptions of Arizona sunsets. She likes to get right into the action, then captivates the reader with crisp dialogue and well-placed clues. Where 'The Da Vinci Codes' spins a fanciful historical/theological background to the real time mystery, Stapely's action is firmly embedded in the present tense, but is no less fascinating.

While mystery lovers in general will find it hard to put down, anyone with even the slightest interest in the modern art world or in Arizona, for that matter, would be crazy not to pick this gem up.

I was asked initially to review this book. However the reading of it propelled me at such pace that I found myself much more interested in the story and its backdrop than in my critique of it.

It is a shame that the cover of this book, a painting by the author herself, is not depicted on this site, for the cover surpasses anything I've seen in a mystery novel. If you must judge a book by it's cover, you will not go wrong here.

As an established painter, the author has a naturalness for description. Every scene is painted with a balance of subject matter and detail, totally avoiding the excessiveness in which so many authors seem to indulge. Stapley leaves her readers free to flow with the story, use their own imaginations, and bury themselves in a most enjoyable read.

A few of her characters might have been more fully fleshed out, but this is minor criticism. It is difficult in a novel of this size to show complexity in all the characters. As far her main characters are concerned, they are very well developed, and I look forward to seeing them again another mystery.

I recommend this this as a great read!

Stapley blends both real and fictional characters into a delightful story. She has created people you love and love to hate. Her writing is tight and a good ending. I loved it all.

This book has the best information of any ghost town book that I have read. I would recommend it highly to anyone interested in learning about the mining camps and people of the old west.

A great book on the subject! The only reason I did not give it five stars is the lack of maps and the antiquity of the maps shown. Otherwise this book is a great source of information!

This book is the most extensive ghost town book I have ever seen or read. I believe the content is well detailed and documented. Though true of many ghost town books, I wonder if Florin's photos illustrate current conditions. Florin does not appear to leave any stone unturned in order to find historical details to compose each town's history in an interesting and many times comicial combination of text and pictures. To the book's detriment, the pictures are horrendous. Many are too contrasty, poorly exposed, and lack detail. I would have rated this book 10 if the photographs complemented the extensive research and text. If you are interested in ghost towns, it would appear that this publication could be a benchmark by which others are judged (exclusive of Florin's apparent lack of photographic expertise)

I have been to many of the locations given in this book. It is almost a shame that some of them are no longer in the same shape as when this book was originally published. I think that the research used by the author to be very accurate and makes for very entertaining reading. When I wish I was out exploring but can't go I pull this book off the shelf and it is as if I am there. The pictures leave a little to be desired but that adds to the mystery of the ghost town being described. I highly recommend this book for anyone who wants a thorough guide to western ghost towns. Well worth the cost of the book.

I have read this book and enjoyed it immensely. John Duncklee tells a simple tale, woven in his own unique manner, speaking eloquently of the early days in Arizona/Sonora territory. Thank you for such a vivid and realisitic approach: Even kids from New York can become the kindest of Cowboys.

Ranchers are not the mythic figures that cowboys became as the cattle industry spread across the American West 100 years ago, and the stories of ranchers make up a smaller part of Western literature. But for readers interested in the business end of raising cattle, there are several good books to entertain their curiosity. This is one of them.

Duncklee, while a young man in his twenties, leased a small ranch south of Tucson for three years during the long drought of the 1950s. This well-written account of that experience, building a herd and keeping it fed and watered, provides a fascinating look into the heart and mind of a rancher, whose intelligence is pitted against a number of challenges: unpredictable weather, less than scrupulous stock buyers, the fluctuating markets for both cattle and feed, the vagaries of government programs, untrustworthy neighbors, and the risk of loss as disease and mischance threaten to make any of his cows a meal for buzzards.

Ths story is told with good humor, intelligence, and some sentiment, and the men whose work lives engage with the author's come to life on the page, especially the 80-year-old vaquero, Chico, who works with him and becomes a dearly loved friend. Also recommended: John Erickson's "Panhandle Cowboy," David McCumber's "The Cowboy Way," and Linda Hasselstrom's "Windbreak: A Woman Rancher on the Northern Plains." Also, for a good history of the cattle industry, read David Dary's "Cowboy Culture: A Saga of Five Centuries."

I actually got more out of my second time through Good Years for the Buzzards because I kept referring to the sketched map of John Dunklee's O Bar J Ranch opposite the preface as I was reading. This is helpful because Dunklee's chief concern in this engaging ranch memoir is the practical problem of managing the O Bar J cattle ranch through the drought of the late 1950's-- the worst period of drought, we learn, in the Southwestern United States in 400 years.

Little rain meant scarce feed for Dunklee's cattle. This confronted Dunklee with the problem of optimizing the forage and water of the harsh desert range to keep his cattle fed and his cowboy dream alive. The trick was keeping his cows on the move to where the forage was, and keeping the precious water flowing from the ranch's two deep wells, the mellifluously named Pozo Hondo and Pacheco wells. Navigating the map gives one a feel for the logistical difficulty of Dunklee's problem.

After studying agriculture in college and adventures serving in the Navy during the Korean War and cowboying for wages in Alberta and Wyoming, Dunklee learned that the O Bar J ranch, two large desert pastures on the slope of the Sierrita Mountain range southwest of Tucson, was up for lease. Dunklee signed a lease in the spring of 1956 and bought the owner's cattle, thus beginning a four year battle with drought, cunning order buyers, thieving neighbors, drunken cowboys, careless hunters and miners, wild heifers, government drought relief scams, and various other crafty characters of all types.

Apart from being an entertaining portrait of the cattle industry in the Arizona border country in the late 50's, the text is a minor classic of applied, or practical operations, versus academic theory. As such the book would be useful as a narrative companion to theoretical texts in university level business, economics, agricultural economics, or business law courses.

After a particularly contentious sale of O Bar J calves pursuant to a contract calling for "weighing the calves at the Southern Pacific yards off the trucks" during which the buyer-because of currently falling prices-tried every trick in the book to shrink the calves before weighing (calves lose weight while being shipped on trucks or standing in corrals with no food or water, costing the seller money), including showing up a half hour late claiming a flat tire and telling the truck drivers to take extra time driving to the stockyard, Dunklee reflects:

"While attending the university I had enrolled in a course called Livestock Marketing taught by the chairman of the department. I remembered how his lectures were straight from the text. Neither professor nor textbook mentioned such things as pencil shrink, finagling order buyers, or Twinkie-eating rodeo-hand truck drivers-probably because the professor had never marketed any cattle."

Dunklee won that battle, however, as the stockyard boss put the cattle in a corral with a trough of water, letting the cattle drink back the lost weight and then some.

"Get those (...)out of that wet corral!" yelled the buyer, seeing too late that his flat tire ruse cost rather than saved him weight.

This memoir deserves a far wider audience than it has heretofore gotten-perhaps a general business audience, as it recounts an informative history of entrepreneurship and risk taking, determination, work, and sound management. As a young cowboy riding for wages, Dunklee had naively believed that the first concern of the rancher was caring for cattle and riding. After leasing the O Bar J, however, Dunklee shortly learned otherwise. During his years managing the ranch, the husbanding of the herd became something of an afterthought to be fit into early mornings, late nights, and spare time, while his primary duties concerned the finances, marketing, contract negotiations, and general wheeling and dealing necessary to keep his operation alive during the drought.

If you were a cow, however, you could have done far worse than being in John Dunklee's herd, as ranching was plainly more than his business, it was a calling-Dunklee was constantly occupied during his tenure at the O Bar J looking after the cows, tending to their health, and working them with the objective of disturbing the herd no more than absolutely necessary. The yielded the result that even during the drought, the average weight of his calf crop increased significantly over the prior owner's. The drought, however, took a toll on the herd in spite of Dunklee's best efforts, and the book contains more than one heartbreaking scene when the buzzards of the title get the upper hand.

Leasing the ranch thrust Dunklee into the actual business of raising cattle, with opportunities and problems in all directions. His first responsibility became making good decisions: To cut his losses and sell the herd, or risk everything in an attempt to outlast the drought? Who to hire? Who to trust? Which calves should be sold at auction? Which cattle should be kept? It was a second education in self reliance, lessons that plainly served Dunklee well in his subsequent careers as a cattle order buyer, college professor, furniture designer, and author-some of the history of which is recounted in the author's other memoir of the U.S./Mexico cattle trade in the early 1960's, Coyotes I Have Known.

It was touch and go at first on the O Bar J, as Dunklee learned his trade and came to understand how truly tough it would be surviving this drought. But he learned on the job, and slowly he gathered the information and skills to tough it out. One summer day in June, 1956, just as Dunklee was beginning to think his situation hopeless, as he was scanning the Arizona Cattlegrowers Weekly Newsletter, sort of a pre-Internet message board used by ranchers for sharing rain reports and tips, he came across a "note from a rancher in the Prescott area which mentioned that he was paying fifty-three dollars a ton for 2:1, including delivery, from Western Cotton Products in Phoenix," far less than the going price of range supplement in Tuscon (2:1 being a type of feed for when there's no forage). The following day Dunklee was in Phoenix checking it out, and when the quoted price turned out to be valid, his mind was made up.

"I was going to fight the drought!" he writes. It's a triumphant moment.

Dunklee's book is moreover an entertaining chronicle of the wild cattle markets of the times, as prices careened up and down in reaction to the drought. He plainly relishes recounting the details of the cattle auctions, contracts, and freewheeling negotiations which were his primary activities as a rancher managing a going concern.

Though raised in New York and New Hampshire, Dunklee writes with the plainspoken, independent voice of the westerner. His prose is direct and spare -plainly a product of self reliant western culture-and at times wryly humorous.

One day Dunklee came across a bull which had become addicted to prickly pear, a cactus plant which slowly and surly kills cows by puncturing their innards, as prickly pear spines don't digest like the spines of cholla cactus. One of the symptoms is really bad, black diarrhea. As Dunklee drove the bull off to auction, a brand new white sports car driven by an impatient young woman pulled up behind the truck, beeping the horn . . . and you can guess what happens next. There's a lot to laugh at in Good Years for the Buzzards -Clearly, John Dunklee was the kind of cowboy who kept his sense of humor no matter the hand he was dealt.

According to Duncklee, the drought of the fifties that affected the entire Southern tier of states and Northern Mexico was good for the buzzards and not much else. Describing one of the greatest challenges a cattleman can face in that manner tells you a lot about the author.

Raised in the East and rocked in the cradle of Ivy League tradition, Duncklee had wanted to be a cowboy since the day his father took him to a rodeo at Madison Square Garden. At the age of 12 he was sent to a private ranch school in Arizona, where he studiously applied himself to helping the neighboring ranchers. Later, he turned his back on Dartmouth, worked his way through college as a horse wrangler, then leased an Arizona ranch in the middle of the Southwest's greatest drought in 400 years.

"Good Years for the Buzzards" is a chronicle of how he maintained his herd during the drought, learned much about the forces of nature, and a great deal about the importance of neighbors.

The author lived his dream of becoming a cowboy and rancher and, evidently, became a fiercely independent individual along the way. He later earned his living by writing and making furniture.

- Gail Cooke

I read the book and I unable to put it down until I finished the book that same day. I was however dissapointed by the fact that I have since then never found a sequel. Such a grand story should evoke at least a dozen franchizes with multiple sequels, the likes of "Star Trek & Star Wars.

Its been years, however, to date I continue to wait faithfully. I have been tempted to request permission to include/collaborate on a sequel to it myself, however, I realize that I would fall short.

I continue to hope that I do not find myself looking for a sequel another ten years from now.

1. I would like to learn more about those humans (cromagnon desendants),
2. The great enemy that defeated them,
3. Any realities where Earth became an advanced space faring civilization.

I need more!

The similarities between this book and "Sliders" are amazing. Even has an advanced neanderthal race bent on multi-dimensional conquest like the Cromags in "Sliders". I wonder if the people who thought up "Sliders" have read this book?

I bought this book used at a public library book sale. Since then it has been one of my all-time favorite books. Time travel, "sliding", warring races - it had elements which I thoroughly enjoyed and shared with my brother who also loves the book. My copy is worn from being read several times over.

A young engineer is embroiled in the machinations of two competing probability traversing cultures- one human , one neanderthal. Utilising his knowledge of our space program he seeks a resolution of the conflict. A fast paced story which competently merges two of the major themes of SF. Much the best of M. McCollum's work. A sequel would be most appreciated, expanding on the linear time travel & truly alien civilisations hinted at towards the end of the story.

Even if you're not interested in hiking, the history herein will fascinate you. And who knows, you may wish to take up hiking as a hobby just to see the places described here!

This is an outstanding hiking book on this area. It brings to life the stories and legends of the Superstitions while giving the hiker step by step instructions to the trails. The photos add to the stories and help the reader with visual images of the characters or trails. One of the best hiking books I have ever read. The format is direct and helps the reader to follow the trails and the related stories. Recommended book for anyone interested in the History of Arizona and the Superstition Mountains. Also an indespensible tool while hiking the Wilderness Areas of the Superstition Mountains. Great Book !!

The trail descriptions are well done. The topographical maps make this book a tool for any hiker. A "History and Legends" segment after each hike adds to the excitement.

This is the best guide to the Superstitions I have found, it has many hikes in it, as well as the lore and legend of the region and all its past inhabitants. The pictures are in black and white, but the trail descriptions are so good, you can visualize it in color! Excellent information about the difficulty ratings, the trailheads, what you might need to take, weather patterns, and lots of info of past denizens of the region and things you might encounter from those times. All of this, along with some of the most interesting terrain available and scenic landmarks, what more could a hiker want. Get the boots and the pack and head out!!

I reviewed several other hiking books on the Grand Canyon and read the trail guides for my selected and reserved trail. This book was the best written and most complete. I would generally say that this book might be the best bet for a good hiking volume for the GC.

While writing my book "The Tortoise Diet - Win The Race To Lose!", an account of my 120 pound weight loss, I bought this book an became interested in hiking in the canyon as a fitness goal. This very informative and well written book helped inspire me to hike in 2005 from the South Rim to Phantom Ranch, and back again the next day. This May (2006) my husband and I are hiking from the South Rim to the North Rim. We will be carrying along our copy of the book to help us appreciate the canyon more as we undertake this huge fitness challenge(my husband is 55 and I am 49.)

I have been hiking Grand Canyon since 1977 with over 9,000 miles below the rim and have hiked all the trails in this guide, in most cases multiple times. This guide has the most detailed descriptions of all canyon hiking guides; maps are more than adequate; nearly all information is up to date. Adkison's writing style is very clear. I especially appreciate his information about plant communities along the routes. This second edition is largely the same as the earlier edition. I am glad to see the addition of a section on cairns. How can this book be improved? Add an index. Looking through the guide I only found a few errors --- Western Union is no longer available inside the park and the Tanner Trail one way distance is not 7 miles but more like 10 miles!

I'm planning a backpacking trip to the Grand Canyon. I've looked at several guidebooks and I've bought bought this book as well as Hiking Grand Canyon National Park, 2nd (Regional Hiking Series) by John Annerino, and Hiking the Grand Canyon's Geology (Hiking Geology) (HTGCG) by Lon Abbott and Teri Cook.

I liked the straightforward and informative approach that Ron Adkinson takes in this book. The Grand Canyon is a big place with a lot of alternatives for trips. I was able figure out which trails I want to take using this book.

I especially like the capsule summary of each route that have clear ratings for the difficulty, water availability, average hiking times, suggested cache points, and distance.

Compared to this book, I found the HTGCG by Lon Abbott and Teri Cook nearly as good but the focus on the geology in HTGCG makes it harder to pull out the hiking information. Though, once your route is chosen, HTGCG, helps you understand what you see.

I bought the book to learn more about Jack's photo sytle and techniques (because I plan to do a workshop with him this Spring), but the book hasn't left our coffee table. Everyone loves it. Big, beautiful photos. If only I could....

My wife and I have lived in Arizona for over 20 years (we're native New Englanders). This book perfectly captures the beauty of our wonderful adopted state. I'll have to buy another copy soon as my son keeps borrowing it!

Jack Dykinga is, in all likelihood, the only photographer to have already won a Pulitzer Prize before finding his photographic calling. That was in Chicago, before his 1976 "leave of absence" to Tucson. Before the "leave" became a "move." Before his switch from B&W film to color transparencies, and from 35mm to 4x5 view cameras. Before the desert got under his skin, along with the writings of Ed Abbey and Everett Ruess. Before Arizona was, as it is now, home.

25 years later, Jack has, in his eighth book, finally produced a large format photographic tribute devoted exclusively to his adopted home state. To Arizona's incredible rock formations, and the incredibly delicate flowers that border them. To the cacti, agave and octillo that abound. To the water, and the areas that are beautiful precisely because they lack water. And, most of all, to light. Most people would count themselves fortunate indeed to witness such moments of ephemeral light on even a handful of occasions. Frozen on these pages, there are dozens.

The 4x5 Arca Swiss and Wista view cameras and Schneider lenses with which Jack works produce tack-sharp images. They also produce very large images, more than 1300% greater than a 35mm chrome or negative. Thus, Jack's photos have been enlarged only minimally in this book, and the effect is stunning. As you initially turn each page while progressing through the book, it will probably be a rainbow with lightning, or a foreground saguaro framing a twin on a distant hill, or a juxtaposition of light and shadow that initially quickens your breath and pauses your hands on any given page. But after pausing, you will linger to marvel at the visible spines on a cactus, the sand grains on a dune, or the individual trees visible in a distant forest. The vistas are sweeping, but the details are not neglected.

I own hundreds of large format nature photography books and have read hundreds more, but take the time to review very few. "Arizona," however, is special, even in a state with an exceptional history of producing talented artists and stirring photographic monographs. Among Jack's books (all of which I own), this is my favorite save only "Desert: The Mojave and Death Valley," and I suspect it would surpass even that work in my mind if I were not a native Californian. The book was plainly not rushed, whether in conception, production, or presentation. It shows a clarity of vision beyond coincidental pairings of serendipitous or "pretty" photos. This is the work of a man that knew exactly what he wanted, set out to find it, and kept at it until not just an image or two, but the breadth of his intent, was "in the can." Characteristically erudite observations on the Grand Canyon State by Jack's longtime collaborator and essayist Chuck Bowden serve as the unifying, and finishing, touch.

I have had the pleasure of photographing in the field with Jack, and of conversing with him about a wide range of subjects both photographic and non-. He is an extraordinarily talented and generous photographer, and a passionately outspoken advocate for the natural world (particularly his beloved southwestern deserts). We are all fortunate to have him laboring on our behalf. The purchasers and recipients of this book are, in turn, fortunate to have such a marvelous testament to that labor. You will not find a book with a finer display of Arizona's natural beauty. Because, quite simply, there isn't one.

This is easily one of the finest books of landscape photography that I have ever seen. Dykinga has a brilliant eye and fantastic technique, but what really makes this book stand out is the quality of the printing (done in China, by the way). I would be pleased to get photographic prints of my own work that are as good as the prints contained herein. Dykinga's previous book, "Desert," is extraordinary, and I heartily recommend it, but "Arizona" somehow manages to top it.

This book is another winner by Beth Ciotta! I don't read many westerns, but I enjoyed her contemporary romances so much I wanted to give this a try. It was wonderful! Fast-paced, fresh and funny, with great characters, I turned pages rapidly to find out how they were going to solve their problems. This is a tender and amusing story--don't miss it!

Paris Garrett has made a promise to her beloved papa when she was nine years old. She promises that she will reach for the stars and become the famous singer/song writer her father knows she can be. There is no doubt that she has talent...so much so that she is an outcast in her own home town. Since the death of both of her parents she has been raised by her four older brothers who all agree...the stage is no place for their sister. Well, Paris sees things differently so she runs away to Chance, Arizona. She knows that she will be able to lasso the moon while working at "The Desert Moon." Too bad she seems to get into scrap after scrap once she reaches Arizona. And if that wasn't enough handsome ex-sheriff Joshua Grant is her rescuer at every turn. He makes her feel things that are new and wondrous...and boy can he kiss. But she has made a promise and she can't break it...will she be able to follow her heart or will that promise get in the way?

Ms. Ciotta is an automatic buy for me. She has proven herself time and time again as a wonderful and imaginative storyteller. "Lasso the Moon" is a highly engaging western romance and Josh and Paris were wonderful leads. I highly look forward to her next effort in this new series. You can tell that Ms. Ciotta wrote a story from her heart...as this is a book full of heart and will touch and entertain the reader from start to finish.

Beth Ciotta's release Lasso the Moon is a wonderful historical romance. I've been enjoying her other releases and this is no exception. This is the story of Paris Garret who made the promise early in life to lasso the moon, and become a big star. Our spunky heroine leaves the big time (San Francisco in 1877) for the Arizona Territory to sing in the back of beyond in an opera house. She meets one hunky lawman named Joshua Grant. This story made me laugh. The main characters are both loveable, and as I was reading I couldn't help but hope the author would write about Paris's sexy brothers. I checked her website and sure enough, there are more installments to come. I can't wait to read The Fall of Rome.

In 1877, Paris Garrett travels to the dangerous Arizona Territory in hopes of fulfilling her childhood dream of becoming a famous stage actress though she has no experience. When she feels down with no hope of achieving her goal, she thinks of her beloved late father who encouraged her to always seek to make your dreams happen.

Joshua Grant left his first love law enforcement, which he hopes to return to soonest, but first must meet the stipulations of his late uncle's will. He must marry within two weeks or his odious cousin inherits the opera house. Though he does not want to own the opera house and detests giving up law enforcement even temporary he would rather be dead then let his relative gain possession. Still he has no one in mind until a talented songwriting dreamer arrives in town. Joshua knows she is a mistake, but he wants the wannabe actress so why not marry her. Of course he first must win her over while his cousin has other plans for her, him, and the opera house.

LASSO THE MOON is an amusing historical romance starring two likable protagonists and a vile antagonist. Joshua has no idea what happened to his simple life feeling eh must be JINXED; first with the will and now with Paris whose CHARMED innocence and obsession somehow SEDUCED his heart. Fans will laugh at the escapades of the lead couple and hiss at the villain as Beth Ciotta provides a warm lighthearted nineteenth century romantic romp.

Harriet Klausner

When I was about 3, my parents took me to see "2001" and I was told that, by 2001, we could buy tickets to the Moon. Later on, I was just old enough to understand that the Moon landing was a "big thing". Close to 40 years on, I've watched 2 shuttles blow up, the Hubble near-disaster and loss of spacecraft due to software confusion between imperial and metric units. Most of all, I am appalled by the ongoing waste of money, including Canadian tax money, that is the International Space Station. NASA seems to have lost its touch, despite occasional successes. Why?

As a layman, this is as good a place as any to find out, though the book gives no easy answers and is rather dry reading. The author, a scientist, worked on the project for 20 years till it launched. He is clearly frustrated by project's duration, constant reviews, cost-cutting and changing agendas. Nevertheless, he also recognizes the need for both cost cutting and reviews. Spaceships are unique in that they are extremely complex machines that are produced only once, using essentially skilled artisan techniques rather than mass-production engineering. Worse, once launched, there is little that can be done to correct defects. A wonder they work at all. That gives you some sympathy for the amount of administration, reviews and documentation at NASA. Ideally, every possible contingency needs to be anticipated and accounted for. Unfortunately, that costs lots of money.

Despite suffering from its fads, Mr. Rieke does not dismiss "better, cheaper, faster". What he seems to say is that, up until a certain level of cost, complexity and novelty, a space mission can be carried out with streamlined management and control. Especially if the project is not put under undue time pressure. Past that level of complexity and cost, more formal and thorough management is needed to palliate mission risks. He also highlights interesting misconceptions about where the real mission risks are, statistically. Overall, you are left with the impression that managing spaceflights is not amenable to easy answers. Personally, I think more extra-agency competition would help in avoiding groupthink.

Reading this book, it seems that there are really 2 NASA. One, the unmanned scientific branch, is extremely competitive (in the old sense of the word), quite short of money and almost too careful in funding scientific missions. It fails, often, but also advances scientific knowledge. The other one, which is only glancingly mentioned, but not without veiled contempt, is "big NASA" (my nickname).

"Big NASA" badgers scientific missions into using their pretty shuttles, whether that makes sense or not. "Big NASA" spends $100 billion on the shuttles and the International Space Station, with dubious scientific returns, but takes 20 years to fund a $700 million satellite. "Big NASA" wants to put men on Mars and a station on the Moon, whether they are useful or not.

Quoting p.25 "The space station was starting to eat up a huge part of NASA's budget. An attempt to rally scientists and others to oppose the station in Congress led to a dramatic demonstration of the power of the professional aerospace lobby over the amateurish scientific one - the station was easily victorious." Not dated, but circa 1994 apparently. p.88 - "It appears the $14 million we got extra was really a way for headquarters to hide money they wanted to spend on the space station" (1998).

For those interested in management techniques, the author dissects how the project was managed. It certainly shows that _good_, respectful and technically savvy management is a huge help - something many of my fellow software programmers forget all too easily.

What is a bit left out in all this are the scientific aspects of the Spitzer telescope. That wasn't a big deal for me however, because I was more interested in understanding one view of NASA's problems.

The Last Of The Great Observatories: Spitzer And The Era Of Faster, Better, Cheaper At NASA is the story of the last of the four "Great Observatories" that tell modern scientists more about the stars, planets, and galaxies beyond our own; the other three are the Hubble Space Telescope, the Chandra X-ray Observatory, and the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory. Developed over twenty years and nicknamed the "Infrared Hubble", Spitzer launched in 2003 to resounding scientific success. The Last Of The Great Observatories tells of the long history and creation of Spitzer, from its lengthy planning to its reflection of the desire to get it done "better, faster, cheaper" to complications plaguing its launch and more. An excellent, smartly written contribution to astronomy history shelves.

The Hubble is the most famous of the satellite observatories. But it was actually only one of four, the so called 'Great Observatories.' This excellent book tells the story of the last of the four, the Spitzer Space Telescope. The Spitzer operates in the infrared part of the spectrum (Hubble - Visible Light, Chandra - X-Ray, Compton - Gamma Ray).

The idea for the Spitzer began in 1983 with a proposal that NASA spend $2 billion for the project. The key to this book is the twenty years that it took to get it to fly in 2003. Here's the inside story of what it takes to get one project through the NASA system. It makes for excellent reading.

There isn't much in the book about the astronomy that the Spitzer does, and just a few color pictures would help. After all, it is the pictures that have kept the Hubble in the public's eye. But you can fix this by browsing to [...]

Dr. Rieke, a professor at the University of Arizona, was one of the people who worked on the original proposal in 1983 and is still with the project. He also knows how to spin a good tale.

As a former IR astronomer and author of several space mission proposals, I already knew some of the information in this book. But I still found it to be a fascinating window into the arcane and Byzantine process by which NASA produces complex scientific spacecraft. SIRTF/Spitzer took 20 years from announcement to launch, and it went through more fundamental changes in design and survived more NASA management fads than any spacecraft in history. Somehow Professor Rieke managed not to lose his sense of humor during this torture.

The impression one gets from reading this account is the whole system for selecting and funding NASA missions is fundamentally broken and needs to be totally overhauled. The amount of effort and money wasted on mission concepts that were abandoned is astonishing. Spitzer only worked because IR detector technology improved by a factor of 10,000 during its development cycle (mostly due to military-funded research).

I also was surprised at the number of dumb mistakes made by experienced engineers. The main contractor for the Spitzer instrument package was Ball Aerospace, who have a mixed reputation for competence. Clearly this mission was not one of their high points. Ball's pre-launch testing program seems to have caused more problems than it cured.

A lot of trouble was caused by defective components supplied by sub-contractors (which under the insane rules of the time could not be tested by the prime contractor or NASA). It seems incredible to me that after 40 years of building space probes, it is not possible to obtain basic parts like wiring harnesses and gas valves that aren't riddled with defects. There is no indication that the vendors of these defective parts were sued for damages, denied award fees, or placed on some NASA blacklist.

Everybody interested in space mission planning should read this book. You may laugh, you may cry, but you will learn a lot.