Trains and Railroads Books

Two kids get on a old train to look inside of it, but what they don't know is that there is a goast on it. If you want to find out what happens next read the book.

Illustrated by Mr. Goble's usual beautiful pictures, this is the dramatic story of the time that a group of plains Indian warriors fought against the invasion of the "iron horse", or steam train.

This is an informative and well-photographed look at U.S. railroads during the war decade of the 1940's. Authors Don Ball and Rogers Whitaker provide an excellent view of this once-mighty industry. Readers see what it was like to be a railroad engineer ("hogger") at the controls of a powerful steam engine on a mile-long freight train. We see the coal-shoveling fireman and ever-watchful brakeman that joined him up front, plus the rear brakeman and the conductor ("old man") in the copula. The book also teaches about passenger train crews, plus ancillary personnel such as switchmen, station masters, porters, roundhouse workers, rail crews, and telegraph operators. This superbly photographed book shows how vital railroads once were to the nation's economy and how much work it took to run one. We also sense the pride that rail workers feel about their craft, although their number has dwindled from nearly 1.5 million in 1945 to perhaps 250,000 at this writing.

This book should be of interest to both rail buffs and casual observers. You can read it straight through or merely peruse the photographs for reference. Either way you'll sense what transport was like in the years before jet travel and interstate highways, and you'll know why so many youngsters (and others) dreamed of being railroaders.

The Kalmbach Publishing Company is a premier publisher of books for model railroading enthusiasts. The newest addition to their 'Model Railroader' series of 'how to' guides is Jeff Wilson's "Detailing Freight Cars". Enhanced with more than two hundred color photographs and informative diagrams, this instruction manual will prove indispensable to hobbyists wanting to add realism and character to their model railroading layouts. With clear and profusely illustrated step-by-step instructions, model railroaders will learn how to add break and underbody details to their freight cars, upgrade couplers and trucks, weathering and painting their freight cars, use accurate decals for placards and markings, replace running boards and body details, and even make realistic freight loads. The techniques featured apply to model railroad layouts in all scales. "Detailing Freight Cars" is an enthusiastically recommended addition to any dedicated model railroad buffs personal reference collection.

For a modeler or historian, this is an exhaustive reference. Some color, mostly B&W photos. The printing is first-rate; helpful text and information. A "must-have".

William McKenzie is a former Northern Pacific Railway employee who has created this delightful narrative of the NP's dining car history, complete with numerous priceless photographs of gorgeous dining cars created by the Pullman Company and furnished with the finest of mahogany, crystal, Irish linens, etc. This is not a dry recitation of historical facts; the author has a gift for story-telling. A wonderful bonus to this historical jewel is a list of 150 NP recipes personally tested and modified for the reader by the author's wife. There is also a modest list of drinks and cocktails which the author assures the reader "Have not been tested"! This book will appeal to far more than the typical railfan; all those who enjoy good writing, especially of historical Americana, will find this a delightful discovery.

Travelers on the Northern Pacific Railway got much more than a ticket to travel when they chose to ride: they often received gourmet dining in the dining car, as William A. McKenzie illustrates in his Dining Car to the Pacific: The "Famously Good" Food of the Northern Pacific Railway. The Northern's service was widely regarded as the best in the industry - and source materials from railroad records of the 1860s blends with memoirs of meals to recreate the experience - complete with over 150 recipes used on the line, many developed for or by Northern Pacific. McKenzie's nearly thirty years as a PR manager and corporate historian for the railroad lends expertise to his review and organization of the company's archival records for this lovely survey, while his wife Violet tested and modified the dishes for use at home.

I've said it once and i'll said it twice Nancy Drew is a great girl detective.

Rondall Banks

It is a two-in-one mystery book and is about a train mystery. There is also a new character in the story from California. All in all, it is a very good book!

An annually updated resource, the Empire State Railway Museum's Tourist Trains 2003 is an exhaustive resource which is especially recommended for those tourists and travelers who happen to also be railroading fans. The 38th annual guide to tourist railroads and museums presenting more than 500 railroad-related attractions to visit (including ones that offer train rides, with open hours, fees, coupons good for discounts, and much, much more), Tourist Trains 2003 is commended as being an excellent, information-packed guide filled from cover to cover with fun railroading activities that the whole family can enjoy!