Trains and Railroads Books

I ordered this for my husband and he absolutely loves it. He had seen it other places at a much higher price and was thrilled you had it.

Thank you.

Great book with many excellent photos and variations. A must have for any Flyer fan!

I too was waiting in anticipation for a new better written book on American Flyer. I am primarily an S gauge person, but to finally have at least the basic refreshed info on HO, and basic info on O and Wide Gauge presented again is a big bonus.

Not to put down Greenbergs works, but Greenbergs are getting very dated and the repeatative descriptions just for the sake of saying something were nausiating. David Doyle in his book, has changed the format to a much more concise format. There are a few brief paragraphs at the beginning of each chapter giving important but generalized information on the chapters subject matter. For each variation of a numbered item, they give another brief general description then list each variation with a range of values and a rarity rating. This is better than other guides that simply give an EX or LN value and move on leaving the other grades open to abuse by sellers. One word of advice to David is to stick with common item names. Calling the Box Cars, House Cars was wierd and a big turn off. Train people know them as box cars, talk about what they are familiar with, not some abscure name no one has ever heard of before.

The book is chock full of pictures, and they are new and bright and clear, not recycled from other previous publications. For the most part the photos are very well done, but some items they photograph are in poor condition and a superior example would have been easy to find. An example is the chapter on Hopper cars shows a beginning photo of a 921 CB&Q hopper, a very common hopper car, with a broken step. Other photos are of items that are covered with dust like the 283 at the beginning of the steam loco chapter. David tries I think to show photos of the scarcer versions at least half the time. I'm not sure if this was a chance thing or a deliberate move.

The chapter on paper is short, sweet and helpful. There is only so much you can say about dealer catalogs and consumer catalogs and the like. The chapter on HO is also shorter and sweeter than the S gauge chapter(s), mainly because they made so much less of it compared to S gauge. Even more brief in the overall information offered are the O and Wide gauge chapters. These are grey areas in American Flyer collecting the same as OO is for Lionel. But we rarely hear of the Lionel people complaining about the lack of material in the small OO chapters when they are included in books. American Flyer people are already complaining about the O and Wide gauge chapters, and I say leave them complain as these are small niche areas, and the book was more about the mainstay of American Flyer trains, S gauge. It is a welcome blessing to see anything on the O and Wide gauge areas with more up to date pricing so everyone into those areas should be grateful they got anything at all instead of whining. There have been other HO books put out, but they are very dated as well, and the fresher HO data was welcome, even though the amount of time spent on the chapter was not overwhelming mainly because there was no need to.

I have been into American Flyer trains since I first became congnative about the age of 4 or 5 and remember my first encounters with the train set up at Christmas. I've collected American Flyer S gauge for over 30+ years and am working on my 4th collection. I know what I've seen, and what I've not seen over 30+ years of searching and collecting these trains. With that said, I can say here what is wrong with this book. David tried very hard to avoid ambiguous information, something Greenbergs did not do. I saw only one or two examples of this in the book. One example is the alleged existance of a 293 steam loco with a whistle in the tender. This was NOT made that way. The whistle was either added by a previous owner or the tender was swapped from a different loco. But because some big time collector somewhere said it was made because it exists in their collection, so it was listed. The second example is the listing for a 290 pacific with Reading logo on the tender. This loco was never made that way. This is a tender swap by someone after the loco left the factory. This, unfortunately, is a big peril when writing a book of this type, the author is at the mercy of the collectors he asks for information from. The other big issue is with values vs truly scarce variations. As I said before, I know when a variation is tough and should demand a premium. There are several instances where a scarce variation is listed but given the common versions value. I'll give two prime examples. One would be the 24720 Civil War coach. The very earliest versions of this car are painted but do not have American Flyer Lines stamped on the car sides. In my 30+ years of collecting and searching, until about two weeks ago, I had only seen one of these cars and it was in a boxed "One of the First Fifty" sets. This car is HARD to find. Yet it was given a value of a meager $90, only $10 more than the painted version with the American Flyer Lines logo stamped on the car sides. Sorry Dave, this car is at least a $150 to $200 car. Second example would be the 625 Gulf tank car. Its hard enough to find this car without the 625G number indicating a change to Gulf from Shell. But to find the plain 625 version with the SEPX shell markings and Gulf logo is difficult to say the least. Yet David lists all variations of this car at $25. Again, this car is scarce, and is worth at least $150 or more. There are other examples exactly like this, such as the 636 spool flat with small lettering, and 934 caboose. One other item of note. In the O Gauge accessories section they show White with Red trim S Gauge items in the photos. This is incorrect. Pre-War O accessories that were carried over after the war were originally painted in Yellow (Dark Cream), with Brown trim.

Other than the issues mentioned above this is an excellent book. Well laid out, much easier to read, and it has a range of values for common people who want to deal in average grade tains instead of the high end collectors grade stuff. Photos could have been better and some of the values definately need tweeking. Over all, I would recommend this book to anyone wanting to get into collecting and/or operating any of the American Flyer equipment offered from the early 1900's to date.

So far this is the best book I've seen for the American Flyer collector. It has so much information and really helps when sifting through train shows and online auctions!! A must!

Standard Catalog of American Flyer Trains This is a great book that for the first time you can get all three train gauges make under the name American Flyer and/or A.C. Gilbert. Great pictures and descriptions of trains and accessories. A valuable book at a great price.

My 2 year old loves this book!! He loves trains and this book is so catchy and cute that my son has parts memorized. He can almost read it back to me! This book also helped my son understand some different features like the signals, switches, tunnels, coach cars, and different features that make up a train. If your child loves trains, then this will further your young ones knowledge to some extent.

What a wonderful book! We got this for our 2 1/2 year old for Christmas. He loves it! The pictures are great and there's not too many words on each page. The story is kind of a rhyme too. It's so fun to read and our son gets excited about reading it. I will be getting more of these books.

This was another gift to our great grand son. He loved it. So did his Mother.

Both of my children (girl and boy) have loved this book. It is clever and rhythmic making it fun to read (I still don't mind reading it after 4 years). I would highly recommend it especially for toddlers.

We have the whole series now and my 5year old & 3 year old love all of these books. The illustrations are great and the text has been written in a way that enables my 5 year old to practise his reading skills. The last page with the glossary of vehicle parts gets their creative juices flowing on how it works...just be ready with further explanation as to the function of these parts...or ask Daddy!

My son adores this book - he doesn't read yet - he's only 2 - but he can recite the entire book from memory and wants to read it every day! I love reading it too!

My 3 year old son LOVES this book! I had to purchase it for him last year after renewing it several times from the library. Wonderful illustrations and simple prose. My son "reads" the book himself. Highly recommended for those children who love trains.

I picked this book up at my local library, and my 2yr old has carried it around ever since, he's had me read it to him several times a day. Even my 5yr old daughter finds it a great book to learn to read, with it's simple sentences..."This Train is old, This Train is new." I couldn't think of any better starter book for children than this one. It just so happens to be my sons favorite subject...."Trains"!

This book is excellent for a toddler or young child who loves trains. It is also a pleasure for adults to read. The illustrations are sumptuous, and almost seem to glow. The text is simple and makes comparisons between trains ("This train is going uphill. This train is going downhill"), but don't let the simplicity put you off. It's exactly the kind of thing that pre-readers and early readers enjoy the most. New concepts are introduced on each page with rhythmic repetition.

The frontspiece of the book contains labelled illustrations of various trains in a more realistic style. I've tried to see if each of these trains is featured in an illustration of the book, but I don't think they all are. My 3 year old enjoys pointing to these labelled trains and having me read the captions as much as he enjoys the text of the book itself. Both sets of illustrations complement eachother and increase the appeal of the book. Babies and toddlers will enjoy the simple text and bright illustrations. Older children may show an interest in the individual trains and their names. This book is one of those rare finds that children will want to hear over and over and that parents won't mind reading to them.

This book caused a tantrum at the library! My younger son found it there, and we read it through a few times, but forgot to take it out. When we got home and he realized this, he was so upset! He had instantly fallen in love with it, and we wound up buying it. The text is as simple as it can be---each page just says something like "this train is long" or "this train is short", but the pictures are detailed and colorful and the kind true train lovers can look at for hours. His favorite is the LONG, LONG train. This is the kind of book that young kids can memorize and "read" easily, which they love to do. I'd certainly recommend this for any member of the train loving set.

Thomas & Friends: Go, Train, Go! (Beginner Books(R))
Stuff happens! A well-dressed tidy judge boards Thomas the Tank Engine for the ride of her life in Go, Train, Go! Off comes her hat and on goes the mud as they hurry to get to the train show. Reverend W. Awdry's famous train wins yet again in this Beginner Book Story illustrated by Tommy Stubbs. Wholesome, healthy, and moral, Thomas and his friends are always a safe choice for children.

Kids love Thomas and will find reading easy in this book with short sentences and small words that repeat. The colorful illustrations will be familiar to fans of the television show. The text of this story finds Thomas and his passenger at odds. She urges him to go fast, but the little train encounters multiple obstacles to overcome. Goats and cows, logs and mud, Thomas labors to satisfy the needs of his rider while staying safe. What little boy, however reluctant to read, could resist a book about Thomas that includes an authority figure getting quite messy?

My 2 yrs + 2 month old grandson loves this Thomas book! (his other favorite is Crack in the Track). He now "reads" it to us and has pretty much the entire book memorized. We love to hear his little voice saying "faster than fast he goes" - He also has decided that the "Judge" is "Ga-Ga" (me) and inserts that instead of "Judge" in the reading.

He related the logs in this book very early to trees and cut firewood logs he sees in the real world. At 18 months he would point at a pile of cut logs and say "Logs like Thomas!"

The rhymes are corny, but kids love them!

Any Thomas fan will enjoy this story. It is a favorite with the children I work with.

My sons are HUGE fans of Thomas & Friends and they love this book. I personally find it rather dull, but its still a cute little story about Thomas trying to get the judge to the train show on time. She tells him to "Go, Train, Go!" but just when Thomas gets going "faster than fast," something slows him down. My kids totally anticipate what it's going to be: "Logs! A dark tunnel! A cow!" This story has a charming ending, and my boys always want to read it again.

This book has a picture of the Cat in the Hat in the corner of the cover. Don't let that fool you. The writing is awful. It sometimes rhymes, like a Dr. Suess book, but then sometimes it doesn't. There is sometimes a rhythm, but mostly it is lost and muddled. It is so poorly written that they don't even tell you who the author was (maybe it was done by committee?) Don't waste your money. Get a real Dr. Suess, or a Real Rev Awdry Thomas.

Great book with valuable information on DCC Operations for both the novice and the seasoned DCC user. Clear, easy to understand information that can help in the application of DCC to your model railroad.

An easy read with lots of good information, that I can apply to my layout.

This has some good, general and various ideas for DCC. What it isn't about is DCC Basics (at least not very much - just a brief mention). There are other books to get for that. This one focuses on what to do after you get a basic DCC setup going. It's good to keep in a club library or one you'll share with others, but it isn't one I reach for all the time, while getting more out of my DCC layout and motive power.

Straight forward and easy to understand projects for those just starting out or that already have DCC on the model empire.

Do not buy this book supposing that it will teach you all you need to know about digital command and control for model railroads. It will NOT do that. Instead, it will teach the basic ideas behind DCC and provide a wealth of information as to how the technology can be used. It can be used for much more than just controlling multiple locomotives.

The approach is basic and easy to understand. It outlines the differences between DCC and traditional wiring, points our what kind of equipment is needed for various applications and even takes a look at some of what is out on the market.

I am well satisfied. I need to know more but this book helps me to get started on the right path.

This book provides a very comprehensive overview of the development of steam locomotives. Some readers may find it too technical, but for anyone interested in really understanding steam power, this is the book to get.

This well illustrated book describes the basic engineering and thermodynamic principles by which a steam locomotive works without getting into a lot of obscure technical detail. It takes the reader through the types of technical improvements made over about 100 years to fit American railroading needs which were quite different from European conditions. It also describes the basic reasons why the steam locomotive lost its primacy to the diesel locomotive. It is done in an easily readable style with good uses of the illustrations to support the text.

If you've been curious about how steam locomotives developed in North America the way they did, and why they disappeared, then this is a nice book to start with. It explains why the thermodynamic efficiency of a steam locomotive can only be about 18% with superheating and a 300 psi boiler pressure. However, in actual practice, the thermal efficiency is around 6%. Compared to the 30% thermal efficiency of the internal combustion (e.g. diesel) engine, the steam locomotives have a long way to go. Back in the 1950s and 1960s, such considerations meant that steam as we knew it was doomed.

However, in this day and age, the ability to burn alternative fuels besides oil may allow the steam locomotive to make a reappearance in a more modern guise.

J. Parker Lamb does not get this far in his analysis, as it looks primarily backwards from the earliest of steam locomotives in North America to the last ones of the 1950s and 1960s. The reasons for their evolution are well explained and lavishly illustrated. It's a very good book from that perspective. The quantity of physics and math equations are kept to a minimum - perhaps a little too few for those with a more technical inclination. However, it should be understood that this is a book for the general public, and not mechanical engineers.

Lamb concludes that steam's low thermodynamic efficiency along with the diesel's ability to be used modularly - i.e. several locomotives controlled by one engineer - gave the the diesel the overwhelming advantage. That was indeed true when the diesel took over 40-50 years ago. But if you read Porta or Wardale's work, you will realize that steam locomotive evolution is far from over. Modern techniques such as the Lempor exhaust, and the gas producer combustion system can more than double the typical steam locomotive's efficiency, and prevent a lot of the fuel from going unburned up through the stack by a very strong draft. I still hope for the return of mainline steam, but Lamb doesn't hold out that hope - my only disappointment with the book.

I bought this book with the Oxford book "How steam locomotives really work", which is a more detailed technical text that is also excellent. Both are recommended highly if you care anything about the steam locomotive and want to add to your knowledge.

This book is primarily for steam train buffs, but also shows the progression of steam power to electric and diesel in the U.S. Written from an engineering perspective, it is both interesting and informative. The photos alone are worth having this book in your collection.

The advertising says that this book, written by an engineer, gives an engineering perspective of the evolution of the American steam locomotive. While there were moments in which the author provided some background (such as providing a very rudimentary explanation of steam tables), I was disappointed to find that it was more a history of the development of the steam locomotive through the various types of locomotives and what they brought to the table. But, I had been hoping for a more in-depth discussion of the engineering facets of the various theories and devices employed to pull the most work out of the steam.

The beginning of the book was promising. The author gave a nice background of basic steam engine priciples and the application of steam engines to locomotion. Unfortunately, as the book progressed, it became evermore a recitation of the evolution through the various types of locomotives. To be fair, he did spend some time explaining, for example, how the development of the bigger firebox affected the ability of the locomotive to provide sustained power, but even that discussion could have provided more.

I would really have liked to see more detailed discussions of such things as the thermodynamic effect of feedwater heaters, the differences between feedwater pumps vs. injectors, the differences between fire tube and water tube boilers (he did mention some differences, but I would have liked to have seen more depth), to name a few.

Overall, it's a good read and nicely informative. I would recommend it to a non-engineer who has limited knowledge of steam locomotives, their basic principles and their devices. For myself, I was looking for something with more meat.

Lots of new, technical terms for the young child who loves trains and is learning the alphabet. May be too technical for the casual encounter. Good pictures.

My son eats, thinks, sleeps, dreams, breathes, and plays trains on a daily basis. He even talks in his sleep about trains. My son is also the type of child who will look at his father's train magazines for hours, but until recently, had no interest in "children's books". We checked this book out the library, and he loves it. He likes pictures of real things weather it is animals, nature scenes, or train scenes. I would recommend this book because it has pictures of real objects, and it has simple text. Although it is an ABC book, I would recommend it even if it was not. As for the comment about the pictures not being interesting, it depends on what you define as interesting. For example, if you are not interested in trains, a large picture of a coupler is not going to be interesting, but if you are two year old child who loves trains and knows what a coupler is, the picture is very interesting.

My two year old knows his alphabet already, but this book is encouraging him to take that next step of associating the alphabet with words. He is a train fanatic and seeing upper and lower case letters presented with train-associated words and pictures has him spouting off train terms when asked what words begin with particular letters. As noted in the editorial review, some of the pictures are a bit muddy and uninteresting -- but for the most part this book in is my son's daily repertoire of books and one he begs to take with us when we leave the house. I would definitely recommend this book as one which inspires learning about trains, with the sneaky benefit of learning about letters and words. The only reason I will not give it 5 stars is because I think it could have included more interesting pictures for some of the letters, but I give it 4 stars because it does acheive the goal of teaching the alphabet with train visuals - and because this book is dearly loved by my 2 year old.

I first took this book out of the library and my son asked me to read it over and over again. I purchased it through Amazon.com as a Christmas gift for him last year. We still read it often. He even took it into his preschool class so the teacher could read it to everyone! I'm convinced that he also learned the alphabet through his love of this book.

This is educational and fun. Perfect for my 3 year old nephew.It has real train pictures and the alphabet - at 3 the little ones canquickly recognize and identity trains. Perfect for matching them withletters. A very good book.

This book was an easy, quick read. After finishing it, the rest of the material from Amtrak started to make sense. We'd like to take a train trip. We just need to find the time. If you are considering a ride on the rails, you'll probably find something of use in this book. I like to say "you get what you pay for." This book was certainly worth what I paid for it.

I took my first train trip last year, and had a great experience all around. Mr. Emeka's book is THE book to have when planning an Amtrak trip. I'd love to see an updated version, but this one has a lot of helpful tips on making travel most enjoyable. Buying tip--don't pay $28 for the used copies. Send $11.95 to the Apollo Publishing Company (listed under the Editorial Review section) and you'll get a new copy.

I have taken Amtrak across country. I wish I had known about Mauris Emeka's book before I went. Emeka, a car attendant for Amtrak is extremely knowledgable about the service and how you can make your ride as comfortable as possible. The only thing I might have changed is that I would have cut out the first chapter on railroad history. While interesting for a train buff, I don't think it added anything. I did enjoy his explanations on how to buy your tickets and get the best fare, as well as keeping fit on a long trip, the dining car, etc. I plan to buy the book and carry it with me on any Amtrak trip. I hope Mr. Emeka does updates as needed.

This is a great book if you want to learn more about Amtrak's serrvices. It tells about the sleeping rooms, the lounge, diner, etc. If you haven't traveled Amtrak for a while, or you want to learn more about Amtrak, this is a "must read"

This book tells you everything you need to take trips on Amtrak. It prepares you with information about purchasing tickets, sleeping arrangements etc.

This book contains excellent illustrations and very good segmenting into roads and regions. The content is informative and easy to read. It is definitely worth owning.

The only disappointment to me was the emphasis on diesel/diesel electric streamliners and not enough focus on steam conversions. While all streamliners ushered in a new era in passenger traffic, the more compelling area of interest, and the more romanticized, is the efforts made by the railroads' own shops or design departments to build or participate in the development of a radical new steam engine.

These streamlined engines are what that line staked its future on by differentiating it from the black boiler plate that often served dual purpose as freight hauler and in passenger service for other lines. These engines had a purpose; to make a statement and to lure passengers. They can tell a better story than the F and E units that most will realize originated with a one-size-fits all offering. This was a lead essentially followed by other manufacturers. The War Production Board may have inadvertently given EMD an advantage that gave us a homogenized diesel electric look resulting in generic engines that didn't begin to match the imaginative styling of the steam conversions.

The best book of subject I have come across. Very interested in 30,40 and 50 Streamliners. Actually my time of RR trips. First was 37 Daylight from San Jose to Los Angeles. Worked on SP Coast Division late 40s and early 50s. Ticket/baggage clerk. Only error I found was on page 94. I believe the Shasta Daylight is in Klamath Falls OR and not Dunsmuir CA. Great book.

Harry A Olund Placerville CA Docent Cal State RR Museum Sacramento

Kudos to Mssrs. Schafer & Welsh. CLASSIC AMERICAN STREAMLINERS is worth its price just for the wealth of photographs (the majority in color) of these stylish steel titans of a bygone era! Its more than just a picture book as the text is also extremely informative.I especially enjoyed learning where a vintage locomotive wound up after its days on the raills ended (Scrapheap? Museum?) If you're a train buff, you NEED this book! Not a train buff? Read this book and you just might become one!

I have always loved railroads, especially passenger trains. I grew up in the sixties and had the opportunity to ride the Southern Crescent and Seaboard's Silver Comet many times. It truly covers passenger rail history from the 1930's to the 1960's comprehensively.

This book provides an excellent history of the development of the streamliner era. It covers the story of the "lightweight" passenger cars and goes into some detail about the individual trains from the 1930s up to the creation of Amtrak in 1971.

As an Amtrak fan myself, I was particularly fascinated with the story of Santa Fe's El Capitan Hi-Level cars. These cars evolved into today's Amtrak Superliners, which are standard equipment on most of today's long distance trains.

The book presents a detailed history of the creation and evolution of these luxurious streamlined trains, including some insights into the minds of their creators. For example, the dome car was conceived in the mind of a General Motors executive while riding in a locomotive passing through Colorado's Glenwood Canyon. He thought the passengers should have a view as good as the engineer had.

The book is loaded with colorful photos and images from travel brochures, railroad advertisements, and the like. Many of these show cutaway diagrams of passenger cars, a terrific visual aid. Another nice feature is a glossary, uniquely presented at the beginning of the book, to aid those not familiar with railroad terms.

If there is a downside to the book it is that the text doesn't give any real explanation for the downfall of these great trains and why Amtrak had to take over. About all we are given are the dates the trains went out of service or were turned over to Amtrak. Given the comprehensive history presented on the streamliners early years, I feel this is a serious omission. It is a topic that has a direct bearing on the state of intercity transportation in America today.

This is definitely a worthwhile read, but it will leave you wondering how our railroads got into the sad state they are in today.

This rhyming book tells the tale of Engine Number Nine on a destination unknown. Along the way a variety of passengers are picked up; from farmers and their pigs, to mothers and their crying babies, to an entire marching band. Where is the train full of motley passengers going? That's the simple riddle in this easy to follow story. The colorful illustrations are fun to look at and add a dash of flavor to this playful book.

This book is one of my kids' and my favorites. It reads so smooth and has great entertaining words and pictures. It is great for all ages. A must have.. simply a classic!

This is one of our 2 year old's favorite books. She will sit still for this one with all its rhyming and detailed illustrations of a train that picks up various passengers on the way to the county fair. As parents, we even enjoy reading "Engine, Engine" again & again......

Rhyming text about people and farm animals getting on the passenger coach (led by a steam train). We know not where they are going. Finally it is revealed that they are going to the fair. Animals walk upright and eat cotton candy and do other human activities. All get on the train and snooze for the train ride home. I love the rhyming text, the fact that it is about a train ride, and that they are going to a fair. Trains and fairs are two of my son's favorite things so this book is a big hit in our house!

My only complaint that I must voice is that one rhyme is about a small baby who is crying and kicking, and baby is shown miserable with tears running down his face and mouth open, howling, and the mother is looking down and smiling proudly at the baby. I think that is a bit sick and don't think it belongs in the book. I don't like images of babies crying and portraying that as normal behavior and I especially don't like that the mother is happy and smiling while the baby is crying and not doing anything about it. Nurse that baby or do whatever is necessary to address baby's need and/or soothe the baby! I really want to teach my children compassion and that tending to a baby's need is important. For that reason alone, I reduce my rating to 4 stars; otherwise it would have been 5.

My 2 year old loves this book and knows it by heart. It is a colorful rhyming book that has a cute little train making the trek to the county fair with all its various passengers. A real find for the train lover kids in this world.