Trains and Railroads Books

Here's another in the series of Little Engine That Could Books. Great for pre-schoolers in a learn to read mode.

Gunner September, 2007

My little girl and I read this book every night, sometimes twice or more. She always wants me to read it. I caught her in the chair reading the book (looking at the pictures) all by herself one day. Great book. Easy read. Great for kids learning to read. "See Spot run" type sentences.

This is a SUPER book! It was a very basic reading level and I'm kinda a big, advanced reader, so that's why I rated it so low, but it really was good. The characters were believable and it encouraged me to think- as my english teacher says, "to be a good reader" I recommend it to everyone, except people who think they're above good books that just happen to be at a low reading level. To them, I recommed a sour lemon to match their sour attitude!

This book was great. Everyone should read it.

but at the quoted price ($39.70) be sure you want it! JANE'S TRAIN RECOGNITION GUIDE offers hundreds of color photos of trains and trainsets and gives not only weight and date of service but system(s)served, weight, builder, number of units produced, horsepower and other technical essentials.

Be aware, though, that only about one-tenth (less than 50 pp. of this 489-page guide) deals with U.S. and Canadian locomotives and train sets. For a third the money, many if not most American rail enthusiasts will prefer A FIELD GUIDE TRAINS OF NORTH AMERICA (Peterson Field Guide Series, 1996) by Gerald L. Foster. It isn't as up-to-date; but then, the JANE'S GUIDE itself is already three years out of date.

Advice: Unless you must have a pristine copy of the JANE'S, scout out a good used copy -- or consider Foster's Peterson Field Guide for a lot less money -- also available through Amazon.

This book is THE deifinitive reference book for train enthusiasts, especially those interested in locomotives. It covers all classes of electric and diesel motive power in use as of 2005. The book is full color, and goes in to all the various classes of each type of equipment. The hundreds of color pictures from all over the world make it a must have for anyone interested in railroads. However, the book should really be named "Locomotive Recognition Guide" as there is no coverage of passenger cars or freight cars. Perhaps there will be future editions covering those topics. For the price, you cannot go wrong!

This is a coast-to-coast train ride and back, interchanging between travel description and local history. This was Terry's attempt to describe the last passenger train of the Canadian-Pacific Railroad before the route became dedicated to freight hauling, although the actual last train is just the last chapter, the rest are descriptions of scenery, passengers and history of the area along the way.

The story shows how Canada was united because of the railways. Immigrants were recruited to settle the northern praries and then were promised railways to connect the town. (In US-American history it worked the other way around)

The story works. Between meeting foreign travelers (many who openly admit they don't like Americans), oil drillers, loggers and nude Canadian dancers out West (amazing, really, how many crowned dancers he met on the trains!) to crabbers and fishermen and disenchanted Quebecois out East, his style is a bit Paul Theroux and Studs Terkel.

It's a shame that most of the trains no longer run like they do in the book. The characters are varied, the dialogue interesting and the countryside in most cases breathtaking. It's almost worth jumping on a train westbound to experience again. What a shame such travel now is obsolete. It makes me wonder what happened to all the people Terry profiled, especially the nude dancershe met out west.

This book is not a chronological story of his cross-country trip, though. Almost half the book was dedicated to British Columbia in great detail. Granted, it's a region rich in history, but I almost wondered if he would ever set foot in the rest of Canada. He does. After finishing off his time in BC he starts the next chapter in Montreal and moves east from there to Nova Scotia.

Pindell knows just when to switch from the grand sweep of history to the tiny details of train travel, and paints a picture of our nearest neighbor that is surprisingly complete. Although Pindell expresses justifiable nostagia for routes that have been axed since his journey, a great number of spectacular rides are still to be taken in Canada. Everyone who loves the "torque of travel" should consider the cross-continental trip to Vancouver or Prince Rupert, the bi-lingual route from Toronto to Halifax, or the "Polar Bear Express" to the edge of Hudson's Bay. Don't leave home without Pindell.

I really believe in following your child's lead in deciding what books to get them and to read, to a large extent. This book is an example of one that my boys really, really like, although to me it's a bit dull and stilted. They love the format, which focuses on one subject with 10 examples for each 2 page spread. The setup is orderly and not overly busy, and I think this really lets them focus. And of course, for Thomas and friends fan, any book with lots of Thomas action is a good book!

I cannot say enough about how wonderful this book has been for us. I am very disappointed it is out of print. My son wanted to read (and read and read and read) this book every day from the day he received it on his 2nd birthday and every day after that. Within a month, he knew how to recognize every number. He could barely talk... but he knew how to find the number "2" if you asked! He devoured this book from cover to cover... like it was new every time he opened it. You can't imagine the excitement he would display when he would put it in my hands to read with him. He also perfected his knowledge of color, shapes and counting. Not to mention he learned all about seasons and holidays. I truly believe this book (being read with mommy and daddy to help) taught him all this knowledge. He is now a preschooler and has a huge advantage over his classmates who are just learning some of these things. Enthusiasm Plus for "Learn wiht Thomas!" Get it before it disappears completely. I am so sad it's not being printed any longer.

This book is loved by my one year old. The flaps lift in different directions and he never gets tired of seeing who is behind each one. The book is also pretty sturdy for his clumbsy fingers. The pictures are colorful and the text is short enough that he doesn't get bored before turning the page.

"Meet Thomas and His Friends" is the perfect book to introduce your baby to these characters. The simple pictures and sweet expressions appeal to babies, as do the bright colors. My toddler has advanced to other books featuring Thomas, but still enjoys the My First Thomas series.

You won't find New England railroads in Louis Rubin's book, but you will find a wonderful personal narrative of this inveterate train watcher who captured on black and white film many of the great steam locomotives and early diesels of the 1940s and 1950s. Louis followed the Norfolk & Western from Norfolk to the coal mines of West Virginia; the Seaboard and the Atlantic Coast Line's name passenger trains which ran between the north and Florida; commuter railroads between New York and New Jersey, and some name trains out of Chicago to the Gulf and west coast. The only one he missed was the Boll Weevil, a gas-electric doodlebug which fascinated him as a boy growing up in Charleston, South Carolina watching it amble along near his baseball field between Charleston and Hamlet, North Carolina on it's daily runs. When the opportunity came to ride the Boll Weevil, it had been replaced by a Baldwin "Babyface" diesel locomotive pulling a baggage car and a coach. The only photo in his book which Rubin did not take is of the Boll Weevil.

The pictures are excellent. They are not of the glossy variety you see in expensive coffee-table books. They show real trains, really working at whatever they were doing when the author/photographer happened upon them, or they upon him as he patiently waited trackside.

The narrative is as wonderful as the photos. His description of the departure of a passenger train is worth a thousand pictures. For those of us who have witnessed this event it will conjur up the wonderful sounds, sights, and smells which we might have forgotten over time. For those who have not been so fortunate, Rubin's descriptions will paint a vivid image that will surpass anything short of being there -- and maybe even that, as the first-time observer will be overwhelmed with details, many of which will be missed. Louis Rubin's description misses nothing.

Retired University Distinghished Professor of English at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Louis Rubin is one of the most talented and prolific writers of non-fiction in the United States. We railfans are indeed fortunate that he shares our interest in trains and that he has written this wonderful memory of them.

I found the book interesting to read. Louis entertains the reader well in describing his everyday life at work in the newspaper business. To relieve the everyday stress from work, the author goes to spend time near the railroad yards or terminals and sometimes makes pictures of the railroad activity. His interest in trains stems from his youth when he used to hear the trains go through his hometown of Charleston, SC. The reason I state it is not your typical railfan book is because he does not go into the usual facts and figures that railfans seem to enjoy. Rather, he tells the story of watching trains go by in Charleston as a youth and then different parts of the eastern US where where he worked. The title stems from lowly train that fascinating the author as a child in his hometown but he never rode until the train was no longer the one he remembered from his youth. After the reading material are many pages of pictures made by the author of trains he either rode or watched. I found some the pictures to be dark and not very sharp. I think it was the printing process that caused this. Nevertheless, if you or you know someone who enjoys the romance of trains and rail travel during the days of steam locomotives, I think you will enjoy the book and the photographs.

Railroads were a fundamental foundation for the growth and prosperity of virtually all major American Midwestern cities. Wisconsin's Milwaukee was no exception. Compiled, captioned, and informatively introduced by railroad enthusiast P. A. Letourneau, "Milwauke Road: 1850-1960 Photo Archive" is an impressive, 150-page compilation of historic black-and-white photographs drawn from the collection of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin. Originally conceived in 1847 as a twenty-mile route, the Milwaukee Road began as the Milwaukee and Waukesha Rail Road, which in 1849 was extended further to service Madison -- the Wisconsin State capital, then beyond to the Mississippi River. The historic photographs of the steam, electric, and diesel engines, railway workers, line construction, depots and shops spanning 110 years of operation is inherently fascinating and will prove to be of immense interest for railroad buffs and students of 19th and 20th century Wisconsin history. Railroad enthusiasts, as well as librarians seeking to expand their railroading history collections in general, and Wisconsin railroading history sections in particular would be well advised to contact Iconografix for a complete list of their many unique and specialized railroading titles.

interesting and worthwhile photo history (partial) of rolling stock and buildings mostly of steam era. Certainly NOT a definitive historical record of CMStP&P RR. and its predecessors or the personalities who built the railroad.

In my thesis research on railway architecture, this book has been a delightful read. My opinion is that the "meat" of the book is in the essay written by Thorne, "Renaissance of the Train Station."

She covers pertinent points about the historical experience of railway travel and its development as an infrastructure. Her comments are well developed and informed of timely events. Wessner and Phillips expand on the development of the infrastucture in Europe, Asia and the United States respectively.

I was very pleased with the coverage of the projects as well, and have made this volume a keystone of my architectural library.

Compiled and edited by Martha Thorne (Associate Curator of Architecture at The Art Institute of Chicago), Modern Trains And Splendid Stations is a wonderfully descriptive and impressive collection of photographs showcasing inner-city railroad travel stations in North America, Europe, and Japan. Gorgeous color pictures, railway station histories, and an informed and informative wealth of background information on each spotlighted railway make Modern Trains And Splendid Stations an enthusiastically recommended title for personal and academic Architectural Studies, as well as a welcome contribution the reading list of any railroad buff.

A good overview of the many different types of bridge construction. As Soloman states in his intro, this is not a definitive encyclopedia of bridge engineering, but an easily read and understood explanation of the many different types of construction. A good deal of effort has been made to provide photographs (and other images) of the bridges being described--this is one the highlights of this book. My only complaint is that the Rockville Bridge and Lackawanna Viaduct do not have better images of them; but I have my own great photos of them. You could also build model bridges for your scale railroad from the info here. Overall, a good book with lots of good illustrations that is enjoyable to read.

Superbly illustrated throughout with color photography, "North American Railroad Bridges" by railroad historian Brian Solomon focuses upon railroad bridges and trestles that have been a feature (and often a quite dramatic feature) of the American landscape for the past century. Each particular bridge, whether traversing rivers or roadways, creeks or canyons, were individually engineered for a particular terrain and were of varied construction methodologies including trussells, trestles, viaducts (both stone and steel), suspension, and even with movable spans. The informed and informative text is highlighted with landmark patent drawings, period postcards, as well as modern photography by some of today's best rail photographers. The result is a wealth of information and a book that can be confidently recommended for community libraries in general, and railroad buffs in particular!