Travel Books

I love this book! Great recipes and information about the country. Glossary is extremely useful.

Instead of purchasing this book here, I recommend looking for it in stores like Waldenbooks or Barnes and Noble in their section of books on sale. These stores always have a section of huge books that have been marked down to very reasonable prices.

This book isn't particularly huge, but it is legitimate in its recipes. I have tried several recipes from this book and they've all come out wonderful and comparable to the "real deals" that I've tasted over in France myself. There was no need to alter any of the ingredients or amounts, as so far I've had no failures/disasters in cooking from this book. It is divided up into sections (poultry, fish, desserts, etc.) and each section opens first to an introduction to a region of France with a little bit of background. The book provides pictures for almost every recipe they list, which I know can be helpful to some readers/cooks to know what it is they're cooking.

I would say, though, that some of the recipes might require you to be a little adventurous, as of course these authentic recipes require foods that Americans do not normally eat very often (like lamb and rabbit, for example). But I've found that other than that, the ingredients were not so exotic that I couldn't find them in the store and was forced to make adjustments.

This book is really packed and pretty. The pictures are great, but I think it could have included more desserts.

I got this book on a closeout at my local bookstore, and at that low price the book is wonderful. I'd be a little less thrilled if I paid full-price... but only a little.

I would guess that most "...The Beautiful" books are probably purchased for their coffee table appeal. This is a large format book (12"x18"), with stunning photos of different areas of France and of the food (there's generally one picture of the finished dish for every two recipes). If you want a book to inspire you to travel to France or to go out to eat at a French restaurant, or if you are searching for an impressive and pretty gift, this is a no-brainer. It's gorgeous.

The recipes are very good, too, but I'm tempted to say that they're almost beside the point. There are 240 recipes, divided in menu-like sections (first courses, fish and shellfish, poultry and game, etc.) rather than regionaly. Each recipe is marked with the region it comes from, so you know that the mussels in cream is from Normandy and the veal rolls (paupiettes) are from Provence. There's also a couple of pages, with photos, describing each region. Nicely done.

I'm not knowledgeable enough about French cooking to speak to the authenticity of the recipes, but none of them were jarring. Most of the dishes are kept on the simple side (I get the feeling that the "real" version might require a few more hours in the kitchen), and they do have interesting, if short, introductions. The intro for cassoulet, for instance, gives a little history of this well-known dish, and mentions regional variations ("Toulouse adds Toulouse sausage, leg of lamb and confit"). You'll find the usual suspects of French cuisine; 240 dishes is a bunch, but far from exhaustive.

Most of the recipes are, as I said, very good. Their recipe for sole meuniere matches the one I use, and I have my eye on their recipe for beef braised with Calvados.

However, the book does show that it was written in 1989, when it was difficult to find some "exotic" ingredients. The recipe for chaoucroute (saurkraut with pork and sausage) calls for, among other things, a smoked kielbasa, and 6 Strasbourg sausages or frankfurters. David Rosengarten's _Taste_ has a whole chapter devoted to charcoute (which led me to spend my sole evening in Paris at a restaurant for which it's the specialty -- maybe I'll send him the bill), and it's obvious that these are gringo subsitutions. Kielbasa, maybe; frankfurters, no way. (Oddly, though, they don't shy away from dishes made with venison or rabbit, which I find much harder to find.)

As someone else mentioned, the desserts chapter feels short; there's about 20 recipes here, and I think most of us would assume that the French pastry section would be far larger.

Overall, this is a fine book -- particularly for inspiration purposes. If you can get it at a good price, grab it.

This is easily the greatest French cookbook I've ever seen and one of the best cookbooks overall. I've been to France many times and the same food is in this cookbook as is in France. The recipes are easy to understand, the food is great, and the photographs just make you more and more hungry. I am a 16 year old boy who has a hard time cooking and filling myself, but this cookbook remedies both of these problems. The meals are simple, yet elegant, not to mention delicious, filling, and scrumptious. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys cooking and would like cooking to become a passion.

Travelling with Michael is to say the least exhilarating, fun, adventurous and a journey of discovery. While many can only dream of actually making the trip, Michael Palins' books are the next best thing. It's not just where he goes, but how he does it and perhaps most importantly: seeing it through his mind's eye, which needless to say can make humor out of nothingness. All you need is to relax and have the urge to increase your imagination. A wild but educative ride!

Michael Palin does it again with Full Circle. Starting in Alaska Michael travels anti-clockwise around the rim of the Pacific Ocean visiting countries as diverse as Russia, Korea, Viet Nam, New Zealand, Colombia and the west coast of North American. He tells of his adventures getting to and exploring some fantastic natural wonders, visiting a Russian gulag with a former inmate, the relief of Japan, the Vietnamese reactions to a westerner, the biggness of Australia and the hardworking people of South America. The section on the United States is short and not always sweet. Palin is taken aback by the physical bigness of Americans, and rush, and loudness. By the time he reaches Canada and attends a "lumberjack" fair (no singing Mounties included!) he really "wants to go home". We also learn a bit about how the series and book were produced, his wife Helen and their children, and that being on a job for the BBC doesn't always mean smooth sailing! Michael's friend Basil Pao took the photographs - he also joined Michael on "Around the World in Eighty Days". I can highly recommend this book and not only to fans of Monty Python - it doesn't end how you might expect!

As always Palin has produced a great travel book and series... this I found better than his "80 Days". The other thing people might find interesting about this travel book is that it takes us to some places which are hard to reach even in this day and age, so this is the only way we can know them.

Also suggested- "Hemingway Adventure"

Full Circle is just as good, if not better then his othertravel/comedy books. It is simply magnificent.

I've seen the 10-part Full Circle tv series, and I had a serious addiction from the start. When it ended, I went through a withdrawl period. I silently rocked myself in a chair in my room repeating "I must get the book,... must find book...must read book." I've got it now and I'm back on a Full Circle high. The book goes into details that they never had time for on the series. It tells you everything that you would have noticed had you been in Japan or Australia or Chile.

Ahh... I can imagine myself right now on the streets of China getting a massage from a blind man.

This is an amazing book, by a wonderful author. I would highly recommend reading it.

It was by accident I discovered this book, but how fortunate it was! Murphy did not just ride a bicycle from Ireland to India, impressive in itself, but she lived and laughed and played with the Prince's and Peasants she met through out her journey. Her descriptions of the people she meets and the ancient lands she cross are simple and magical.

Some of her experiences seem to belong to fairy tales, other's remind's one of Arabian Nights, and at other times, it seemed Murphy was whisked into Tolkien's land of Middle Earth with fierce and gallant warriors on horseback.

I will quote a couple of passages which highlight her sense of humor and observation.

"...But it was worth it all to rise gradually from that fertile, warm valley to the still, cold splendour of the snow-line, where the highest peaks of the Hindu Kush crowd the horizon in every direction and one begins to understand why some people believe that gods live on mountain tops."

"...when suddenly I came on the most unexpected sight-a playing field complete with twenty-two youths and a soccer ball. I know very little about soccer, but enough to know this is how it is not played. No one ever moved about trotting speed, no one ever tried to tackle anyone else, the referee never used his whistle, the ball was never headed and the two goalies sat crosslegged between the posts most of the time, looking abstracted. The real excitement from a spectator's point of view was caused by the fact that one side of the field had a sheer drop of 200 feet, so that the main object of all the players was to keep the ball from going into the ravine rather than to kick it between the posts."

What a find! I'm amazed Dervla Murphy is not much better known. She has such an appealing vigor and zeal for adventure, combined with an acute eye for cultural observation and a rich capacity for description. Dervla takes one of the most audacious trips I've ever heard of, and undergoes some of the most harrowing and arduous of trials with non-showoff-y courage, such as when three heavy objects that turn out to be wolves fling themselves at her on a dark deserted road in the Balkans, or she is awakened in the middle of the night to find a "scantily dressed Kurd" standing over her bed. (In both instances her pocket pistol dispatched the dilemma without further ado.) Not only are these accounts riproaring, but she so warmly and affectionately describes the so-called "undeveloped" cultures she grows to know as she passes through remote stretches of Afganistan and Pakistan, that she quite awakens a First World reader to the narrowness of our outlook.

I first read this book in the sixties in grade school. I bought the reissued edition, rediscovering it by coincidence. Ms. Murphy's journey in the early sixties is, if anything, more fascinating to read today in light of the changes in the Middle East since she travelled there. Her independence and cheerful acceptance of different cultures is refreshing. This book was written prior to the 'me' decade, and while intensely personal, lacks the self-preoccupation that more recent writers practice.

Additionally, unlike so many bicycle travelogues, this book doesn't focus on the author's bicycle! The focus remains on the journey, which renders it excellent reading for all, not just bicyclists.

This is a timeless read and one that can be revisited with pleasure.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Murphy's humor, tenacity and bravery are awe inspiring. She's attacked by wolves (or possibly wild dogs), wakes up in a tent after going to sleep out in the open, fends off an attempted rapist and has many other thrilling adventures. In one instance, when there are nefarious characters about, she is advised to booby trap her inn bedroom's doorway with empty bottles. In her journal, she calmly notes that emptying bottles is the one thing she's really good at.

I couldn't help feeling sad while reading this book. In 1965, when this book was published, most people were probably unfamiliar places like Kabul and Jalalabad. Now, of course, in the wake of the post-9/11 bombing of Afghanistan, Kabul is a household word. Turns out, that city was once breathtakingly beautiful, as well as the country around it. Murphy's trek takes her through Afghanistan at a time when the USSR and the US were vying for control of this country. The Russians were busy providing electricity and importing goods, while the Americans seemed to approach this ancient country with the intent to raze the traditional culture to the ground and replace it with a modern one. One wonders if, if both countries had never meddled with Afghanistan, there might never have been the Taliban? In any event, this book takes the reader back to a truly relevant experience of the not-so distant past.

"The Galactic Phrase Book & Travel Guide" is an unusual concept and one that works surprisingly well. While a guide book, it is written of course for entertainment value and reads quickly. The book is packed with humorous drawings, expressions and cultural suggestions so that one never commits a faux pas, something which could get a traveler killed on the wrong system. One humorous extraction is that there is no word for "please" or "thank you" in Huttese. From the deep core to the outer rim, learn to count and speak basic phrases in Huttese, Bocce, Ewok, Wookiee, Jawa and even Gungan. While the Star Wars universe has no equivalent to a work like "the Klingon Dictionary," this is not only the next best thing, it's more enjoyable. From young children to adults, all Star Wars fans will enjoy this linguistic adventure.

I bought this book chiefly because I am a fan of Sergio Aragones' artwork; I am only a mild fan of Star Wars stuff.

I was not blown away by the quality or humor of the Aragones illustrations herein: there are not a lot of them, and none of them are really very funny. Plus, Aragones did not do the cover art. But if you're one of those people who collect everything Aragones does, then this is a must-have. If you're just looking for some Sergio stuff on Star Wars, I'd recommend a comic that came out a couple of years ago called "Sergio Stomps Star Wars." That should be enough for you; this book doesn't really add anything to that.

As for the section on the translations of various alien phrases to be found in the Star Wars universe, it's strictly for pre-teens. Doubtful you'd spend more than a few minutes with it.

What makes this book a winner, though, is the 43-page gem of an essay by Ben Burtt, the sound prodigy on the Star Wars movies, on the creation, inspiration, and various techniques for his award-winning effects. I wasn't expecting much from this piece, but it turned out to be well-written and completely engrossing. This essay alone (and I'm not aware of its being available from any other source) justifies the price of admission.

Here is a typical excerpt:

"Anyway, the sounds for the Tusken Raiders were inspired by the odd and often chilling donkey braying the crew heard in Tunisia during the location shooting. Donkeys were used to pack the tons of film equipment into the remote locations. Occasionally they would burst into barks and screeches during the shooting and be audible in the background of a take, thus ruining it. But their vocals echoing off the canyon walls proved weird and scary, so they were recorded and sent back to me. I added more to this collection back in the United States and incorporated some other elements of animal breathing and wheezing. Cut and blended together, the result was the speech of the Tusken Raiders." [p.139]

If you find this kind of stuff interesting, you're unlikely to rue purchasing this book.

Regrettably, Burtt's essay was written just the Attack of the Clones came out, so that movie is not discussed.

Also note that this is one of those smallish, subsized paperbacks. Handsomely printed, though.

This is a funny little book. In it, Ben Burtt has compiled a lexicon of several languages from the Star Wars movies. Among the languages that you can learn are Jawa, Ewok, Tusken Raider, Hutt, Neimodian, Bocce, Wookie, Droid and Gungan. This is a pretty impressive list. Each species has their own spotlight, and a list of phrases that are in their own language and in Basic (English). These include for example: Smeekeeya whao toupee upee. (Huttese: Smile when you say that.) and Mesa greeting, In peace mesa comen. (Gungan: I come in peace.)
For die-hard Star Wars fans, this is a must to have. Try memorizing it. ;) Burtt writes this with a funny and upbeat tone to it.
In addition, there is a section on how Ben Burtt (The author and sound technition for all the movies.) came up with the various noises that we hear in the films. This is interesting to read.
Lastly, there is a section with the movie script in it, for A New Hope and Return of the Jedi, so you can impersonate Greedo or the Ewoks.
However, I did find some problems with this book. One is the price. It is about $[money], which is a lot for a small book. The novels are less than that.
Secondly, the words are hard to pronounce, and there is no pronounceation guide included. It would make saying the things so much easier.
Third, I would have liked to have seen more languages, so hopefully they will update this with some dilects from Attack of the Clones.
This is a cool little book to have. If you like Star Wars, check it out!

This invaluable resource is a necessary guide on the basics of effective communication for anyone planning to travel through the Star Wars universe.
Written in an easy-to-read, humorous style and divided into eleven chapters, part one of this volume covers many commonly used phrases and terms in languages that range from Huttese to Bocce to Droidspeak. It also offers essential cultural advice and protocol rules that you will need to familiarize yourself with in order to increase your chances of survival as you come across numerous different situations in your voyage. All the phrases presented are printed out phonetically, so no bothersome pronunciation guidelines are given or needed.
Part two, "Behind the Sounds," is an engrossing, well written, 43-page account, complete with behind-the-scenes photos, of the author's journey of inspiration and creation of the sound effects and languages of the original trilogy films. Included in his story are fascinating technical details mixed with often hilarious anecdotes such as having spent a whole day recording bear sounds to be used when putting together Chewbacca's speech, and mixing and re-mixing mechanically and electronically generated beeps, chirps and bleeps to give R2-D2 an "emotional" voice.
Printed in an attractive pocket-sized format, this book is thoroughly illustrated in the best Star Wars style with laugh-out-loud drawings by Sergio Aragones of MAD Magazine fame.
As a bonus, an appendix with selected scenes from A New Hope and Return of the Jedi is included to help you practice your alien speech.
Although this book doesn't contain any information on the Star Wars universe subsequent to The Phantom Menace, it is an entertaining, fun and enjoyable way to explore the societies, their languages and activities, of the galaxy far, far away. As the Ewoks would say, this book is "yun yum di goot" (very good).
--Reviewed by Maritza Volmar

An amazingly funny and informative little book. It is really a textbook on several different languages from the Star Wars universe, but with all the comedic phrases and cute comics, you will soon forget that.

This book is truly very informative when it comes to alien languages, from huttese to bocce, and even droid-speak! this book will have you saying such phrases as; "Da beesga coo palyeeya pityee bo tenya go kaka juju hoopa!" or "Wua ga ma uma ahuma ooma!" or perhaps if you are like me, "Kavaa kyotopa bu whirlee backa?"

Overall, this is a fantastic book, and if you don't buy it to learn another language, buy it for the supercute family of Aleenas on the front and back! Mee jewz ku, coo ya maya stupas!

Great overview of the valley history and key players who influenced the culture and its success. Ashley's recommendations on restaurants are eclectic and fun as well.

Highly recommended. I bought some for gifts as well.

Larry Laurich, CEO DRC Computer Corp

This book delivers as advertised. A great summary of Silicon Valley. If you've just arrived in the valley it is indispensable. Pick up this book and spend your time learning, visiting and eating through the locales mentioned. (They should hand this out to incoming students at Stanford, and at the immigration line at SFO.)

Minor quibble, the book suffers from "young journalist syndrome," where its history, anecdotes and insights are a synthesis of the bibliography in the back. However, kudos to the author for reading more valley history than 99% of other writers. He is headed for greatness when he finds his own voice.

I've been involved with the tech business for 15 years and know my way around the places and companies in the valley. I found this book hugely entertaining and informative. At first look, it seems more like a travel book or specialized city guide than anything else - which is fine and a worthy accomplishment. However, there's a whole lot more....Ashlee lays out the history of the valley and the reasons why it has developed into the technical center of the world. Along the way, he provides easy to understand explanations of the technology and how each invention and advance launched new ventures or opened new markets. Finally, he delves into the personalities of both the key individuals and companies, which, for me at least, ties everything together and makes it a much more interesting and enjoyable read. Highly recommended....

Like technology? Like history? Like good writing? OK. This is your book. A little bit travel guide, a little bit history and a lot of fun, Ashlee Vance brings his truly unique and refreshing writing style in a book that is required reading for anyone involved in the technology industry.

I suspect they will be using this as a text book for some course or another at Stanford, and then Ashlee will become a full professor and his head will get really big and, well, that will be that. But read it anyway.

This is a great little book. Part historical overview, part travel guide, it's written in the breezy, easy-going style of Vance's columns in The Register, the best of the online IT rags (except that the book has been carefully proofread, unlike a typical Register story). In less than 250 pages Vance has covered almost all of the important historic events and personalities behind Silicon Valley, and provided a great set of tips of places for visiting, dining and drinking. There's even a good list of books and web sites for further reading.

I've lived in the Valley for nearly 15 years, and yet learned a fair amount from this book, including several places to visit that were new to me. There were only a few curious omissions: e.g., Halted gets a mention, but Fry's does not; neither does Buck's in Woodside; and surely Frank Drake should be mentioned in the section on the SETI Institute? - but otherwise the text is remarkably accurate, despite having condensed many complex histories, each worthy of a book in its own right, into paragraphs or pages. Vance clearly did his homework. My only historical quibble is with his description of the demise of SGI. I thought it was mainly done in by cheap graphics chips from Nvidia and the like; Itanic was just the icing on the cake.

The book mentions his web site and claims additional information can be found there, but so far there isn't anything new. Hopefully that will change over time. Another concern is that quite a bit of the information in the book will date fast; I hope Vance and his publisher refreshes the text (or the website, or both) regularly.

If you live in the Valley, visit the Valley, or you just want to know what the heck the place is about, this book is for you. And if you're a geek too, it's a must-read.

Last summer my family and I traveled in Germany, Austria, and several other European countries, and I wish that we had had a guide such as the German Survival Guide with us then. I would find the material inside the front and back covers very useful. It is quick to locate, and the information given includes the terms and phrases that people need most often. For additional words, the German-English and English-German dictionaries are available at the end of the book. The specific chapter we would have used the most would be Ch. 3 on Restaurants and Food since we frequently ate at restaurants without English on the menu. The other parts that are especially helpful are the cultural notes that are interspersed throughout the book. If we travel in Germany again, we definitely will take this book with us!

I have never been to germany although one day I really hope to go. My husband is german and his mother does not speak a lick of English. This desperate daughter-in-law was saved many embarrassing and fustrating moments by this book. It is a handy size to keep in the car or in a good size purse. I had to live with my MIL for a couple months and weeks at a time and this book has helped me communicate with her on many levels about many necessary topics, especially when my husband wasnt always around to translate or got tired of it.
Granted it doesnt have every single thing about germans in it but it sure has made my life easier.

I am very impressed by the information in the German Survival Guide. I took German in college several years ago and had forgotten most of what I had learned, so the guide is a great refresher. The pronunciation guide is excellent and very easy to read. Even if I had not had German, I would be able to pronounce the words in an appropriate manner in order ask for the things I would need.

In addition to the pronuncation guide, the cultural notes are great. I think that when traveling this is a very important aspect, as I certainly do not want to do something or say something to upset the native speakers.

I have traveled to many different countries and if I would have had a guide such as this, I would have been better prepared and less apprehensive about the language and the customs of the country.

The ultimate compliment you can pay a travel guide? "Works as advertised". I'd argue the same goes for this survival guide of Germany and to a less extent, Austria.

I acquired a handful, really just a small amount of German as a result of this book, but I used it all for twelve days, and it made a world of difference. The cultural notes, however, were of even greater value: *when* to use phrases is integral to knowing *how*.

My only two concerns, a half-star I withhold for each: the two-cassette method of delivery and a too-small glossary/ vocabulary/ dictionary. Pack a CD with the book and it's a five-star value; pack another forty pages of German-English word translations and it's official.

However, if you're serious about German, get the FSI course; if you need a German-English dictionary, pick up a Collins Pocket Gem. Tschüs!

Ideal for anyone contemplating a precarious excursion to Germany.

I am an avid Ghosthunters fan (TAPS on SciFi). I purchased this book hoping it would give me specifics about paranormal investigations/haunted locations in Illinois. The book is interesting in that it provides several locations that are reputed to be haunted. However, it is more disappointing in that the book offers no evidence of any investigations or "hunts". In every site story that I have read so far, I see a lot of the word "maybe" and or "perhaps". The author has clearly visited the sites, but has not had any personal experiences himself to build on -- he merely repeats stories he has heard from locals.

I would like to have seen something more from this book -- but it does still make me curious.

I decided to try this book, as I seem to have almost every other book written about ghosts in the Chicagoland area. What I most enjoyed about this book, is that John lives in Ohio. So he was a visitor to our state, while researching stories for his book. It was very well written, with pictures he provided. I enjoyed his writing so much, that his book on Ohio ghosts is in my wish list and I purchased his recommendation on the Indiana ghosts. I also appreciated that he contacted other ghost hunters and referenced them in his book.

This is a fine book about ghosts. What is most important about the author's book is its straight-ahead, honest approach to the topic. His comments and thoughts on ghosts, and their locale, is refreshingly enjoyable. The writing is concise and entertaining. This is an excellent reference on Illinois ghosts. John Kachuba is a first rate writer with a keen sense of the macabre, and he knows how to write about the paranormal!

John Kachuba is really good at telling

the places that he visited. Each story is

fasinating and he gives some interesting history

on the haunted places


~SkUrVy

I decided to purchase this book on a whim and I was pleasantly surprised. Most paranormal location books offer little more than brief historical overviews of each location and then the associated ghost story. In "Ghosthunting Illinois," Kachuba takes a more hands-on approach in that he's visited the locations personally. His book offers some historical information, the associated ghost stories, and interviews with people associated with the location (owners, tenants, parishoners, etc.). Beyond that, he also describes his trek through these locations by expressing how he felt, what he saw, etc. An even more compelling reason to purchase this book is the fact that it's very well written which stands to reason considering the author is a "creative writing" professor. Additionally, the book holds your interest and the chapters are short so it's a great "quick chapter before bed" type of book.

Susan Neider is as gifted a photographer of the Point Reyes Peninsula as that enchanted place has ever had. Her work is tack sharp, wonderfully composed, and perfectly catches California light. A superb collection of photographs.

Jim Cohee
Senior Editor
Sierra Club Books
San Francisco, California

The Ideal Blend
For anyone looking for the ideal blend of landscape photography and information to express the essence of a place, Golden Country: Touring Scenic California does it perfectly. Susan Neider has proven once again that this is her great talent, and has made another valuable and unique contribution to the guidebook offerings. In my opinion, the portfolio of 120+ photographs is her best yet; even the most complex landscapes are captured in gorgeous, rich color with superior skill and honesty. It would not be an overstatement to say that her photographic eye is one of the best at work today. The accompanying text adds for the reader the explanations needed to understand further California's complicated and diverse geology. Her descriptive narrative is excellent -- always clean, direct, and easy to follow. As usual, Neider is able to control the flow of information masterfully so as not to exhaust the reader. Simply put, it is a pleasure to read. Maps are plentiful in Golden Country, and
these are maps that can easily be used when traveling. They are beautiful, thorough and particularly helpful as they contain little camera icons that show exactly where Neider has found her photographs. It's a wonderful touch and a great idea to guide the reader who also carries a camera in hand. For a superb overview of California that also contains the necessary detail and organization to make a terrific guidebook, Golden Country is the ideal blend.

"Golden Country" is, quite simply, an extraordinary book by an extraordinarily talented individual. I am in awe of the sheer quality of the work product created here.

Other reviewers have already praised the book's photographs. They are indeed gorgeous and sumptuous: flawlessly composed, tack sharp, bathed in perfect natural light, and offering a wide variety of interesting content (ranging from soaring panoramas to tight close-ups of individual trees, foliage, rocks, and animals). Some images are simple "matter-of-fact" recordings of beautiful landscapes, while others show off clever interpretations of unusual but naturally-occurring effects (like discreet angled beams of sunlight shining crisply through the green canopy of a section of woodlands, or low-hanging gray clouds appearing to kiss the twin peaks of the Golden Gate bridge, or mountain ridges seamlessly mirrored in salt water pools lying below). But every picture is powerful and emotive, setting its own emotional tone and a distinct mood. All of them are compelling and emotional.

But this is hardly just a pretty picture book for the coffee table (though it would do just fine there and anyone should be proud to display it there or fascinated to peruse it there). This book is also a highly effective travel guide. Unlike other travel guides that bombard the reader with boring historical information and poorly presented details, this book's information is accessible, well organized, and cleanly laid out on the page in a way that anyone can use. Only the essence of what you need to know to visit, observe, and photograph the destinations is provided: no fat, just what you need to know, presented in a highly efficient manner with journalistic-like precision and accompanied by clean, usable maps of the destination areas.

But it is not just a travel guide. It is actually a beautiful piece of literature because of the remarkable quality of the author's writing. The opening preface captures, in a single page, California's majesty, massive expanse, and remarkable physical complexity and contrasts. Later text explains the origins of the landscape -- the geological processes that actually caused the topography to develop the way it did: why things look the way they do, why the weather patterns act the way they do, why the mountains are positioned the way they are, how they came to be that way. It is pure fascination, but communicated in an easy and accessible way, scientifically accurate but not at all overwhelming for the lay reader. The prose is so beautiful, the words so well chosen, the sentences so well crafted and rhythmic, that the text is simply a joy to read -- packed full of information but yet flowing and engaging. I am struck by how Ms. Neider's descriptive writing often manages to combine a soaring, lyrical quality with a crisp, scientific precision, all at the same time. It is very rare to find these qualities combined so artfully.

Before she began her career as a photographer, Ms. Neider was a scientist and a teacher. In Golden Country, she has accomplished the truly remarkable feat of combining together in one book the technical observations of a keen scientist, the engaging education of an inspiring teacher, the graphic design of a fine artist, the talented eye of a world-class photographer, and the emotional intensity and honesty of a great writer. Rarely, if ever, has a photography book or a travel guide managed to provide such a unique combination in a single article.

I consider this extraordinary book to be one of the four or five most impressive creative works I have ever owned, and I highly recommend it to others. You will not be disappointed.

These pictures are beautiful and render the California landscape in a way rarely seen by casual travelers. It is a must for anyone who likes landscape beauty of our glorious west.

"A beautiful book." I guarantee those will be the first words out of the mouth of anyone who picks up Golden Country. I became aware of Neider's elegant work several years ago when I bought Color Country, a tour guide to the Colorado Plateau. In many ways, California must have presented far more of a challenge to an author preparing sophisticated yet introductory tour guides. California is not only huge, it is diverse, topographically, geographically, geologically. Coastal environments, major mountain ranges, vast desert regions, gigantic trees, fog, sun, rain, snow, all of this is California. It is not easy to sum up this state. I should have known that if anyone could, it would be Neider. Her photographs capture the range of California experiences from dramatic Yosemite or Big Sur landscapes to upfront-and-personal textures of the desert floor and rock walls. Her words summarize the essence, not only of this "complicated" state, but of each park she features. Do you want to know why you would detour from your route to visit Pinnacles National Monument, for example? Because it "offers a solitude and deep quiet not often found in the parks of California." There will be much readers need to discover on their own. What Neider does so well is to usher them to the right places, and then sets them free.

The Great Lakes Cottage Book is a specialty title recommended for those who love cottages and Minnesota. The authors present fine photos and recollections of Great Lakes cottages and scenes, focussing on subjects which reveal the cottage experience. The result is a coffee table book celebrating a special place and structure.

A great book for reminiscing about times at a cottage. The pictures are beautiful and the captions are so reminiscent of our times at our cottage--the rainy days and playing games, the fires on the beach, watching the sunsets(and they are so unique!!), family reunions and old family stories. Thanks, Ed and Kathy-Jo, for producing this book. We will cherish it forever-something we can share with our friends and family.

I gave this book to 25 family members and friends for Christmas and I have received most wonderful comments from everyone. They praise the photography and the text. One person wrote that she could "see" the grandparents walking down the path to the beach with their grandchildren. If you know someone who has ever summered in the Great Lakes in their own summer home or in a rented cottage this book is a must. It does capture the essence of cottage living in this area.

Ed Wargin's photographs capture the emotions of these much loved cottages with a sesitivity and beauty that few others could accomplish. His use of natural light is extraordinary and gives a warmth that reflects the feelings that abound in these cottages.

When you add Kathy-jo's unique ability to convey loving sentiments in short essays, this becomes an heirloom book. I will never again hear the screen door slam, or sit in on a rainy day or do any of the other normal activities in a cottage without remembering Kathy-jo's essay about that activity and how she captured emotions that I have had but never before seen expressed so beautifully. Thank you Ed and Kathy-jo for seeing into our hearts.

Ed and Kathy-Jo Wargin came to the Thousand Islands and photographed our cottages in ways we had never seen them.The sun setting on the cottages, stairways bathed in sunrise light, artfull arrangements and compositons of familiar vacation objects. This book is memories and makes them too. It is interesting to see the similarities of cottage architecture from Minnesota to the eastern most Great Lake,Ontario which flows to the Atlantic via the St. Lawrence River. You won't regret buying this.

great little book to have with me on my "Lighthouse Quest", wouldn't go lighthouse hunting without it

I take this book with me every time we go Great Lakes lighthouse "hopping". It is loaded with helpful information and I wouldn't consider leaving home without it when on a Lighthouse trek!

I have a few books on lighthouses but this one is amazing. The imformation on each lighthouse giving you the location and a place to check mark it and the date you saw it. I am looking forward to using it on my trip to the lakes in October. Thank you for helping me get the best imformation for my trip.

This book was like a bible to me a few weeks ago when I hunted for 6 lighthouses in the Duluth area. This is not a coffee- table picture book, but more of a dictionary. There's small pictures, brief descriptions, and directions to every house on the Great Lakes! My only concern is that the book is from 1998. So in the case of one of the "endangered" lighthouses, I'd say double-check to make sure it's still there before driving a long ways to see it. Also, a few that are marked "private" are now bed and breakfasts which may have a little more access than a guy's backyard. But these are minor compared to how valuable this book is when exploring our beautiful Great Lakes shorelines.

This book is almost a bible to me while traveling the Great Lakes Region. It features over 300 lighthouses of both the American and Canadian side of the lakes. The lighthouses are indexed by lake, making a trip to an area, easy to plan and execute. Each lighthouse has a photo (if available), brief description and most importantly to me, access availability and directons.

With the access availability to each lighthouse, (boat, car, private or public), weekend trips are planned to visit each lighthouse in the area. A checkoff box is also printed, to mark off each lighthouse you have visited.

This is a very useful guide to these historic sites, both operational and non-operational, and a valuable reference book.