Park Books

The author's experiences as the chief vet at the London Zoo began in 1951 with an inventory of sick animals at the zoo. In short time he established the world's first animal hospital and introduced the world to new concepts of veterinary medicine: Zoo Tails surveys his experiences and his unusual patients and treatments, adding a dose of humor to the mix.

Book Description
Gerald Durrell meets James Herriot. Oliver Graham-Jones recalls his time as the chief vet at London Zoo, and some of the extraordinary animals he met along the way.

Synopsis
In 1951 Oliver Graham Jones was appointed Curator of mammals at London Zoo, becoming Senior Veterinary Officer in 1960, a post he held until his retirement in 1969. This is a collection of tales from his days at the zoo during the 1950s and 1960s.

From the Back Cover
One Puff Adder One antelope One crocodile

This was the list of sick animals presented to Oliver Graham-Jones on his first day as veterinary officer at London Zoo.

It was 1951, and the care of wild animals in zoos was in its infancy. Previously, sick animals had been placed in the hands of their keepers and kept from public view. But Oliver Graham-Jones was to change all this. A pioneer of many of the techniques now used by vets around the worl, he was instrumental in building the first animal hospital and moving London Zoo away from its Victorian past into the high-tech world of modern vetinary medicine.

If a dangerous animal escaped or required urgent medical attention, Oliver was always on hand ready for any eventuality. In Zoo Tails, he tells us about some of the extraordinary animals he looked after: how he anaesthetized, and was chased by, a gorilla; captured an angry polar bear in thick fog; performed a colostomy on a python; and fitted a raven in the Tower of London with a wooden leg.

Filled with wonderfully funny stories, told with delightfully self-deprecating humour, this is a book that will appeal to lovers of animals great and small.

"Zoo Tails"' will raise many a smile and, along the way, a greater appreciation of what it is to play doctor to the most exotic collection of patients in the world.' Desmond Morris

This book is great and it gives you a warm feeling of humanity, expoloring insights into the world of a zoo vet. It is both funny, sad, and 100% real life. Oliver Graham-Jones was the first vet to work at the well known London Zoo in the 1950's. It was a time of great change and developments in anamial welfare. During his time at London zoo he helped stop TB, developed the dart gun, and many surgical procedures that has lead to many procedures undertaken by Doctors today. They including hip implants, heart impants, etc. The book is made up of 26 individual stories that make a larger whole, which makes it ideal for a train, bedtime or bathtime reads. It is available (at Amazon)in soft and hard back and on audio tape and it was number ten in the best sellers lists last year in the UK. It will make an ideal present for all ages and backgrounds.
The forwords were from Dr Desmond Morris and Sir Patrick Moore, who are Olivers great friends. If you have any comments on the book please leave your message,
As you migth have guessed by now the author is my 83 tear old father who I am very proud. I was involved in some of the original proof reading and have actually read the book many times. However, it is one of those rare books that can be read and re-read.
Have a great read. Best regards
Dr Jasper Graham-Jones

Zoo Tails written by the most respected and well-known zoo vet
This book is great and it gives you a warm feeling of humanity, exploring insights into the world of a zoo vet. It is both funny, sad, and 100% real life. Oliver Graham-Jones was the first vet to work at the well-known London Zoo in the 1950's. It was a time of great change and developments in animal welfare. During his time at London zoo he helped stop TB, developed the dart gun, and many surgical procedures that are now undertaken by human Doctors today. They including hip implants, heart implants, etc. The book is made up of 26 individual stories that make a larger whole, which makes it ideal for a train, bedtime or bath time reads. It is available (at Amazon)in soft and hard back (Large and small print version)and on audio tape and it was number ten in the best sellers lists last year in the UK. It will make an ideal present for all ages and backgrounds.
The forwards were from Dr Desmond Morris and Sir Patrick Moore, who are Oliver's great friends. If you have any comments on the book please leave your message,
As you might have guessed by now the author is my 83 dear old father who I am very proud. I was involved in some of the original proof reading and have actually read the book many times. However, it is one of those rare books that can be read and re-read.
Have a great read. Best regards
Dr Jasper Graham-Jones

One hell of a book. Great descriptions of hikes in around the vegas area. As well as a few extra bonuses with Death Valley and what not. Even has some Mojave action in there. Well This is a definate must if headin to the Vegas region and need a little something more than the usual Vegas experience.

I have a long shelf full of southwest guidebooks. For the Las Vegas area, Beffort's book is the best choice for people unfamiliar with the desert. It has a good mix of easy and difficult hikes.

My sister and her husband recently visited Vegas while I was out of town. He was at a convention; she wanted to see something other than casinos. I turned her loose with a few suggestions and Beffort's book. She did three of the trips in the Spring Mountains and didn't get lost, uncharacteristic for her. The credit goes to good directions in the book.

This is definitely the best guide available for hiking in the southern Nevada region. This book includes a wide variety of hikes with great descriptions of the areas and how to get to them. It has ideas for hikes of various lengths and difficulties and as well as information on conservation and safety. It includes great maps and photos and lists areas not found in most other guides. If you want to explore areas within a 3 hour drive of Las Vegas, this is the most comprehensive book I have found. I highly recommend it!

AIDS Fundamentals Science and Society is like reading about the background and history information in a "Dummies Guide to HIV/AIDS" book. The book is informative and incredibly simplistic, it's about as easy as it gets learning about such a complex subject. From taking the class at UC Irvine, I know that it definitely relates to the lectures from professor Hung Fan... The book is easier to understand than his lecture material!

An amazing book. I came to know it by being a student in the class that the authors teach at UC Irvine--AIDS Fundamentals (by far the most informative and interesting class I have ever taken). I read the second edition, originally--the great thing about this book is that it is consistantly updated textbook--if you read each edition as it appears, you keep up with the developments. This is a book to be read over and over.

This book is a must-have for anyone who works in health education or is a practitioner of any sort. Fan et al have created an easy-to-read yet detailed account of HIV and AIDS from the views of the epidemiologist, virologist, health care worker, psychologist, sociologist, and anyone else interested in the topic. I first encountered this book in 1999 as a student enrolled in a course on HIV and it's impact on our society. I now use it in teaching County sponsored HIV/STD workshops and mini courses to youth ages 13-19 and to professors and students at my university.

This book provides and excellent overview of eight National Scenic Trails, from the Appalachian to the Pacific Crest Trails, and including the Natchez Trace, Potomic Heritage, Florida, Continental Divide, North Country, and Ice Age Trails. Each trail gets a separate chapter, and within each chapter we get an historical overview, what each trail is like today, and a fairly comprehensive listing of points of interest for each NST. Maps are also included, though they are not very detailed.

Some of the trails will probably be familiar to most people (the Appalachian and Natchez Trace, for example), but others may not be. I'd never heard of the Florida NST until reading about it here; it stretches from Big Cypress Swamp in the south all the way up and over to the western end of the panhandle near Pensacola. The North Country NST, one of the newest of the trails, is still very much under development and incorporates many local trails in state parks and national forests in the seven states it crosses (NY to ND). The Potomac Heritage NST runs over much of the C&O Canal Towpath along the Potomac River, where there are many historical points of interest.

Armchair travellers might find this book more pertinent than hikers: those in the field might want more detailed information than is provided here. But for anyone planning on hiking any of these trails, or part of them, you will find much good material here to get you started and direct your attention to the more general things you can expect to encounter along the way. The book is well-illustrated, has an excellent index, and is printed on slick, sturdy paper. Highly recommended.

This is the best resource available for an overview of America's eight National Scenic Trails. It is a MUST for anyone with an interest in our National Trails System.

This is one of those rare travel books that will inform and entertain the armchair traveler while at the same time provide invaluable information to the trekker setting out to explore one of the Congressionally sponsored National Scenic Trails. Congress established the National Trails System Act in 1968 for the purpose of creating a trail system that would provide long-distance paths through some of the most scenic country in America and preserve trails that contributed to our history. Since 1968 the trail system has designated twelve national historic trails, some eight hundred national recreation trails and eight national scenic trails. This book focuses on the eight National Scenic Trails in the system and is a great guide to the almost 16,000 miles they encompass through 30 states. The trails range in length from 694 miles (the Natchez Trace National Scenic Trail) to the 4,300 mile North Country National Scenic Trail. The trails, due to the diversity of their locations, can be traveled in all four seasons and contain some, if not all, of the best scenery and animal life, not to mention historical significance, that the United States has to offer. The National Scenic Trails are Appalachian, Continental Divide, Florida, Ice Age, Natchez Trace, North Country, Pacific Crest, and Potomac. The book is a combination travel guide and history lesson that is written in a highly readable, fact-filled manner. For each of the eight trails there is a history of the trail, a description of the trail today, a list of points of interest, detailed maps, state-by-state tourist information, a listing of the total mileage of the trail, and the states it traverses. For those of us that probably will not attempt to walk the Appalachian Trail "straight through"(it's 2,144 miles long!) the author thoughtfully gives suggestions on where one can enter the trail at numerous locations and walk for a few hours with time for a picnic lunch. This is a splendid general reference book for the National Scenic Trails. For the reader desiring more specific information on any of the trails the author has included a complete, up-to-date listing of all state and public land agencies, an exhaustive bibliography, an index, and 87 color illustrations and detailed, yet readable, maps. June 2nd is National Trails Day and what better way to learn about those national treasures that getting a copy of this book. This is a perfect example of the quality publications one can expect from the University of Oklahoma Press. Armchair travelers and wanderers of all types will be delighted.

We love Trout trout trout and Ant ant ant is not a disappointment. The illustrator and author make a wonderful team and I hope to see many more books come from both of them. My 4 year old loves this book!

This along with Trout, Trout, Trout have been two favorite books around our house recently. My son is 5 and thinks this book is great. He especially loves the part about the dung beetle. The fun rhyme introduces children to a variety of insects, and the pictures are super. It's very educational and fun at the same time.

Ant, Ant, Ant! (An Insect Chant) receives Trip Park's fun drawings as it follows up on the popular Trout, Trout, Trout! (A Fish Chant) to provide a zany set of bug drawings and facts. Yes, insect facts are included within the zany set of insect identification - and Trip Park's large-size and unique color drawings are quite vivid, adding to the excitement of a top pick.

This is the best book ever written for identification of fresh and saltwater aquatic and wetland plants along the Texas and Louisiana Gulf Coast.

I can't believe that it's out-of-print in paperback as this constitutes a great void in the available knowledge for the growing number of people who are becoming interested in learning about these plants and identifying which ones are valuable to wildlife, and which ones are detrimental.

I have found this book extremely useful for me an interested amateur with no technical background. I find the book very accessible. The illustrations and photos are very good and the text is excellent.

For anyone who does wetland delineations in Texas, this book is a must. All the pictures are well detailed, and the descriptions of the flora are first rate. It's an excellent field guide.

If you really want to see the hot spots of gay Atlanta, this is a must have. Food, facts, and fun are all a part of this well planned book. Dont be caught in Atlanta with out it or you might just miss out on all the best Atlanta has to offer.

My partner & I are relocating to Atlanta. Between our GPS system & ATLANTAboy, we drove around like we lived there!!! Simple explanations, easy read and very informative! If you're headed to Atlanta, or for that matter already live there, you should own this book. It's the newest form of "gay ID"!

If you are going to Atlanta this is very helpful for gays and lesbians. It is a super handy size, fun to read and has great tips. It is very easy to use so when you are in the car it isn't hard to find what you are looking for.

RL Stine has done it again with this book series. Rotten School books are an excellent choice for all kids. Especially if you are trying to get them interested in chapter books. My kids love this!!

I finally got my 10 year old to read! They have plenty of great books and series for girls, but hardly any for younger boys. This series is funny and keeps my sons attention so much that he'll read for an hour or more at a time! Thanx to R.L. Stine for this much needed series for boys, and girls!

My son Arman is almost 10 years old and "devours" the Rotten School series. He can't wait for # 16 to be published in January 08. I pay a fortune in shipping charges to order them from Lebanon, but it's (he's) worth it.

Just what I was looking for! I live in Middle Tennessee and was surprised at the tent camping places in my own backyard that I didn't even know about. The easy directions and important information like camping rates, opening and closing times, and a detailing of all the fun activities at each campground, really make life easier. I have been looking for fun tent camping with my child that's close to home and this really helped me to narrow my options. I can't wait to get camping! Molloy did the leg work, now I get to have the fun! Mr. Molloy, you are my camping guru!

This book is excellent. The author lives in East Tennessee and has spent untold hours in the woods of this state. His detailed account of each campsite is a wonderful resource for those wanting to go camping away from it all. He details many sites which I would not have known exist if I hadn't bought this book. The layout of is great, with a 1-5 star rating of each campsite's privacy, spaciousness, quiet, security, and beauty. Also included is a (semi) detailed map of the campsite itself.
I like his candid writing: he is not afraid of PC, and so if he likes or dislikes a site, he will come right out and say it, even indicating which sites are his personal favorites in the book.
I own one more of his books, and any time I camp in another state, this will be the first authority I check, because of his ability to steer you in the direction of nature and not just some commercial campsite.

As an avid camper, although one who seems to have less and less time to camp the older I get, I often buy guidebooks to steer me in the direction of destinations I may find interesting. Usually I am disappointed, either by the format of the book, the accuracy of details, or the quantity of info. Molloy has surpassed my expectations. The book is user friendly, accurate in detail (I've been to many of the sites reviewed, and now plan to go to many others with this as my guide), and the quantity of sites reviewed will fill many many trips. It would be very easy to plan an entire trip using nothing but this gem. Way to go Molloy, I'll definitely check out your other guides in the future.

This book highlighted the best short hikes that anyone can do. What's so great about the book is you can select a bunch of short hikes that you can do in one day. You'll feel like you have gained a great overview of each of the parks by going on these short hikes because they're all quite different. Plus the book is small and light enough that you can take with you on the hike. It's great to read the passsage as you embark on the start of your hike to refresh your memory of what you'll encounter along the way. We even saw a black cub on one of these hikes. Not too scare anyone off, but we thought it was pretty cool since we're city folks. Happy hiking!

One would be hard pressed to find better authors for a hiking guide to the Northern California Redwood Forests. Jerry and Gisela Rohde have already published two excellent travel guides to the area and their works are a delight to read. Perhaps the single best feature of this book is that the authors actually limited themselves to describing only short and easy walks in the region. (This is in sharp contrast to some of the other Mountaineers Press "Short Hikes" guides which have been known to include 22 mile hikes!) Of the sixty-four hikes included in this book, twelve are less than a mile, and only seven exceed 5 miles. Literally anyone can find a walk suited to them among those listed in this book.

This book has several other nice aspects as well. Mileages for trails are accurate to within 1/20 (.05) miles. The Rohde's also provide graphic representations of the amount of elevation you can expect to gain or lose over the course of a hike. Finally, each hike includes a sketch map of the trail and most include stunning black and white photographs that are almost worth the price of the book alone.

If I have any complaint at all about this book, it is that I would have begun coverage of the North Coast Redwoods at Richardson Grove State Park rather than Humbolt Redwoods. Richardson Grove appears right after you cross the Humbolt County line while traveling north on Hwy 101. It is at this point you truly know you are in Redwood Country. The many beautiful trails there merit a visit if you are coming into Humbolt county from the south.

That said, the authors are to be commended for including Humbolt Redwoods State Park since it is outside the boundaries of the National Park and often overlooked. I personally think the F.K. Lane Grove walk (Hike 1 in this book) is the single best stroll among redwoods in the state. Humbolt Redwoods State Park is also the location of the tallest redwood trees, National Park claims to the contrary notwithstanding. Prarie Creek Redwoods State Park also receives much needed attention in this volume. I hope to spend several days there the next time I go north.

This book is simply a "must buy." Any trip to the Northern California Coast without it is incomplete. Also be sure to pick up the authors' other two books. They contain delightful local histories of the region and are a joy to read.

Written by longtime area residents, this handy guide reads south to north, has small but good trail maps, includes interesting historical details, and contains a healthy number of good-quality (alas, B&W) photos. An appendix lists Park and Campground information but the book does not cover lodging and dining facilities. The book concludes with a helpful index.

The front of the book features several pages of tables grouping hikes according to whether they feature Rivers, Creeks and Ponds, or Lots of Wildflowers, Old Growth Redwoods, Beaches and/or Coast, and even hikes for Terrific Fall Color. Also included are miles and difficulty.

Trail and hike descriptions list the essentials: length, difficulty, elevation; and for the photographers among us, indispensable details such as areas rich in spring wildflowers, as well as areas with concentrations of deciduous trees that lend themselves to good fall color, also riparian scenes, and of course old-growth stands of the most stunning Giants themselves.

I'm in the planning stages of a trip to Redwood Country and after just reading this book cover-to-cover, it may be the only guide I need.