Park University Books

Great photography with poetic like readings. A different approach to enjoy this incredible Park. Actually comes alive. Took the book and relived some of the pictures with the readings in person. My way of enjoying nature through anothers eyes and words.

Great book with the most beautiful full page photos of Big Bend National Park that I have ever seen! Makes me want to go back right away. It was well worth the money...

The review by Mr. Fowler pretty much sums up the book. For me there isn't anyone who can capture images of Big Bend quite like James Evans. I have long been a fan of his work and have waited for this book for many years. For those who have never been to the Big Bend region this book offers a chance to be introduced to what makes it so special. It isn't just the landscapes, it is the people. Big Bend Pictures communicates to me what makes west Texas so special. To stare into these pictures allows me to travel back to the region and experience again the heat, the dry air, the clouds(good lord the clouds, just look at how he captures the clouds) and the people. Gaze into the eyes of his subjects and know what it means to live life. Big Bend is like no other place on earth and James' photographs are like no others.

The Big Bend area of West Texas is both seductive and elusive to visitors. The immense scale, loneliness and beauty of the desert scenery can immediately charm any visitor to this remote borderland, and many books have succeeded in extolling these virtues. However, the human denizens of the Big Bend can be quirky lot, with a big dose of individuality an apparent requirement for remaining in these parts for very long.
In this new large-format book, James Evans has succeeded admirably in capturing for the viewer the essence of the human dimension of this vast land. Yes there are panoramas and thunderstorms on these pages, but it's the direct and intimate portraits of the people that will capture your attention. Elderly ranchers (and ranch women), young children, Anglos, Hispanics, funerals, dances, homes, animals - all powerful and direct visual statements. Many of these scenes aren't pretty. There's grit and violence, poverty, sadness; but it's all real. Evans has spent the past 15 years living in the Big Bend (he has a studio and gallery in tiny Marathon, TX), taking time to really know his subjects, gaining their trust, opening a window of truth before his lens. As a regular visitor to these parts, I feel Evans has finally captured the real essence of this amazing region for all of us Big Bend lovers to enjoy.
There are 102 duotone photographs, most are full or double page. A real bonus is James' comments about each photograph in the rear appendix. It is there we come to understand a little more about each of his subjects, and ultimately a bit about Evans as well. And good value, too; lots of book here for the quite reasonable price. And I like the horned lizard endpapers.

Ron Tyler's seminal work on the Big Bend of Texas is required reading for anyone who plans a trip to the "Texas Outback". This enchanting out-of-the-way part of Texas has invited explorers and adventurers for years and Tyler's historical treatment brings all the mystery and drama of the region to the surface for the modern traveler. The maps and historical photographs blend with the text to give the reader a "sense of place" that separates the Big Bend area from other southwestern landscapes. A must read for anyone interested in the remote lands of North America.

The Big Bend region of Texas is one of the most remote and least populated areas of the United States. From the center of Big Bend National Park at The Basin it is more than 100 miles by road to the nearest Supermarket in Alpine.

The author has compiled an authoritative history of the sparsely-populated Big Bend. The prose is scholarly rather than poetic, but the story is fascinating. Included in the book are maps, old photographs, a listing and description of historic sites, a thorough bibliography, extensive notes, and an index.

The Spaniard Cabeza de Vaca and his colleagues probably passed through the Big Bend in the 1530s; and the Spanish conquest began in 1580. Later the tide was turned as the Apaches and Comanches in the 18th and 19th century depopulated the Big Bend with their constant raids on Mexican settlements. In the 19th century the "gringos" arrived at the Big Bend and established ranches, mines, and wax factories -- the wax coming from the candelilla plant. One of the most interesting sections of the book concerns the conflict between Mexican revolutionaries and bandits and the U.S army in the early part of the 20th century during the era of Pancho Villa. The book concludes with the creation of Big Bend National Park in 1955.

The Big Bend is a tough country with a colorful history and this book is worth reading, especially if you plan to visit Big Bend National Park.

Smallchief

One can only concur with Jane Goodall when she says that this book is "both beautiful and profoundly disturbing"--partly, because it is, and partly because animals, in themselves, are "both beautiful and profoundly disturbing." Not only are we not altogether certain what it means to be human, but also we are not altogether certain what it means to be animal.

Frank Noelker is an associate professor of art at the University of Connecticut. His photographs of animals in zoos have been widely exhibited in both group and solo exhibitions. The design of the book is simple and straightforward. It says nothing about cameras, lenses, photographic techniques or f-stops. As well, it says almost nothing about Frank. The Forward by Jane Goodall and the Introduction by Nigel Rothfels provide its only text. Each of the fifty photographs bears a simple caption like this one: "Leopard, Tulsa, 2002."

What is most striking, from cover to cover, is the atmosphere of isolation. Nearly every photo shows a single animal in the very center of the picture. One gets the unmistakable feeling that the artist is relentlessly transgressing a fundamental rule of photography. Of course, there are a few exceptions; "Hippopotamus, Washington D.C., 1997" is one.

In this photograph, we see a hippopotamus on the left side of the picture, moving toward the center. In the center, we see a small, narrow and empty rectangle. Despite its great size, the Hippo does not compete with this diminutive symbol of emptiness; rather, he seems to be descending into the depths it represents.

The penguin photograph is another exception. In this photo, we see a penguin slightly off center. In the center, a vertical line, a stain, extends from top to bottom, from heaven to earth (or vice versa). The crucified penguin stands close to this mark, this stain, this hieratic symbol of mystery and sacrifice.

Even the photographs that include more than one animal exude a sense of unalleviated isolation. The two antelopes (the epitome of dignity and resignation) look as if they are quietly waiting for Godot. The baboon mother with its two babies might as well be sitting on the moon. The young baboon walking off to the left already knows everything there is to know about its world.

If, as Ortega y Gasset said, living consists in "having always to do something in order to bear oneself up" in the midst of circumstance, these photos show us something else. Can this be called `living'-when circumstance has been virtually nullified? Where is the "dynamic intricacy binding all things together...the system of relations in which all things are implanted...the "unity by co-implication?" ('Jose Ortega y Gasset's Metaphysical Innovation,' by Antonio Rodriquez Huescar) These animals have no projects and precious little circumstance. Their system of relations is vestigial at best.

Nigel Rothfels writes an excellent introductory essay on the subject of "Animals and Zoos and History." Even though this essay is valuable and well written, one should study the photos first. One should read the text only after an extensive contemplation of these beautiful but unsettling images.

In his essay, Rothfells quotes from a poem by Rainer Maria Rilke: `The Panther: Jardin des Plantes, Paris': "The bars which pass and strike across his gaze/ have stunned his sight: the eyes have lost their hold./ To him it seems there are a thousand bars./ a thousand bars and nothing else. No world."

Well put, Mr. Rilke: "No world!"-and "no dynamic intricacy binding all things together."

The book is sub-titled, `Zoo Portraits.' Nevertheless, these photographs are more than that: they are also portraits of us; they are portraits of human values and human awareness--or the sad lack thereof. There is much to learn from these quiet and unassuming photographs; and much that will be missed-partly because our vision and perception are limited, and partly because life is forever inexhaustible.

And, this wonderful inexhaustibility is the very essence of art.

I was surprised at how captivated I was once I opened the book. in the past, I've don't remember many photographs touching me except for those of Ansel Adams and Gordon Parks, whose images from a half century ago touch me in the new millenium. However Frank Noelker's portraits of zoo animals generated great sadness in me for these animals while at the same time instilling a greater appreciation for the freedoms we humans have, and at this time of desperation both here and abroad, seem too willing to sacrifice. I envy Frank Noelker for his courage. I imagine that to have spent ten years photographing animals at 300 zoos across the world must wear on his soul as well as his soles.

Tim Rawson has written an engaging and beautifully researched book exploring the saga of wolf control in Denali National Park. He also documents this controversial issue outside that park, both in Alaska and throughout the country. It is an unthinking oversight, however, that the publisher neglected--either in the subtitle or in the Library of congress catalog info--to mention the fascinating character who resides in these pages: Adolph Murie. This lesser known brother of Olaus Murie was largely responsible for our modern day understanding that wolves are an essential part of the ecosystem. Pre Adolph Murie it was popular to think of wolves as vermin in need of extermination. Adolph's life work, as it unfolds in Rawson's pages, turns this scholarly history into compelling biography. Even if you haven't read Barry Lopez' OF WOLVES AND MEN (or if you have any interest in wolves in general), CHANGING TRACKS is a true classic.

Alaska residents and students of national parks issues will find Changing Tracks involving: it details the events which shaped both Mt. McKinley Park and the national policy on dealing with predators in national parks in general, outlining the decisions and actions which have influenced park service policies throughout the country. A variety of experiences, from game managers to conservationists, are presented in this scholarly, involving survey.

A wonderfully distressful novel! Mary takes you to many complex levels that are part of the experience of being human. This book will not only force you to look at the complex prejudice and discrimination issues in our culture, but will expose parts of your own heart you may not want to see. The characters become vivid and alive and you will miss them for days after the last page has been turned. Kudos! to Mary Anderson Parks. Please don't make us wait to long for your next book. Yes, please do write a sequel and let us know about Sky and Katherine.

Mary Parks has created a character who is believable and real. She makes choices by intuition to preserve her family and herself by returning to her home on the reservation. After making the choice to be there, she makes the best of her difficult relationship with her mother and the man she gets too involved with. This character stayed with me for days as I read her search for herself and her ability to make wrong choice yet not be devastated by these mistakes. I liked her courage and her inner solidity as she makes her way into a new life. The themes of interracial marriage and raising children in a sometimes hostile world are intriguing and touch us as the sturggles of many women in the 90s.

Crimes Against Nature is written by one of America's foremost new thinkers on the environment. Karl Jacoby's book has all the beauty and intellectual force his lectures are famous for.

This book gives a startlingly new perspective on just how we've created our national parks. In doing so, he makes us rethink what we consider our proudest achievements - and at what cost we've achieved them. Five stars.

"Conservation" seems like a completely positive word--e.g., we want to preserve nature for future generations. I remember how in awe I was when I saw the Grand Canyon for the first time.

But after reading Jacoby's book, I feel like I have a whole new perspective. Not that I don't agree that protecting the environment shouldn't be a high priority--for example, I think the idea of drilling into the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for oil when we have all these people driving thes gas-guzzling SUVs is the height of idiocy. But this book shows that there were some human costs to creating the park--the Indians and poor white people who already lived on the land that became parks. I didn't realize that they had the U.S. army patrolling and occupying the Grand Canyon to keep people out--although I do remember thinking that the Forest rangers' uniforms (and Smoky the Bear!) were very militaristic.

Basically, what became parks were already living entities that had people living in and exploiting their natural resources and changing the environment. So now I realize when I see the Grand Canyon, it's not as if it's in a time warp, completely untouched for centuries. I plan to keep traveling and visiting more parts--esp out west, and this book has definitely deepened my understanding of our National Park system!

My parents bought this book in the early 50s on our trip to Yellowstone Park, and my mom read it to us several times, as we kept asking for it. Later, I had the same worn and cherished copy and read it to my own kids, who also loved it. Now I'm buying copies for them for Christmas, so they can read it to my grandkids. It's not only a highly entertaining animal story, but it teaches children a lot about the natural world, as well. When Cubby and his mother visit Yellowstone Park in the summer, he is introduced to the whole array of animals who live in the park, and learns about their habitats and their ways. Fun, and a great learning tool.

My grandmother read this to my father when he was a little boy and he read it to me when I was very young. Now I am going to read it to my children. It is a great tale of a young bear cub experianceing the world for the first time and learing about different animals that inhabit Yellowstone National Park.

A must read for any young child.

A photomechanical reprint of the 1992 Bowling Green University Press edition, Ferris Wheels: An Illustrated History by Norman Anderson is an informative documentation of the ever-popular amusement park and carnival ride. Guiding reader through its remarkable history, Ferris Wheels reveals George Washington Gale Ferris, Jr.'s most creative and timeless constructions through its over one-hundred and ten year history as a key feature for American carnivals and fairgrounds. Profusely illustrated with historical photographs and line drawn sketches, Ferris Wheels is very highly recommended reading and a welcome addition to personal and community library collections.

This book is the ultimate authority on Ferris Wheels. The history of Ferris Wheels is comprehensive and has copious footnotes. The references go deep. There was one reference that caught my fancy, and after extensive searching, found that it is a reference in one library in England, and shows up no where else! The photographs are good, but not great. An excellent and detailed section on patents related to Ferris Wheels. Anderson has written a super 400+ page reference work. Strongly recommended.

This is a great book, written not from a journalistic point of view nor from an official point of view, but from that of somebody who was a fire boss for over a decade on the Grand Canyon's North Rim fire crew. Written as fiction, although it is based on actual events with only the names changed. Edward Abbey, who worked in a fire tower on the North Rim for a couple of seasons, makes a thinly-disguised cameo appearance here as "Abner". Effectively captures the work, the culture, and the humor of forest firefighters in a way that no other book I've read has. If you're at all interested in the subject I'd recommend picking this up.

This book describes a seasonal firefighters job in 1977. This was before the advent of much of the specialized equipment used today. He also capture the essencial conflict between the resource/ranger staffs and real live firefighters. Reading this book I can feel the B2 unit digging into my back from my green canvas backpack.