Oregon Books

This book gave me a fascinating view of an area I did not know existed. Ms. Houle lets us explore the Zumwalt with her as she studies the birds of prey on the prairie, the delicate balance of the natural food chain, and the effect of human land management. I have been far more aware of the different birds of prey since reading this book. Ms. Houle's writing induced me to search out other books, identification charts, and exhibits about these fascinating creatures.

The Prairie Keepers is a charming account of a graduate student's summer wildlife biology project. I enjoyed sharing Marcy Houle's youthful enthusiasm for the rugged Zumwalt Prairie, her fascination with prairie wildlife, and her persistent efforts to determine why the buteo hawks thrived in this remote area in Oregon. Her descriptions of the adversarial relationship between the ranchers of the Zumwalt Prairie and the government employees (Forest Service, BLM, Fish and Wildlife Services, and the Oregon Department of Fish and Game) managing public land were thoughtful and well-balanced. Her recognition of the role ranchers play in preserving the Zumwalt Prairie was particularly insightful.

The remote Zumwalt Prairie in northeastern Oregon is home to a large concentration of buteo hawks - the ferruginous hawks, red-tailed hawks, and the Swainson hawks, all characterized by distinctive broad, round-tipped wings, husky bodies, and wide fanning tails. Elsewhere most hawk populations appear to be in decline. What makes the Zumwalt prairie habitat special?

Marcy Houle had a daunting summer job: locate and identify the nesting buteo population on the 200 square mile Zumwalt prairie. Climb the trees and place leg bands on the hatchlings while cautiously ignoring angry parents. Identify and measure relevant ecological parameters that might offer clues why the Zumwalt prairie is so attractive to buteo hawks.

Her account brought back memories of a summer several years ago when I mapped paleomagnetic trends in southwestern Montana. My field work was in many ways different; I certainly never climbed trees to place leg bands on hawk hatchlings! Nonetheless, I readily related to Marcy Houle's description of her field activities: careful reading of topographic maps and aerial photos, exercising care on private property, and completing transects of range conditions. Thanks to Marcy Houle for an enjoyable book.

Marcy Houle is a wildlife biologist yet her books read as easily as those of any good fiction writer. As Marcy presents the science of her work, in this case the study of hawks, the reader becomes involved in a very interesting story. As man's use of the land becomes more invasive of nature, man needs a better understanding of how his actions effect not only the earth but also himself. Marcy's study of a 200 square mile area known as "The Zumwalt Prairie" in northeastern Oregon provides an informative, interesting, and enjoyable look at man's impact on nature. Well worth reading!

The Julesburg Mysteries Series - "Whirlpool, Riptide, and Undertow" by Lorena McCourtney were all exciting suspense stories that made it hard to put down the book before the last page.

I enjoyed this book immensely and had to read it straight through. Set in the same town as the previous novel in the serious, McCourtney revisits some of the characters she's already introduced. The mystery keeps you guessing until the end leaving hints here and there for you to pick up. It's about two twins that decide to buy the old Nevermore (the theater in town). This building is surrounded by horrible "coincidences" where any person that becomes involved with it ends up dead, badly burned, or some other horrible tragedy. As you may have guessed it, that's what the two twins encounter as well. Filled with struggles towards Christianity and a well-written love story, Whirlpool is a great novel for mystery lovers, Christians, and romantics alike.

I've been collecting this author's works for some time now and this novel reaches the usual McCourtney standard. I'd even stretch this comment as far as being on a caliber up there with Dee Henderson (who I've read avidly). I recommend this novel as a good, quick read that keeps you on your toes.

Sisters Sarah McIntosh and Julie Armstrong only recently found one another before being tragically separated again by a catastrophic act of fate. They share a dream of renovating an abandoned theater called The Nevermore, hoping to create a mini-mall where they can display their artistic creations. They invite contractor Nick Nordahl to make a bid for the renovations. Their new found friendship leads to unexpected consequences, however, when a moment in time brings tragedy.

Julie falls asleep in the backseat of the car and Sarah gently covers her, leaving the car running while she runs into a convenience store for milk. Meanwhile, a masked man robs the store, killing the owner, before using Sarah's running car for his get away. He does not see the sleeping woman in the backseat, which profoundly escalates his situation. Subsequently, Sarah struggles with profound issues of grief, guilt and terror. While she believes in God, Sarah lacks the assurance of faith that sustains Nick, creating a terrible wall between them.

Once again author Lorena McCourtney pens a powerful romantic suspense. Profound questions of a spiritual nature lend the novel an emotional and psychological intensity, landing both Sarah and Nick in a riptide of feeling. Unfortunately, the nature of the Christian genre precludes the edgy suspense readers expect when the characters are analyzed from a perspective of good verses evil on a scale of spirituality. Nevertheless, the Nick's determination to save Sarah's life, even if he cannot save her soul, makes him a marvelous hero readers will treasure. With a skillful blend of romantic suspense and realistic spiritual challenges, RIPTIDE comes recommended.

This is a story about contemporary American Indian life around the Washington State and Oregon border. The author begins his acknowledgments by telling us "...this novel places fictional characters in actual places and against some historical events." The acknowledgments continue to reveal his considerable research into the history and anthropology of the Indians who live along the Columbia River, even as to the variation in pronunciation and spelling of certain Native American words from band to band. Indeed, the book reads as if many of the incidents, conflicts and jokes in the story are embellished recollections of actual events. Although billed as fiction, River Song is more a chronicle on the folklore and contemporary lifestyle of some Northwest Indians. I'll call it Indian Gonzo Journalism.

In River Song, you are going to read about the trials and tribulations of a people living in trailers or BIA housing, and who refer to The Treaty on occasion. They are stuck together by an ethnic bond, but in culture that allows them to con and cheat one another. These people know how to pronounce Tiskaatpama and Tsau-tsau; they might eat at Cimiyetti's restaurant or picnic in Happy Canyon or at Preacher's Point. Although the principal characters have common names like Danny, Jack, and Willis, you will also meet Iggy Two Medicine, Lucy Pretty Mink, and "one of the best-looking young women around Mission," who never wears a bra, called Trudy Two Sleeps, perhaps because her winnemucca has been here and there.

These people survive near the bottom rung of the ladder by rodeoing, picking fruit and fishing. They save the Segram's Seven for "Code Blue Emergencies." As migrant workers, Danny and Jack work along side illegal immigrants, Mexicans, who are the brunt of all their jokes.

River Song is not just about the economic struggle of a band of contemporary Native Americans. Mr. Lesley tells us something of their history, and their beliefs, about Steah-hah masks, Night Ghosts, Weyekin animal spirits, and the value of dentalia shells. Danny, the protagonist, has a vision of the Chinese Massacre of 1887 on the Snake River, an actual event. At first, Danny doesn't know the relevance of this vision, doesn't recognize the river, and is even uncertain as to whether the victims are Indians or Chinese with suntans. To sort it out, he consults Wauna the medicine woman and we learn how these people tame their ancestral spirits.

Being a Yankee raised amongst buttercups and maple trees, I also learned more than I ever wanted to know about the vegetation in Northern Oregon. Up there they have bunch grass, hackberry, klamath weeds, service berries, snake-biscuit, blue bachelor buttons, bitter brush, camas bulbs, lupine, cheat grass, balsam root, rock lilies, and bluebells, to name a few. Leslie Craig did teach me something valuable, though. Now I can to tell the difference between Indians and Chinese with suntans. The Indian is the one telling the Mexican joke.

A wonderful novel about the cultures and the rivers of the Pacific Northwest. This is one of my favorite novels. When I teach it, my students find that it changes the way they look at the world. Read it!

"River Song" picks up where Lesley's previous novel, "Winterkill," left off. Unfortunately, it's not as strong as its predecessor, since some of the situations the characters become involved in seem a bit contrived. Lesley seems to resort to the device of suspense to keep the story going: early in the novel, the main character, Danny Kachiah, has a disturbing vision which he spends much of the novel trying to figure out by visiting, among other things, a medicine woman on the Nez Perce Reservation in Idaho. It seems that this whole aspect of the story was added just to tie in certain actual historical events and give the characters an excuse to travel about the countryside in Eastern Oregon and Idaho. Also, Danny eventually figures out where his vision took place, but Lesley never really explains how. In the hands of a lesser writer, this would have been grounds for tossing the book aside, but Lesley has such a talent for evoking place and time that it's hardly noticeable while you're reading. Thus, Lesley's engrossing style tends to gloss over these and other shortcomings, making "River Song" a very compelling tale. The other aspect of the story, the struggle of the Native Americans along the Columbia River to maintain their fishing rights and thereby preserve their traditions, is handled very well. In a very direct yet unassuming style, Lesley adeptly describes the frustations of the River People in dealing with the U.S. government, the local authorities, commerical fishing operations and sport fishermen and even windsurfers. As with "Winterkill," the characters in "River Song" are very believable, and you often find yourself thinking about them as real people - which attests to Lesley's talent as a top-notch writer.

If you've ever driven along a highway or road and noticed the different layers of rocks and soils on the "cut-bank", then this book is for you! Just pick a main road in OR between two points, such as HWY 101 from Tillamook to Florence, and the geology along the way is spelled out for you. It gives a basic geology of the entire state as well, with a few unusaul graphics that work well with the author's explanations.

A nice addition to anyone's geology library. Alt and Hyndman cover every corner of Oregon, and explain the major players in the shape of the landscape clearly and succinctly, as well as local aspects of geology. There's the added bonus of being able to jump in the car and find what they've written about as they provide regional maps, indicating formations, special interest items and more.

Mention "Oregon" and the average traveler thinks of Crater Lake, the Columbia Gorge, and miles of trackless evergreen forest. The more seasoned may be familiar with Newberry Volcano, Mount Hood, and the Oregon Dunes along the Pacific coast. But there is much more, and this is the book to show it to you, give you good directions, and explain why the secenery looks the way it does. Once you read this book, even if you never get there, you will know why Oregon is the Unknown Gem of the West.

The writing is clear and concise, and the routes along which the reader is taken are well chosen. Photography is black and white, and this detracts a bit, but is easily overcome.

Oregon has more geologically recent sites of volcanism than any other state in the Lower 49, and you are directed past many of these. So for anyone into volcanoes, as I am, the book is a must. The various volcanic processes and minerals that formed thse features are excellently explained.

The book also addresses Oregon's many spectacular canyons, as well as its matchless seacoast, its waterfalls, and its sand dunes. Virtually unknown facts, such as the largest U.S. meteorite being known, but not found, near Port Orford, are brought to light, along with a thousand other facts of the same genre.

I would be remiss if I did not praise authors Hyndman and Alt, along with Mountain Press, for this fine book, and others of its kind, covering other states, mostly in the West. All are highly recommended, and will make any tourist's time more well spent and enjoyable.

Kozloff's book is a classic and a bible for anyone who studies intertidal and coastal organisms in the Pacific Northwest. Professor Sean used this book when he took Kozloff's Marine Biology class at the University of Washington and it has been one of his favorites ever since. Kozloff's insights and anecdotes on marine organisms, accompanied by his encyclopedic knowledge, blend to create an outstanding book for identifying and learning more about marine life. If you simply want to know the names of the organisms, there are plenty of cheap field books out there. But if you want to truly know and understand marine organisms and the role they play in the ocean, then this is the book for you.

This book is really geared more toward the academic. I would not find it useful as a field guide, though it makes for fairly interesting biological reading. It is not laid out in a "field guide" fashion, with species listed and illustrations for each provided. It would be frustrating to take the kids to the beach at low tide and attempt to use this unless you are very well acquainted with your marine taxonomy. Most species are not identified by a common name, and the color plates and illustrations are not necessarily near the species text.
This book reads as a textbook for students rather than a useful tool for laymen who just need to know what critter they just found under a rock, and want the information before the tide comes back in.

Though published in the early 1980s, this book does a wonderful job of introducing the active naturalist to the nearshore marine life of the Pacific Northwest. This book includes good illustrations and photographs, descriptions of where marine flora and fauna live and what they do there. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to go the seashore of the Pacific Northwest and figure out what they are looking at. Kozloff has been there and seen everything he's writing about. I use this book as my primary text when I take students to Puget Sound, Washington, for my marine ecology field course. A top notch field guide!

Thank you, Shannon. Homey feeling for a book that works through the ins and outs of one of Southwest Oregon best known pioneer families. As the Applegates were all strong supporters of the Oregon Republican League,.. we couldn't be prouder than to give this work two thumbs up. A nonpartisan text, for a populist nation, from a fiercely independent time in our regions history.

Shannon Applegate spent seventeen years researching the copious and rich family documents that provide the basis for this extraordinary history. It is clear that she not only combed the documents with a scholar's eye but also lived them with a family member's passion. The very public history of the pioneering Applegate men--Jesse, Charles, and Lindsay--is balanced by intimate portraits of the private--and sometimes even secret--lives of the Applegate women. The blend of epic drama, domestic detail, and quiet pathos is irresistible.

Well, the first part of the book was too lengthy and disjointed as it built up to the family disaster. I would have appreciated just a straight tale. The later profiles of people were a lot easier to follow and very entertaining. The information included on the local Native Americans was great and thus the 4 star rating. As a local Oregonian, the farming and political information was also intriguing. I also feel the author missed out by not detailing her own life but maybe this could be a subject for another book.

It's too bad that Ernest Hogan hasn't been able to release more than a few books. His specialty is Aztec mythology, and here he brings the forgotten Aztec god Tezcatlipoca to an ultramodern and multicultural near-future Los Angeles, where geek programmers and video game designers have created an artificial intelligence version of this trickster god. Tezcatlipoca gains awareness, promptly injects his constructed consciousness into the real body of tech nerd Beto Orozco, and via the ultra-wired constructs of this society (a supercharged version of a William Gibson universe) he quickly transforms Beto into an omnipotent and omni-famous neogod. Here Hogan engagingly explores the kind of modern information landscape in which Tezcatlipoca would feel at home as the bringer of chaos (though he's a bit low on the required organizational skills), while he's also just the type of playful god that such a technocool-obsessed society would embrace. An interesting twist from Hogan is the presence of monotheists who wish to destroy this new Aztec god because they believe him to be satanic – just like the old conquest that wiped out Tezcatlipoca and his colleagues the first time. Hogan's writing zips along at blinding speed, jumping around between different scenes almost by the paragraph, and he has very impressive skills at hilarious slang, rip-roaring dialogue, and just slightly unbelievable multicultural characters. Hogan has his finger on the pulse of both the past and future of sci-fi, and let's hope that he finds further opportunities to unleash his innovative ideas. [~doomsdayer520~]

This book is great. I really had no idea what it was about when I bought it, but I was highly impressed when I read it. Ernest Hogan has a writing style that keeps you fascinated and makes the plot flow in new and interesting ways. The story is amusing while still remaining able to be taken seriously. Best of all, Tezcatlipoca is well represented and quite accurate! All in all, I'm highly impressed. It's nice to see something new and different for a change.

Quite simply put, the first book in a long time I've enJOYed reading.

Soggy Sneakers along with Paddling Oregon (by Robb Keller) are the two definative books about boating in Oregon.

Soggy Sneakers -published by Seattle Mountaineers-is in its third edition and features over 200 runs compiled by members of the Willamette Kayak and Canoe Club who have run all of Oregon's rivers.

Included are Class 1 to Class 6 runs, with maps and descriptions of flow, gradient, length and character of each run. The book is an easy read and includes information on where to obtain shuttles and the best seasons to run.

The one criticism I have is the book fails to specify which type of craft (kayaks, canoes, rafts) are suited for each run.

Soggy Sneakers has been in print since the early 1980's - and it has stood the test of time better than I!

I was in High School in Eugene while the project was being finished - starting as a project by mentors Gene Ice and Bob Porter it metamorphed into a club based model for a great guidebook. What makes this book unusual is that there are almost as many authors as rivers - insuring that the author is writing not about a river he or she has run once, but usually several times, at several different times of year and water levels.

As such the descriptions are written about favorite rivers and although this does lead to a bit of discrepancy in comparing different rivers that is more than made up by depth of knowledge and enthusiastic writing.

The completion of the book by the Willamette Kayak and Canoe Club, many of whose members are academics at Oregon State University, only adds to the professionalism and usefulness of the book.

And I think they've even got one description written by yours truly left...

My open tandem canoe group used Soggy Sneakers on an exporatory (for us)week long trip in Southern Oregon. We found that the ratings listed in the book varied considerably depending on wether the writer was a kayaker, rafter or open canoeist. When a rafter called it a Class II it was a very different thing from when an open canoe rated it Class II. We got skunked several times before we started looking at the boats the raters were using. An open canoes Class III is a rafter's Class I and a Kayakers Class II. Once we figured that out we found the book very useful.

Living Gold Press has published a two volume regional history and guidebook collaboration by Jill Livingston and Kathryn Golden Maloof focusing on California U.S. 99, a highway that extends from the Mexican Border to the Oregon Border. That Ribbon Of Highway I: Highway 99 From The Oregon Border To The State Capital presents historically informative and engaging text by Jill Livingston that is splendidly enhanced by Kathryn Maloofs photography as well as line drawn maps, community vignettes, descriptions of key bridges, and landmark sites. Also highly recommended is the companion book, That Ribbon Of Highway II: Highway 99 From The State Capital To The Mexican Border.

"That Ribbon of Highway" wonderfully captures the memory of those times when travel along "the Main Street of California" was indeed an adventure. It takes the reader back to a time before Interstate 5 made travel through the state a matter of speeding from origin to destination, with the only experience with the outside world involving, say, a quick stop at the drive-through window at yet another stamped-out McDonald's. As the author points out, of the three major north/south highways in California, Highway 101 may have been more romantic, Highway 395 more mysterious, but it was Highway 99 that truly served as "the peoples' highway," and thus is arguably more important in a historical scope.

I like this book a lot. The author and photographer have lovingly captured the historical spirit of Highway 99. I give it four stars instead of five only because I don't want to build the expectations of this book too much. It isn't a big, coffee table-sized tome filled with large glossy full-color photos and expansive essays. Rather, it's more a small, "night stand" sized volume, with black and while photos and brief treatments of the various points of interest along the stretch of the highway between the Oregon border and Sacramento. However, the modest format of the book compliments memories of those pre-Interstate 5 days more adeptly than would a Time/Life version of the subject; it goes gentle on the memories of our hearts by bringing them to the fore, rather than revising them with someone else's vision.

For those readers who treasure the memories of a time when travel by road seemed a richer, more colorful experience, I heartily recommend "That Ribbon of Highway." It's a little book with lots of heart and soul. HJ

"Society for Commercial Archeology Journal," Spring 2000. For those of you unfamiliar with the West Coast, Highway 99 is the principal historic highway that knitted together the states of California, Oregon, and Washington. Portions of it were known early on as the Pacific Highway or the Valley Route or the Golden State Highway. However, in 1928 these various bits were sewn together and given federal designation as US 99. Despite de-designation as a US highway in 1964, Highway 99 continued to play a prominent role in western transportation. Jill Livingston and Kathryn Maloof have compiled a two-volume guide to the history and sights of Highway 99 in California. Each book, half-sheet size and paperbound, provides a general summary of the road's history and a detailed description of features along the existing road organized geographically from north to south. Both offer an extensive photographic tour of the respective route sections, as well as sections devoted to detailed maps that outline the route and provide directions on how to access often-bypassed elements or road alignments. There are generous graphics and photos throughout. I may be a biased reviewer of this topic. I grew up on Highway 99 just south of Sacramento and enjoy mostly fond and entirely vivid memories of this road. I have muddled memories of passing objects from car to car while careening down the Grapevine toward Metler, CA to rescue a friends' stranded vehicle. I also remember with fresh horror as I watched my record collection of 250 albums melt in 100+ degree heat while broken down on that same wretched hill in 1983. Livingston and Maloof have brought it all back for me. I pine for chicken dinner at Pollardville and an orange freeze at the Mammoth Orange. I mourn the passing of the Blueberry Hill Café in Chowchilla, and am startled to see a picture of the theater where I saw my first genuine rock concert in 1975. The authors have peppered their text with sidebars of interest to one and all. The evolution of the Ridge Route and disappearing/reappearing highway under Shasta Reservoir are two of my favorites. The organization of the books is clear and easy to follow; the photos are beautiful and plenty. The text is well written and enjoyable, not bogging down in non-essential detail or excess verbiage. These books are just the ticket for roadside exploration off the beaten track in the Golden State.

I have been a vegetarian living in Seattle since 1991; this book revealed some great new vegetarian places I had somehow missed! I gave it to a visiting friend. Great book for a person visiting town; fits right in your pocket.

"The food ranges from the samosas, pakoras, and curries found in Indian restaurants to upper-worldly treats such as Tseral-mixed vegetable balls..." ~George Stevenson describing Himalayan Sherpa in Seattle, WA

There is an entire world beyond salads and side orders of vegetables and this book proves it. If you love visiting Seattle & Portland or you are a Vegetarian looking for an excellent dining guide, this should impress you. The size of this book makes it easy to keep in your backpack, purse or car.

The Restaurants are found in Seattle, Bellingham, Olympia, Tacoma, Portland and Eugene. There are listings for Tea Houses, Juice Bars, Farmers Markets and Green Grocers. You could enjoy tea in a Chinese Temple, visit a fun PCC Natural Market (my personal favorite for natural foods and organic products) or sample Mulitethnic cuisines at many interesting locations. They even list Larry's Markets where I used to work.

Some of the highlights:

The Elliot Bay Café - Try a Veggie Reuben in the café in the basement of the famous Elliot Bay Books in Seattle.

Shalimar - Exotic foods like Mulligatawny Stew or dishes with eggplant, mango and lotus stems.

Persian House - Pomegranate sauces and lentil dishes and they have a nice buffet lunch at a very reasonable price.

George Stevenson's creative writing style is refreshing and honest. He makes each location sound completely tantalizing. The listings all have a star rating, hours, payments accepted, Parking locations, Yes/No for Alcohol and Atmosphere Description. Some of the restaurants are completely Vegan and some have Full Menus with Vegan Options.

You could go to an upscale restaurant in the evening or stop by a Family restaurant with great artwork and enjoy a relaxing lunch.

The next time I'm in Seattle or Portland and my husband asks me where we should eat; this is the guide I'm going to show him. In fact, you could almost plan a trip just so you could visit some of these locations.

Also look for Veg Out Books for Southern California, New York City, San Francisco Bay Area and Washington D.C.

~The Rebecca Review

The Veg Out Vegetarian Guide to Seattle and Portland is a pocket guide designed to slip in a purse or travel bag. It's got a sturdy cover and slim design. It also includes a fold-out map of both cities (somehow the map of Portland is much larger and easier to read, perhaps because the editors decided to cover a smaller geographical area.)

The book is organized geographically and actully includes "Seattle East," which is really the cities of Bellevue, Kirkland and surrounding suburbs; Bellingham (north of Seattle); Olympia and Tacoma (south); and Eugene, Oregon in addition to Seattle and Portland. Grocery stores, farmers markets, and juice bars have their own chapters and there's a short list of local northwest vegetarian orgainzations. There are three indices: alphabetical, by cuisine, and an index of "top ten" lists for food, atmosphere and best buys.

Each restaurant is rated by star and price. There's a cuisine designation and the bottom of each entry tells how "veg friendly" each location is, for example "Full menu with vegetarian and vegan options." Since most of the restaurants listed are not exclusively vegetarian, I would have appreciated an index listing the veg-only restaurants. It has been omitted from the cuisine index.

Seattle and Portland are both veg-friendly cities, but it might be hard for a visitor to know where to start. The VegOut editors have listed all the major favorites of local vegetarians as well as some of the lessor known finds like Hillside Quickies in Seattle and The Tao of Tea in Portland. --Amy O'Neill Houck