Utah Books

If you are a true Canadian Hockey fan, then you already have this book! Can you imagine Wayne Gretsky whispering in your ear "You're gonna be a legend"! Truly inspiring and very well written. You'll keep the pages turning.

The fact that there was a loonie at centre ice during the Salt Lake City Olympics only makes the double gold that much sweeter.
I loved reading about how the loonie came to be as well as how the Canadian teams perceived it. This story is for the true Canadian Hockey fan and will remain a legend for years to come.

I devoured this short read of Canadian history in one sitting.

I took the time to review this book because I feel strongly that it contains excellent photographs which deserve a wider audience. Michael Smith is one of the best living photographers and a national treasure of the US. He is known well in the photographic community but remains fairly obscure outside this group. I recommend this book to anyone interested in excellent photography.

Michael A. Smith has traveled many miles photographing the land, the cities, and the people across America, and is possibly the greatest photographer of our time. Not only is his subject matter interesting, every picture in this publication reveals his mastery of seeing, composition, and print quality. An excellent book.

The Mobil Travel Guide for California was invaluable for our recent trips on the California coast and to Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon. My past experience with other Mobil Travel Guides is that their information is complete and accurate. The ratings system for hotels and restaurants are reliable and will steer you to excellent values and quality establishments. Unless an establishment is brand new, it is a safe bet that it has not been included in the Guide for a reason. The Guide is especially helpful for families who are looking for a quality hotel room or meal for a reasonable price.

We have used the maps in the Guide and it has helpful information for planning trips, including mileage and time between destinations. The individual listings of motels, hotels and restaurants give useful information regarding decor, amenities and pets. We moved our family and pets across country using the Mobil Guide to find hotels that accepted dogs in our price range. This is the finest resource for domestic travel that I have seen. I recommend that you buy it for planning your trip and don't forget to bring it along. We changed our travel plans in the Mojave desert and made reservations on our cell phone using the Mobil Guide to California and the West!

The guide has a nice layout, which makes things easy to find. Each section gives a general overview of what there is to do in an area; this is a great starting point if you are not familiar with the location. I think this would be a great asset to anyone traveling about in Arizona, California, Nevada, and Utah.

I am the 4th great granddaughter of Patty Sessions. This book is an excellent genealogical source for me. She in one or two places in her journal addresses her descendants. I feel as if she is speaking directly to me. She worked hard all of her life, you can tell by her entries. It humbles me to know that I am related to such a great lady. I am thankful that I am able to have this book in my library.

Patty Sessions didn't spend a lot of time detailing the happenings of each day, she was too busy doing everything else imaginable. The entries are usually just a few lines for each day, yet month by month, and year by year, she paints a picture that is an effective illustration of what life was like in early polygamy, what folk beliefs influenced her, and the her role she shared with the more recognized greats of the mormon West, like Brigham Young.
Patty Sessions shares her life and passion for religion, but her religion is quite different from the Mormonism of today. Patty Sessions' life makes great reading for any student of history at any level.
The editor, through pain-staking effort, has added notes of background and clarification that really bring some obscure parts to life. I have given other books about Mormon History five stars, and I regret it as this book IS Mormon History, and provides unique insight that only comes from witnessing a life in words of those who lived it.

A captivating read of a vanished Rocky Mountain culture who "bucked the trend" of normal society by retreating to the high mountainous regions of the Yellowstone environs.

The authors have carefully pieced together significant evidence and documentation to impart the reader with a respected awe into the lives of the Sheep Eater Indians.
From archeological digs, petroglyphic sites, stone and animal tools, etc. to discussions with contemporary day descendants, this study covers it all in general terminology.

Having visited a few of these sites myself, it never ceases to amaze what had once occured in these landscapes so long ago.

The Sheep Eaters were an amazing people that flourished in the majestic, alpine environments of Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho, including areas that are now part of Yellowstone National Park. They lived entirely by gathering the natural plant foods of their environment in addition to hunting Big Horn Sheep, which was their primary source of protein. They were renown as a peaceful, highly-skilled, and even industrious people who so thoroughly mastered their rugged alpine environment, they opted to continue living in the mountains even after others in the region adopted the horse, the tipi, and the buffalo-hunting-on-the-plains lifestyle.

The authors provide a thorough picture of Sheep Eater history and culture, including social structure, religious beliefs, and the crafting of their tools, clothes, bows, living shelters, and even their cookware.

This is an excellent introduction to a Native American people that few know anything about. Both scholars and laymen will enjoy the very accessible, easy-to-read material. Mountain Spirit should be required reading for everyone interested in the American West, Native American culture, as well as those seeking inspiration from a people who managed to prosper in one of the most beautiful and forbidding environments in North America.

It is with great pleasure that I recommend this book by my old friend Lloyd Miller. He and I performed Persian folk music in Los Angeles in 1988 and I have fond memories of that concert. He was working on his dissertation at that time and it's wonderful to see it published. My only complaint is that it is very difficult to find. No surprise to see that he has done an excellent job of surveying this unique and beautiful tradition, which is so difficult to describe in Western terminology. Some parts of the book are quite technical, and will be rather formidable for beginners. Ethnomusicologists with a special interest in the Middle East will be delighted. Ella Zonis' 1973 tome "Classical Persian Music" might be somewhat easier going for the novice, but it is also tough to locate ... try a good library. Lloyd Miller's book is an indispensible tool and companion for those of us who heve learned to love this music. Bravo!

The author shares his vast knowledge of this esoteric subject. I would have liked to have seen more on the interplay of the 'ghazals' of Hafez as they relate to avaz. The role of the American Peace Corps professional musicians in Iran during the 1960s and 1970s should have been discussed.

A very special memoir, "My Kitchen Table: Sketches From My Life" is the autobiographical reminisces of Pilar Pobil presented to the reader as she had original told them around her kitchen table to her children. One very special difference is that in "My Kitchen Table", Pilar Pobil enhances those already engaging biographical stories with fifty full color reproductions of her paintings and sculptures. This compendium of stories about Pilar's growing up in Mallorca, of meeting the man who would marry her and take her back to Utah, of her discovery with respect to a talent for creating art, is as engaging as it is informative. Written with wit, wisdom, and occasionally flashes of insight, "My Kitchen Table" is very highly recommended reading as the personal memoir of a very special and talented artist.

Pilar Pobil is a popular and prolific artist - painter, sculpture, and more - with roots in the upper classes of old Mallorca Spain. Her life is marked by dramatic stories from the revolution that changed her life forever... Eventually landing her in 1960's mormon Utah, where she has blossomed - particularly in her "third life" as an artist.

Pilar's art is self taught, diverse, yet all connected - Landscapes of Spain, Southern Utah, Mexico and more... Still Lifes, Fascinating people of the past and of parties in the night and places far away. The depth of meaning and symbolism in her paintings carry into the painted frames. Her sculptured figures have secret lives that she can share with you.

This is her first book of written work. Pilar shares in her own words and unique style, glimpses of her fascinating life. The color plates of some of her work are well reproduced and complement the diverse stories from long ago through the recent past, adding insight. Some stories meander, into side trips, but always come back to the point. Her writing is descriptive, at times comical and even suspenseful... enough that I feel I was there at times!

Pilar is an intelligent, charming and talented woman, with earned opinions. She is quite in tune with the natural world, the political, and the art world. She relates to people of all ages. A visit to Pilar's home and garden is a journey into a rich, magical and beautiful world... an adventure of endless discovery. Time spent with her at her kitchen table is a wonderful gift - one that you can get a taste of through this book.

I really enjoyed this book. I gave it five stars because it would be apealing to even the casual reader. Each of it's chapters are written by emminent Mormon (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints) scholars. Each chapter was originally a presentation at a symposium given at BYU. Any one interested in the Mormon faith can get an insight into its pioneering history and anyone interested in history can meet the Mormon legacy. It has been a useful and valuable addition to my personal library. One of the contributing authors, Richard Oman is a curator at the Museum of Church History and Art in Salt Lake City, where I am a docent. His chapter titled "The Homemade Kingdom; Mormom Regional Furniture" revisits very closely the exhibit of the same name installed in the museum a couple of years ago and is thoroughly enjoyable. All of these contributors are accomplished writers in addition to their scholarly pusuits so the book is an enjoyable read. Each chapter is self contained and lends itself to interupted reading.

I really enjoyed this book. I gave it five stars because it would be apealing to even the casual reader. Each of it's chapters are written by emminent Mormon (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints) scholars. Each chapter was originally a presentation at a symposium given at BYU. Any one interested in the Mormon faith can get an insight into its pioneering history and anyone interested in history can meet the Mormon legacy. One of the contributing authors, Richard Oman is a curator at the Museum of Church History and Art in Salt Lake City, where I am a docent. His chapter titled "The Homemade Kingdom; Mormom Regional Furniture" revisits very closely the exhibit of the same name installed in the museum a couple of years ago and is thoroughly enjoyable. All of these contributors are accomplished writers in addition to their scholarly pusuits so the book is an enjoyable read. Each chapter is self contained and lends itself to interupted reading. It has been a useful and valuable addition to my personal library.

The Big What Are Friends For? Storybook is a compendium of heartwarming tales about friendship between animal pals as well as the ups and downs of their everyday life. Packed with a treasury of thoroughly enjoyable short stories by Sally Grindley, and soft color illustrations by Penny Dann that blend with and enhance the entertaining text, The Big What Are Friends For? Storybook makes for excellent bedtime reading.

My children and I love this story! It is refreshing to find a tale of friendship that touches on sharing and helping, but also on differing opinions and hurt feelings. The story weaves nicely through all of these aspects of friendship and still manages to end happily. The illustrations convey all of the emotions of the two sweet characters most effectively. This delightful story easily led to conversation with my preschoolers on the value of true friends.

Everett Ruess is a marvelously gifted poet. He writes in elegant lines teeming with passionate imagery. "Wilderness Song" is the most incredible piece and describes nature at its fullest. Any poet can write beautiful lines, but Ruess writes with soul, the soul of an aficianado of the wilderness.

A chilling voice out of the past from one who loved wilderness so much he vanished without a trace in it. I am hard pressed to come up with a book or person who was able to articulate the beauty around him more than Everett Ruess. In a tragic twist this lover of the purity nature gave and continues to give a painter's perspective in words to the American west despite the mysterious circumstances surrounding his disappearance. He left behind not only the beautiful writings of a master (and at such a young age) but also a mysterious tale of intrigue that leaves people guessing to this very day. Was he a victim of murder or did his love for wilderness drive him into the vast unknown to live out his days in the peaceful tranquility only nature can provide? Buy the book and formulate your own opinions. I highly recommend it.