British Columbia Books

I bought this 600+ page tome because I wanted to learn more about 19th century English history. I knew virtually nothing about Gladstone, and I was convinced by the cover that claims this to be "[an] enthralling biography ... utterly absorbing" [an exact quote] according to "The Atlantic Monthly."

But as noted by other reviewers, this book dwells only on minutiae without (before I gave up at around page 60) providing any memorable insights into anything. It is possible that I can't "get it" because I'm an American without a grounding in the basics of English politics and English history -- exactly who are the Whigs, who are the Tories, Palmerston, that sort of thing -- but I think this book's problems are deeper than that.

For instance, we learn on page 57 that Gladstone's sister-in-law married "George Lyttelton, of Hagley Hall, who had succeeded as the fourth Lord Lyttelton of the second creation in 1837" and that his later achievements included "honorary degrees from both Oxford and Cambridge" and becoming "the first principal of Queen's College, Birmingham." But a few pages later, where we find Gladstone giving an important speech in the Commons concerning his opposition to the Opium Wars, we are told absolutely nothing about the Opium Wars, etc.

I know quite a bit about American history, but when reading a biography of Andrew Jackson, I doubt I would be very interested in learning about the comings and goings of the second cousins of members of his administration.

William Gladstone is probably the most recognized name in British life and politics during the period known as the Victorian era. His public life ran nearly concurrently with Queen Victoria's reign, usually not to his comfort or benefit, but his influence in government and public life was both an embodiment of the Victorian Age and at times a check upon its excesses.

I spent a fair amount of time wondering if the United States had ever produced someone even remotely similar to Gladstone, and I have still come up empty. Gladstone entered Parliament in 1833 and gave his last address in 1894. Despite youthful political indiscretions, an early tendency toward controversial outspokenness in matters theological, religious eccentricities, a tendency toward micromanagement, a temperamental sovereign, and a mixed record as four-time prime minister, Gladstone navigated sixty-some years of public service in a fashion that earned him the universal title Grand Old Man. The Gladstone portrayed by Jenkins becomes a character greater than the sum of his parts, certainly at least as responsible for the Pax Victoria as Victoria herself, whose vanities of empire were stoked, unwisely as it proved, by Gladstone's lifelong rival, Disraeli.

The young Gladstone fancied himself a theologian, and as a young MP produced a lengthy and polemical defense of the Anglican Church that fortuitously came to be forgotten in succeeding years. He never lost interest in theology, however, nor in the health of the established Anglican Church. The conversion of his friends Newman and Manning to Roman Catholicism troubled him, but the experience perhaps ameliorated a residual dogmatism to the point where he could converse with such as Charles Darwin in the latter's home. Religion would always be a major drive in Gladstone's life, but one of his religious practices has drawn particular interest over the years.

Gladstone, during the first half of his life, believed he was called to rescue prostitutes from a life of sin. Jenkins is careful here to walk a thin line in his assessment of Gladstone's "ministry." He [Jenkins] concludes that while Gladstone probably did believe his work was religious, he did find erotic stimulation in visiting such women in their places of residence, but apparently without technical marital infidelity. Gladstone himself would admit later that he succeeded in converting perhaps one of the ninety or so women he frequented; his diary indicates that such activity caused him enough moral discomfort that he engaged in frequent self-flagellation.

Fortunately for Gladstone, it was his legislative, oratorical, and administrative competence that shaped his public image. Somewhat like Churchill, he served in a number of government capacities, but clearly he was best suited as Chancellor of the Exchequer. American government does not have an equivalent officer who in effect draws up the nation's budget and establishes spending and taxing priorities for Parliament to vote up or down. Gladstone was a Conservative of a curious sort by today's standards: he eschewed deficit spending but did not shrink from raising taxes for what Henry Clay would have called "internal improvements." His policies over the years were generally good for the economy, and as Prime Minister for four separate tenures he enjoyed popularity among the laboring classes. In his later years Gladstone took to campaigning for elections and causes, attracting large and generally friendly crowds. This was an innovation in British politics, and Victoria thought it pedestrian.

Four times during his career Gladstone was summoned by the Queen to form new governments. Relations between the two were never warm, particularly after the death of Prince Albert. Gladstone, unlike many in government, became more liberal in old age. He was never entirely at peace with jingoistic rhetoric of empire [which Disraeli, according to Jenkins, spoon-fed the Queen to saturation], and his major political crucible was a morally equitable settlement of the Irish dilemma, a dream which regrettably escaped him and crippled his governments. Victoria, with a near neurotic fear of anarchy, found Gladstone's popularity unsettling and his politics too radical.

Gladstone, on the other hand, took advantage of the rapidly expanding railroad systems to observe first hand economic and political developments both in England and on the Continent. In some ways he shared Victoria's concern over nineteenth century upheavals and threats to legitimate and long established structures of authority, but his political instincts guided him toward moderate governance and a steady improvement in the standard of living. One may argue that Gladstone was also voted out of office four times, which is true; in his defense, his "social agenda" on such matters as Ireland and suffrage, modest as it was, ran against the tide of a reactionary monarch and the still well entrenched aristocracy of the House of Lords.

Gladstone's foreign policy was generally benign, a case of his being lucky and good. He was a Confederate sympathizer during the Civil War, but he did not object to American damage claims involving the Confederate warship Alabama, outfitted in England. His one major adventure was an incursion into Egypt in 1882 to stem nationalist unrest. Gladstone, then old and distracted, was not enthused by the cause but won pundits when the uprising was quelled with minimal loss of life.

Gladstone died in 1898 at the age of 89. Queen Victoria outlived him by about three years. Although a devotee of long walks, chopping trees, and frigid swimming outings, Gladstone's life was marred with illnesses and perhaps a tendency toward hypochondria. Certainly his very location in history is remarkable--a living bridge between Napoleon and Winston Churchill. Jenkins makes the most of this tenure in a very satisfying way for the reader. I would note here that an excellent sequel to this work is A.N. Wilson's "After the Victorians."

This book on one of Britian's greatest prime ministers, especially of the 19th century proves to be very boring. I guess that is blunt enough. This is a political biography written by a politican turned historian. The narrow focus of this biography ensure that we know everything about Gladstone's political life and almost nothing outside of it. Subject matters that does not involved Gladstone, the author did not touch. We do not know what kind of Britain Gladstone presided over, what her foreign policies or even her domestic policies if Gladstone wasn't involved. How did Britain's imperialism, her many wars and its cost affected Gladstone? In all these 640 odds pages, we hardly know what kind of man Gladstone was outside of his political arena. His personal relationship with his family, friends, allies and enemies remains vague, superificial and smokey. What we get after reading this biography is a highly detail narrative of Gladstone's political accomplishments, failures, relationships and "what if" political scenarios. I guess if a politican writes about another politican, this is the type of biography you might get, an one dimensional look.

I didn't find the book very well written. It almost look like the author was overdosing on his thesaurus to impressed his English composition teacher. I found the Amazon.com review regarding that element to be very accurate.

Thus, I was bit surprised to read all these nice accolodes printed in the book. I wondered if any of these people actually read the book which can put almost anyone to sleep unless of course, if you are a politican.

I find it hard to recommend this book to anyone. Its definitely not for casual reading unless 19th century British parlimentary history is what you are looking for.

William Ewart Gladstone (1809-1898), 4 times Prime Minister of Great Britain during the height of Britain's influence and imperial power, was an extraordinary leader and individual who repays close study. His life, like that of Queen Victoria herself, spanned most of the 19th century. He was perhaps the most eminent of the British Victorians. One can compare him only to Darwin in the extent to which he influenced the culture and lives of his countrymen during that century. He was fourth son of Sir John Gladstone, a wealthy merchant in Liverpool who attained his riches at least partially via his holdings in the slave-worked Carribean cotton and sugar plantations. Like many of the sons of the rich in England during the early Victorian period, William was educated at Eton and Christ College, Oxford. It was at Oxford apparently where the future prime Minister awoke to his three greatest passions: religion, politics and Homer.

Gladstone's intellectual struggles with those three passions are very ably summarized in a coupl eof recent books on the man: Babbington's book on Gladstone's intellectual development and the biography here under review by Jenkins. It speaks well of Gladstone that he took seriously the question of how religion and politics, or church and state ought to be related both culturally and institutionally/legally. Gladstone really did grapple mightily with the issue and his labors did produce fruit it seems to me. In some ways Gladstone was the ideal man to pursue the question of Church and State. He was an able politician and administrator in a country where Church and State issues had been life or death matters for centuries. He was also a deeply religious man who read voraciously in theology and spirituality and who all his life engaged in regular prayer and ministry. On the other hand, though he was a very successful politician he was not a profound political thinker. He did not have the same deep grounding in either theology or in political philosophy that many of his contemporaries had. He knew enough, however, to know that he did not know and thus he very wisely sought counsel from the experts. Although he was an almost fanatical High Anglican churchman, he eagerly sought counsel from three Roman Catholics: the German theologian Dollinger, the convert John Henry Newman and the political historian Lord Acton. Three of these men, Gladstone, Acton and Dollinger, were lifelong friends who corresponded and met regularly over several decades. Newman corresponded with the 3 but was limited in his travel and meetings during to his clerical life and duties. Gladstone, Acton and Dollinger, nevertheless, held Newman in highest regard, though Gladstone always regretted Newman's conversion to Roman Catholicism.
Gladstone's position on Church-state relations evolved along with his political views over the many years he spent in public life. When he graduated from Oxford in 1832, his father convinced the Duke of Newcastle to sponsor his son for the Newark constituency and thus Gladstone entered politics in a fateful year for Britain and for Gladstone. In that year the great Reform Act of 1832 had been passed which substantially increased the franchise. Gladstone would be at the center of further increases in the franchise throughout the 19th century.

Gladstone distinguished himself with fine oratorical skills in his maiden speeches in parliament. He was very conservative and opposed the extension of the franchise and loosening up the tight Church-state relationship. He very quickly developed the view that the strength of a polity depended on the strength and respect given to the Church. His deep religious sense also allowed him to sometimes place the interests of the state in service to the interests of the Church. This makes sense if you view the interests of the population as the same as or coterminous with the interests of religion. If the people need religion in order to flourish then the job of the State is to protect and nurture religious institutions and power. To do so would be to increase the power of the people.

He parliamentary speeches got him noticed by Peel, the prime Minister, who appointed him to a post in the Treasury. He quickly evidenced unusual administrative ability and the following year he was promoted to under-secretary for the colonies. Before he could distinguish himself in this new post he lost office when Peel resigned in 1835. He reasonably quickly returned to the government, however, when the Whigs were forced out of power in 1841. He now began to display extraordinary political and administrative skills. In 1844 he put together the Railway Bill that obliged railway companies to transport third-class travelers for fares that did not exceed a penny a mile. This bill reduced the unpopularity of his party among ordinary Britons.

In1847 Gladstone was elected the conservative member of parliament (MP) for Oxford University. This is a significant fact as Oxford at that time was a bastion of High Church, conservative thought which held that the State ought to support, financially, legally and in general promote an established religion, namely the High Church form of Anglicanism. Gladstone believed that Anglicanism had discovered the right form of state-church relations with the two entities roughly co-equal influence in the larger culture and each competent in its own domain. The state could not and should not undertake any actions that would undermine the influence of the Church and vice versa. Gladstone opposed Roman Catholicism insofar as it yielded where religious questions were concerned to a power outside of the local nationality. He also opposed low church and protestant manifestations of religion in England as disordered in their relations to the state: either they were hostile to the state and too subservient to state powers (e.g. the Puritans under Cromwell). All his life Gladstone was quite critical, even fanatically so, of the Roman Catholic Papacy-this despite his intense and life-long friendships with devout Roman Catholics. His own sister had converted to Roman Catholicism. Yet he saw the papacy as illiberal and operating to instill superstious subservience in the life of the faithful. When the First Vatican Council created the dogma of papal infallibility Gladstone only felt confirmed in his estimate of the backwardness of the Papacy. He never learned to see that the Papacy represented a cultural force that could be appealed to over and beyond the state. It represented a check on state power... but Gladstone never understood that. Indeed, it is now generally believed by many competent historians that democracy emerged first in the West precisely because the Papacy always constituted an extra-local, extra-national, spiritual, legal and institutional authority that could trump the local sovereign in several important cultural and economic domains that affected the lives of ordinary people nominally under the jurisdiction of the local Sovereign. Such was not the case in the Eastern Orthodox tradition where Church (in the form of the Metropolitan and Patriarchate) was subordinated to the Emperor and Czar. Thus it is not Christianity per se that yields liberty and democracy but the Latin rite which does so.

When Lord Palmerston, the leader of the Whigs, became Prime Minister in1859, he made Gladstone the post of Chancellor of the Exchequer. Again Gladstone proved an extraordinarily able Administrator: He abolished the paper duty which enabled publishers to produce cheap newspapers. He, bucked the tide in his own party and supported another reform Bill which would have enfranchised large sections of the working class (but this was defeated). His support for reform cost him his seat as representative from Oxford University. He now moved away from the conservative party. Lord Russell, the new Prime Minister, asked Gladstone to become leader of the House of Commons as well as Chancellor of the Exchequer. Gladstone again introduced a reform bill and again was defeated and Russell's administration resigned.

Lord Derby, leader of the conservatives now became Prime Minister with the unscrupulous Benjamin Disraeli acting as leader of the House of Commons. To steal the thunder from Gladstone and the liberals, Disraeli proposed (in 1867) a new Reform (enfranchisement) Act. Unlike Disraeli himself who had earlier blocked Gladstone's efforts on the same measure, Gladstone took a principaled stand, pointed out that he had practically written the bill himself (Disraeli being too stupid to undertake the task), supported the bill and the measure was passed.

The new reform act gave the vote to every male adult householder living in a borough constituency, approximately1,500,000 new voters. Who would get the new voters? Interestingly, the new voters were not decieved by Disraeli's machinations. In the general election of December 1868, the conservatives were defeated and Gladstone, leader of the liberal party, became Prime Minister. Now Gladstone acted with astonishing energy. He wrote and passed the education act (1870) and quickly moved to consolidate his party's base by passing the Ballot Act (1872). This made voting anonymous. Until then voters had to mount a platform and announce their choice of candidate to the officer who then recorded it in the poll book. Employers and local landlords therefore knew how people voted and could punish them if they did not support their preferred candidate.

In the 1874 general election, however, the conservatives squeaked out a bare majority and Disraeli now became Prime Minister. Gladstone led the opposition. At this point he began his lifelong habit of intense scholarly and religious research when out of office. Amazingly enough in less than two years he wrote and published (all while leading the opposition in Parliament!) his book An Inquiry into the Time and Place of Homer in History (1876). It is difficult to describe the work as it contained some very big ideas (Greek culture as part of the Christian revelation-not merely foreshadowing the revelation) and some extraordinary minutiae only scholars could find interesting (e.g. an enumeration of styles, descriptions and functions of doorways in Homer...such info later helped helped anthropologists excavating ruins of Mycanae and Troy).

On a side note: While Disraeli gained the favor of Queen Victoria, Gladstone incurred her wrath. This it turns out was due to the fact that Gladstone was constantly trying to get her to play a role in the religious and political affairs of state (while Disraeli preferred a more tame royalty)-yet she would not budge from the Palaces after the death of Prince Albert. Disraeli's inactivity on the domestic front and bungling of foreign crises led to the dissolution of Parliament in 1880, and the general election resulted in a overwhelming Liberal victory and Gladstone's return to the Prime Minister-ship. Once again he acted energetically, introducing two new measures concerning parliamentary reform. The corrupt practices act reigned in some of the buying and selling of candidates and offices that proliferated under the Disraeli regime. The 1884 reform act gave the counties the same franchise as the boroughs and added about six million to the total number of new voters. Not surprisingly Gladstone and the liberals won the 1886 general election.

He now began another unpopular crusade: Gladstone now attempted to convince Parliament to accept Irish Home Rule. At this time the master Irish politician Parnell was using brilliant parliamentary tactics to bring the issue before Parliament. When Gladstone finally introduced a home rule bill the proposal split his own party and Parliament rejected the measure. He nevertheless tried again but this time Parnell became embroiled in a personal scandal (He had a mistress whom he apparently passionately loved and later married). Without Parnell's leadership in the House of Commons the bill suffered and again went down to defeat. Gladstone was defeated in the polls in the 1886 elections but was once again returned to office for the final time in 1892. He tried once more. The following year the Irish home rule bill was defeated in the house of lords. William Gladstone resigned from office in March 1894 and died at Hawarden on 19th May, 1898.

Gladstone was a remarkable, complicated, even enigmatic man and Jenkins does not waste our time with the sort of pop-psychology projection and junk theories that ruin so much contemporary biography. Instead, Jenkins lets the facts speak for themselves, weighting them based on their demonstrable impact on Gladstone's own life and on British society viewed from the vantage point of 100 years or more of subsequent history. Gladstone emerges through records of his actions, the memoirs of his contemporaries, and his own diary. Jenkins resists the too-common modern conceit of pretending intimate knowledge of Gladstone as if through some astral mind-meld. Although he admits his own affection for the man, Jenkins lets readers decide for themselves what they think of this stubborn, courageous, long-winded, sanctimonious, and usually dead right -- even prophetic -- dynamo.

Along the way there are delightful, balanced, spot-on portraits of some of Gladstone's contemporaries. The often-deified Disraeli comes out as a man of great talent, imagination, and political genius who was a self-absorbed, underhanded lightweight. (A portrayal such as that some modern critics have applied to Bill Clinton.) The slow intellectual and emotional curdling of Queen Victoria after the death of Prince Albert is as eloquent a meditation on the corruptions of isolation and power as I've read in some time. Spencer, Parnell, Hartington, Rosebery, Balfour, Joseph Chamberlain, Manning, Wilberforce, Palmerston -- all are here drawn with flavor and economy and no trace of bitterness or partisanship.

One of the great strengths of this biography is that it never talks down to the reader. Jenkins is clearly an almost frighteningly literate individual, and his vocabulary occasionally sent me to the dictionary, but I consulted it in delight as every rare word was clearly used unselfconsciously by an author who knew it well and knew exactly what he was trying to say. (As Simon Winchester has noted, there are very few true synonyms in English.) More challenging in this regard may be the fact that the book, having been written for a British audience, assumes an elementary knowledge of the outlines of British history, which many American readers don't have. Just as a book about a prominent American nineteenth-century figure would not feel it necessary to produce extensive background on, say, the industrial revolution, the transcontinental railroad, or abolition, so Gladstone assumes the reader's familiarity with the Indian Raj, the expansion of the franchise, Britain's own industrial progress, and other subjects. My advice is to just jump right in anyway -- I myself was not well versed in these topics yet found the narrative so strong that the author's insights were easy to follow.

Perhaps erroneously, I expect Lonely Planet guides to cater to the smart and budget-conscious traveler. Far too many of the hotels and especially the restaurants in this guide were waaay out of my price range. Further, the writer recommends Granville Island as a must-see of artists studios and a farmer's market, when it was actually a Disneyland version of such. Lastly, her chipper enthusiasm for diversity-as-consumer-product chafed. Better to get Douglas Coupland's City of Glass; it's not a guidebook per se, but it's a better guide.

I tend to buy a small guide to carry around and a bigger one such as lonely planet that has more indepth information, but this trip I didn't use the lonely planet that much and stuck with the Top 10 travel guide most of the time, although I suppose it helped that I was visiting someone who lives in Vancouver. I highly recommend the top 10 guide (much better to carry around for quick access of info.) The benefit of the Lonely planet guide I think is to use it ahead of time when planning things out and using the book info to supplement internet research.

The book contains a lot of information for sure. The thing is for a first time visitor it does not really provide a big help. Which things are a must to see? The book does not say. Instead the reader is forced to read each every section of the book because the book is divided into sections, each covering a part of the city.

All in all it is a bit disappointing.

I read reviews of the last version and the Lonely Planet people have really taken on board the feedback people gave. Its easy to read, VERY up to date and has some great additions. A great top 10 things to do in Vancouver, it details the top restaurants, good summaries of local areas etc. Its a brilliant overview and now we have our trip all maped out! Its well laid out and the use of color is helpful too. One of the best city guides I've seen.

Whether you are planning to visit Vancouver as a tourist, or you are doing preliminary research about it as a potential permanent destination later in your life, Lonely Planet Vancouver sums it all up nicely for you. The first few pages do a great job of giving the newcomer a birdseye view of the city's composition, lifestyle, culture, etc. The book moves on to cover other aspects from dining to outdoors activities and much more in a detailed yet not overwhelming way.

The only shortcoming this guide (as well as other Lonely Planet books) has is a lack of more pictures, which other series such as DK's Eyewitness Travel Guides excel at. However the competing book about Vancouver in that series is nowhere near as comprehensive as this one.

I first saw this as a movie on CBC's "For The Record" film series in the summer of 1977. I was hooked into the story as its many elements and circumstances paralleled my own young life. I grew up in group homes and foster homes as an aboriginal ward of various child care agencies. I didn't understand the complexities of personal identity until later in my life but this story became the catalyst of change for me. I started exploring my aboriginal roots after seeing this film and turned what was a hopeful and beautiful story that ended horribly into a long journey on my path to peace and acceptance of my aboriginal roots. Today I am a proud father of two children who I recently took to a traditional powwow for a weekend of camping and dancing to the drum with our native brothers and sisters.
I remember how struck with anguish I was with tears running down my face at the end of the film but I was also hopeful and determined not to let this happen to me. I highly recommend this story to everyone and I hope they have the courage to finish it to its wrenching conclusion.

Iam a Sr.1 student and my class had to read Dreamspeaker.i read a head and finshed the book, after reading the book i was very depressed, and a wondered why would a teacher would tell a class 2 read some thing like this, it sends the message to youth that hey well if your not getting your way end it. it would have been a great boook if the ending wasnt so sad.

This is the worst possible book that they could be giving to teenagers to read. It simply teaches them that if things are not going there way then they can always kill themselves. This is not the sort of thing that schools should be premoting

I first read this book ten years ago and instanlty loved it. I took my time about buying a copy, and it went out of print. I'm correcting that mistake today! The book is about a boy who, from time to time, experiences what modern mainstream psychiatry would call psychotic events (not to imply that those people could ever agree upon a diagnosis). He has had contact with social services and the mental health profession...no luck. He then runs into a native shaman. One of the definitions of "shaman" in the dictionary I have here is: one who "divines the hidden." The shaman teaches the boy that his episodes are not symptoms of mental illness, but symptoms of being one of "the chosen." If you think street people are crazy, if you think crazy people should be at least fixed, and probably locked-up in the process, if you own stock in the drug company which make lithium...this book my help.

Over the last fourteen years, I have lent out each of the 8 copies of this novel that I have owned...I am still waiting to get ANY of them back. This is a simple (and short) story of a boy trying to find where he belongs and how modern day society, with its rules and regulations, keeps thwarting his efforts. This novel is an excellent expose of the frailties of a society ruled by bureaucracy and conformity, instead of common sense and compassion. It is also a superb metaphor for the alienation and suppression of self that is a result of our current society and its domination by "big businesses". This novel poignantly attests to the fact that we are not all the same and the same answer does not work for everyone. In many ways, this novel explores the same issues as Pink Floyd's classic album, "The Wall"

I have had an interest in western ghost towns since the late 1960s and have sought out and photographed many ghost towns over the years. To that end, I have about 30 or 40 ghost town books and I would have to say that this is not one of the best. In my opinion, it is one of the worst. In fact, it's not as good as other books by Philip Varney in the same series. However, as a professional photographer myself, I can say that the photographs by John and Susan Drew are quite good. One problem with this book is that it lacks the depth of most other ghost town books. The information given just skims the surface. It's generally just raw facts such as when the town was founded, etc. Good ghost town books should go into the colorful stories that all these towns have. That's what's so fascinating about ghost towns. Another problem with the book is that it shows too many towns that are not really ghost towns at all but may only have a couple old historic buildings or they may be simply tourist towns. Many of the pictures are not of towns at all but rather dilapidated barns, etc., which can be seen anywhere in the country and are certainly not ghost towns. There is a classification system for ghost towns and not all ghost towns are classic "true" ghost towns, of course, but this book has very few ghost towns that will be of interest to a real ghost town enthusiast. In addition, the text doesn't always clearly specify the status of the towns so a reader may travel far to see a ghost town only to find that it's bustling town with a couple historic buildings, a museum, or it may be just a tourist town. I would like to know the true condition of these towns but Varney is very vague about that. Most of my ghost town hunting has been in the Southwest, California, Colorado, Utah, Idaho, and Montana so it is possible that there simply aren't that many good ghost towns in the Pacific Northwest but other books that I have would suggest otherwise. Unlike some other books in this series, the maps do not use symbols that represent that actual state of the towns. For example, a crossed shovel and pick symbol often represents a "true" ghost town. But this book does not follow that useful and helpful practice, which is odd. It almost appears as if Varney simply got lazy in this effort and didn't bother to seek more remote ghost towns or gather more information about he towns he does cover. Good ghost town books should be enjoyable even to the armchair traveler who will never actually go to these towns. To accomplish that, the unique and interesting stories of the towns should be sought out and shared by the author. Florin's books, although dated, are wonderful examples of how ghost town books should be. Fortunately, if and when I do seek out ghost towns in the Pacific Northwest, I have other books that cover that region much better than this one.

One other point: A very interesting and fascinating feature often included in the best ghost town books are "then and now" pictures that juxtapose images of the past and the present of the towns. For example, it's very interesting to see period photographs of, say, the town's main street along side a recent photograph of the same scene. There are a couple old pictures in this book but recent photographs of the same scenes are not included.

All-in-all, I can't really recommend this book to ghost town enthusiasts but I suppose it's a moderately interesting addition to a ghost town book collection. But if you are seeking true ghost towns and interesting information about them, you can find better books to meet those needs.

I bought this book as a gift. Since my parent are from that area I thought they'd enjoy it. However after I read the book I found a pretty major mistake. In chapter 3 the writer refers to the Pacific County seat as being "North Bend" when its actually South Bend. One can only hope the writer didn't make any more mistakes.

This book covered many of the most popular ghost towns in the Northwest corner of the US and Canada. A myriad of good photos and just enough information to entice you to get in the car and go. I would have liked to have a little more information regarding those obscure ghost towns that are not easily accessed or identified.

We have been photographing Ghost Towns for about 30 years now and we must say that this is probably the best book that we have ever seen... and we have seen them all!

I've been a fan of Lonely Planet books since using them to backpack through Asia in the 1980s, but it seems to me they are in the middle of an identity crisis. Case in point is the British Columbia book, which I've added to my collection of guides to my home province. It retains the "Backpacker" feel but includes multiple listings of upmarket hotels and restaurants with scant regard to actually desrcibing individual places, which is why I buy a guide book in the first place. The result is a watered down version of what was once a great series, with the great descriptive and personalized writing replaced by page after page of listings that any reader could find in a phone book. For example, in the Vancouver chapter, instead of critical apprasial of the places to stay that appeal to budget travelers, literally dozens of places in all price ranges are listed, with little more than an address and price given for each. There's a privately run hostel in Vancouver that is nothing short of digusting and has been closed down and reopened under new names on two occassions. And yet the author lists this place along with the excellent choices that do exist as if all are of the same quality. I doubt whether the author has ever visited any of these places, but even if she has, some kind of description is what is missing. In a similar vein, out near the Vancouver airport, an RV park lies right under the flight path. Again there's no mention of this very basic information, just a phone number, address, and price. Finally, prices are almost always wrong. Prices haven't risen that dramatically over the last two years and as this is the first edition of the book my guess is that they've transfered information straight from the Lonely Planet book that covers all of Canada.

Further afield, in recent travels, I noted the same lack of perception in the writing about other areas of the province. It's obviously useful for young budget travelers to know which bars have cheap drinks, but I still expect more, such as some good solid descriptions of what there is to see in each town and coverage of all the great outdoors opportunities. These things
are sorely lacking.

On the plus side, the introduction chapter is very strong, with detailed coverage of history, geology, and wildlife. History might not be that exciting, but the author has obviously done her homework in this department. The maps are also much improved from the old days and even the smallest town has a map.

In conclusion, the fact that the author is not from Canada does not worry me, but she needn't have even visited to put this book together. Even if you're a young backpacker from overseas desperate to fit in by traveling with a Lonely Planet guide, I'd skip this book and buy the Lonely Planet Canada book.

I've been a fan of Lonely Planet books since using them to backpack through Asia in the 1980s, but it seems to me they are in the middle of an identity crisis. Case in point is the British Columbia book, which I've added to my collection of guides to my home province. It retains the "Backpacker" feel but includes multiple listings of upmarket hotels and restaurants with scant regard to actually desrcibing individual places, which is why I buy a guide book in the first place. The result is a watered down version of what was once a great series, with the great descriptive and personalized writing replaced by page after page of listings that any reader could find in a phone book. For example, in the Vancouver chapter, instead of critical apprasial of the places to stay that appeal to budget travelers, literally dozens of places in all price ranges are listed, with little more than an address and price given for each. There's a privately run hostel in Vancouver that is nothing short of digusting and has been closed down and reopened under new names on two occassions. And yet the author lists this place along with the excellent choices that do exist as if all are of the same quality. I doubt whether the author has ever visited any of these places, but even if she has, some kind of description is what is missing. In a similar vein, out near the Vancouver airport, an RV park lies right under the flight path. Again there's no mention of this very basic information, just a phone number, address, and price. Finally, prices are almost always wrong. Prices haven't risen that dramatically over the last two years and as this is the first edition of the book my guess is that they've transfered information straight from the Lonely Planet book that covers all of Canada.

Further afield, in recent travels, I noted the same lack of perception in the writing about other areas of the province. It's obviously useful for young budget travelers to know which bars have cheap drinks, but I still expect more, such as some good solid descriptions of what there is to see in each town and coverage of all the great outdoors opportunities. These things
are sorely lacking.

On the plus side, the introduction chapter is very strong, with detailed coverage of history, geology, and wildlife. History might not be that exciting, but the author has obviously done her homework in this department. The maps are also much improved from the old days and even the smallest town has a map.

In conclusion, the fact that the author is not from Canada does not worry me, but she needn't have even visited to put this book together. Even if you're a young backpacker from overseas desperate to fit in by traveling with a Lonely Planet guide, I'd skip this book and buy the Lonely Planet Canada book.

a solid british columbia guide book that i used as a reference while exploring the area for three days lonely planet is always gearded towards those not wanting to spend a lot of money and that perspective kept my spending in check

After combing 3 other travel guides before my trip, I realized that my Lonely Planet guide had it all. Where other guides miss the mark, Lonely Planet nails it. Everything in Fodor's, Off The Beaten Path and some other one I can't recall was in the Lonely Planet guide. As well, Lonely Planet honestly tells you the truth about why "this" is a winner and "that" is a loser. Information was up to date and accurate and most importantly opinionated and honest! Had a fantastic vacation!

We just used the book as a guide to ride down the Dempster Highway (along with the Mileposts pages) and it was our best information. Even after 25 years, the information about where to find water, good camping, etc. was quite useful. And bike tourists always like to have some elevation profiles, even though you have to go over the hill whether you have a profile or not. Thanks for the book!

The second edition is a useful book covering all the major roads in Alaska and the Alaska Highway as far as Whitehorse, YT. Information is organized by region and then by roads within those regions. An introductory section describes the background of the area and provides land management and emergency information. Any communities the cyclist will pass through are described and services relevant to cycle touring are listed. Roads are broken into approximately 80-mile segments with a small elevation profile provided for each. The terrain and road surface are described and the mile post locations of any junctions, water sources, camping, food, lodging, and roadside sights are tersely noted. No mile-by-mile description is provided. Unfortunately, the service information is dated as north-country businesses seem to pop up and shut down with alarming frequency. Coupled with the Milepost, this is a helpful book. Those used to hand-holding touring guides with detailed ride notes may be disappointed.

I think this book would have been useful several years ago but this edition is almost 10 years old and the information contained is out of date. The elevation profiles provided for the roads in Alaska are also misleading and not detailed enough to be reliable.

I wouldn't recommend that you buy this book if you intend to tour Alaska. Buy a general guide book (Lonely Planet or Rough Guide) and get some decent maps instead.

The walks in this book are lovely. However, the directions are hopeless. I have had several people try to follow the routes described, and the consensus is that the author cannot tell her left from her right.

As a general guide, wherever she says go left, go right and then you will get to the points she describes.

The book is a waste of space in a rucksack - buy something else.

This guide is the best of all the ones available. The directions are clear and easy to follow. And there is lots of info about stuff you see along the way. Things you don't find in any of the other books. The pictures are beautiful too. An inspiration to hikers of all levels.

A Vancouver group of friends decided to start walking and hiking for pesonal challenge and a chance to enjoy the beautiful place they lived in. For a few months they limped along with few, outdated, and poorly described hiking guides. One of them read about Dawn Hanna's new book on the internet, purchased it, and I'd like to thank Dawn for providing the kind of guide we've been looking for.

This easy-to-use, fits-your-pocket gem provides well-described directions and levels of challenge, along with maps and climatic information, as well as wonderful legends & history; Dawn's passion for hiking the area is inspiring. This book is a got-to-take item for your hikes, only preceded by your water bottle.

I found Day By Day to be compelling reading as I share the same love and awe of nature as Mr. Petersen and his family. We enjoyed a cruise from Vancouver to Sitka, Juneau and Glacier Bay some years ago. The observations of these areas in the book were particularly interesting to me. To experience Glacier Bay cruising alone in a small boat was truly an awesome feat. The book describes the wild life viewed in detail indicating how to keep oneself safe while viewing bears, etc.

Tips on fishing these beautiful waters also were of interest. The catching of about every game fish, crabs, and digging clams was included in the book. This book is also a guide to great places to eat along the way, on land sights not to be missed, hot springs for bathing and best places to anchor.

To anyone owning a boat, the mechanical problems described and how they were corrected would be very helpful. Also, a novice would find invaluable the detailed descriptions of tides, times to avoid certain waters and highlights of the many inlets and coves he explored and which are named in the book.

There are numerous instances of protection and guidance as the result of his leaning on the almighty and trusting in God's care.

To read this book is a must for anyone contemplating cruising these waters and it would be a valuable companion on one's trip.

This book is great for those who want to cruise to Alaska in a small boat or just enjoy cruising around islands in the Inside Passage. It is full of tips, lists, and local insight from someone that has made the trip several times. I was glad to know small boats can make the trip to Alaska if you are careful. Besides this book I suggest anyone planning to make a trip like this take the piloting classes offered by the United States Power Squadron or Coast Guard Auxiliary to learn more about using charts, and GPS.

I am disappointed that the editorial review did not indicate that this book is actually an evangelical platform for a born-again Christian. Mr. Petersen averages some discourse on his God and his faith about every 5 pages. There are 38 "God" citations in the index.
Had I known that the voyage was to serve as his "Sermon on the Inside Passage", I would not have purchased the book.

I can definately recommend this book, maybe not worth the cover price, but good if 2nd hand or from the library. Dr. Perrin's stories are funny, if you like Herriot, you will like this. However, I only gave it 4 stars because Perrin, while adequate, is not the most talented writer, and I found that the print in the book is very large and misrepresents how much text there actually is. I read through the book very quickly, I was hoping he would have packed more into the book. But still, it's a good read and has some good stories in it.

These books take you through hilarious and moving stories, real life stories of new veterinary in a little town. It inspires you to reach for your goals and never take no for an answer, great for inspiring vets or any animal lover!

This book is fascinating--stories from a rural vet in Canada, treating everything from cats to cows. The sad part is that Perrin isn't a very fluid writer, so it is sometimes a chore to get through.

I had the sense that if Perrin had just dictated these stories and had worked with a good editor, it would have been a much better book.

From the title I expected to receive a book about sites all over British Columbia. Instead I received Volume 1 Vancouver Island. I would never have ordered this. There is no mention of Vol 1 and no photo of the cover.

The newly revised and substantially updated second edition of A Field Guide To Gold, Gemstone, And Mineral Sites Of British Columbia: Volume 2 - Sites Within A Day's Drive Of Vancouver by Rick Hudson is an insightful and informative collection of area locations filled with the accessible beauties of natural minerals and gems to be found in the Vancouver area. As a concise compendium practical information for finding and recovering prized gemstones and minerals, A Field Guide To Gold, Gemstone, And Mineral Sites Of British Columbia combines the author's years of experience and "know-how" with practical mapping and discovery methods. Enhanced with maps and site drawings, a glossary of geological terms, addresses of government offices, museums and mineral clubs/associations, A Field Guide To Gold, Gemstone, And Mineral Sites Of British Columbia is very strongly recommended for do-it-yourself mining hobbyists with respect to more than 260 sites in the British Columbia and Vancouver area.

Volume 1, Vancouver Island, is the most detailed field guide available for gold, gemstone and mineral hunters in this area. We found the detailed maps and generous Latitude and Longtitude references very helpful. When inputting this information into our GPS we have easily located the sites mentioned in this book. Highly recommended.