Pennsylvania Books

I like this book so much I have given it as a gift to several gardening friends. The pictures and descriptions are very useful and pertinent to my location in Pennsylvania. Ideal for quick reference and just idle reading.

Very easy to use reference on PA gardening. Not only includes information on plants that do well in the state, but planting and care instructions. Extensive list of PA gardens to visit will keep you busy for years to come. Detailed zone chart for the state is provided. I would recommended this for the beginner as well as experienced gardener.

Anita Blackaby

This book centers on the history of railroad development and expansion in Indiana and Illinois at the turn of the century as well as the lives and times of the movers and shakers that propelled this activity. I particularly enjoyed reading about where and why certain rail lines were built and then why some of them otlived their usefulness. It is interesting to see what exists in todays world and then read about how it started and occurred during the glory years of railroad construction in the Midwest. The insights on personalities, motivations and strategies of people like Wm. Riley McKeen, his supporters (Chauncey Rose) and detractors (Samuel Ives) were also extremely enlightening and entertaining. I grew up in Illinois and Indiana and always wanted to know more about the history of the Pennsylvania RR "Lines West". (Most PRR history books discuss the eastern portion of the railroad.) This book explains much about "Lines West" in an informative and entertaining fashion.

The extraordinary true story about a scrupulous midwestern entrepreneur who built a small local railroad into a strong regional system -- known as "The Vandalia" -- and resisted repeated efforts to be acquired for nearly 30 years or until he was ready to relinquish the reins. Belongs on the bookshelf of anyone interested in Indiana or Illinois history or the history of the Pennsylvania Railroad. A highly readable and entertainingly-written research masterpiece addressing an area of corporate history not often broached. Required exploration of corporate minutes, court files and private correspondence. "A railroad's history, telling it through the life of the man who made it what it was." Outstanding photos and diagrams. A keeper.

This book is an excellent, well-produced source of data and details on coal cars on the Pennsylvania Railroad. It is not, however, a detailed history of coal mining operations served by the P Company. The book will be extremely useful to modelers looking for information on PRR coal cars.

As an avid scratchbuilder, this book offered wonderful insights, diagrams and modeling techniques for reproducing these Hoppers. Though not strictly a book for modelers, I believe that modelers will get the most use out of it.

Pennsylvania Railroad's Broadway Limited may have spent most of its history in the shadow of the New York Central's 20th Century Limited, its great competitive rival, but this book by Voyageur Press is the best of the series including the Voyageur offering on 20th Century Limited. The Broadway itself outlasted its rival, and in a fashion survived into the Amtrak era. This book does the great train justice.

Well illustrated, with excellent photos coveing the full career of the train, from the 'Pennsylvania Special' to the Loewy-designed art deco "fleet of modernism," to the great rolling hotel of the post-World War II era, and then to its final faded glory. The text offers extensive detail on this once great train, more detail than the other books in the Voyageur series, which are also very good.

There was a time when the railroads cared about passenger travel. and the Pennsylvania Railroad's Broadway Limited was prime evidence. The ads said a lot, 'The Best Equipped Train in the World.' Of course you might get a bit of an argument from the New York Central's 20th Century Limited that also covered the New York to Chicago route.

The Broadway Limited is no more. For a while after Amtrak got started it continued the train, but in 1995 it was shut down due to declining ridership and the ever present budget problems. The Broadway Limited made the 908 mile run from New York to Chicago in 16 hours. Today Amtrak's Train 51 - Cardinal will get you from New York to Chicago in 28 hours.

This book is a magnificant collection of photographs of the Broadway Limited. It begins with the earliest days and continues through the Amtrak days. Most of the pictures are in black & white but there is a smattering of color. The story that goes along with the pictures is well researched and tells the history of the train in considerable detail. It reads well and doesn't whimper too much as it describes what we are now missing.

A wonderful book that truly illustrates the beauty of Pennsylvania in both prose and imagery.

As one of the 52 poets included in Pennsylvania Seasons, I would like to express what an honor it is to be a small part of this truly beautiful book. The photos highlight the poems and the poems enhance the photos. The overall quality of the finished product is excellent. It is a great gift for anyone who has ever enjoyed the natural beauty of Pennsylvania, as a visitor or as a native.

I purchased and read this book before heading to graduate school in Pennsylvania; I knew very little about the state other than the bare details, and I prefer to possess a certain "sense" of a place before living there. This book satisfied that desire and more; it provided a great insight into the historical movements that are common to many states, while covering Pennsylvania's history from the times of indigenous habitation to the 21st Century challenges and opportunities. An engaging and easy read for anybody looking for a great overview of the Keystone State's rich history and culture.

A much needed history book concerning Pennsylvania has finally been published, and that book is "Pennsylvania", edited by Randall Miller and William Pencak. This is one of the best state history books ever, as it is comprehensive, readable, and vastly informative. Its chapters are well written and skillfully documented by notable experts on each chapter's time periods and subjects.
To highlight portions of the book does injustice to the multitude of other subjects. Still, among aspects this book discusses include how William Penn's treaty with Native Americans symbolized a new spirit of cooperation in American, and how his son's breaking of that treaty perhaps introduced another national spirit.
We see how how industrial owners persuaded Pennsylvania government to make unprecedented infrastructure developments in railroads, roads, banks, and canals that both made Pennsylvania an industrial leader and the owners quite wealthy.
The book tells us of the first Paleo-Indians who probably came to Pennsylvania 14,000 years ago. Their lifestyles influence through today, as many present highways follow the same routes Indians used for centuries prior.
19th century Philadelphia's business leaders are described as being more centered on their own businesses than on the state of their community than leaders in other cities. This led to New York and Baltimore surpassing Philadelphia economically.
At the turn of the 20th century, child labor was an important factor of Pennsylvanian family income, often representing one third to one half of what a family earned. One sixth of households increased their incomes by renting to boarders.
Pennsylvania has a temperature and climate that resembles that of Europe. This book combines history with many fields of interest. For readers who wish to gain a wealth of knowledge about Pennsylvania, this is the book to own.

I'm a retired teacher who got elected to my local Borough council. I found this book very clear and useful in learning about pensions, even though ours are municipal and it deals with private pensions. Many of the same considerations apply and even the formulas given and explained are not beyond the understanding of a careful general reader.

this little book taught me in a few hours all hat i needed to know in order to draft my first pension related actuarial report. clear concise and to the point.

Man what a book!!!! Fortunately for me, I was a student at PSU when this game was played. Some of the players were in my classes and some of them I knew on a first name basis.

This book took me back to a time when life was simpler and simple satisfactions, like football, at the time meant little, but over time they mean a lot more.

The author takes you into the game. Not just what you saw on TV and how the announcers made it look, but really takes you into the pre-game, how the Fiesta Bowl people did what they did to get this game played on Jan 2.

He takes you on the field with each of the players 20 years later as they relive the greatest college game that they ever played. Even the insights from the Miami players makes this book totally complete.

I couldn't put it down and am glad I bought it. I gave it to my Brother and he read it in about 4 days.

Great book, great story

Mike Misannelli did a fantastic job on this well researched, well written time capsule. It helped me recall my fondest memories of a magical season.
I strongly recommend reading the book, then watching the D.V.D. of the game.

PETROLIA recently was awarded the Giddens Prize as the best new writing on oil history, 1996-2000.

Never before have I read such an eloquent and informative journey through the oil boom of Pennsylvania. The photographic images that Dr. Black has chosen for his book are as captivating and clear as his text. An outstanding and brilliantly written book.

The Phenomenon of Torture: Readings and Commentary is an anthology of essays by learned authors discussing the widespread human rights crime that is torture, practiced in more than one hundred countries - now including the United States. Why is something so cruel and brutal so entrenched? Can anyone become a torturer? Are certain societies more prone to use torture? Are there any circumstances under which torture is justified? How can torture be stopped, or at least reduced? The readings seek to better understand this hot-button issue, and cover the history, experience, and dynamics of torture, who the torturers are, and what experience has shown ultimately can bring an end to torture and healing to victims. A sober, astutely assembled compilation and a much-needed contribution to modern-day discussions of government policy.

So says the current administration, and so say most Americans--which is precisely why William Schulz's collection is so timely and important. Surely one of the explanations for why so many people deny that waterboarding or sensory deprivation is torture is lack of clarity on what the phenomenon of torture actually is. The essays in this anthology go a long way to clear up the confusion.

Probably the single most important section of the book is Chapter IV, "The Dynamics of Torture." It's there that the phenomenon of torture is explored. Torture isn't merely a set of physical techniques for inflicting pain. More fundamentally, it's an intentional set of actions, as this section's authors point out, that destroy the self, the very identity, of the torture victim and intimidate the rest of society. Moreover, as the essays in Chapter III, "Who Are the Torturers?" make pretty clear, torture also morally and spiritually destroys the torturer's identity as well as the identity of the society that condones torture. Given this understanding of torture, debates about whether it's ever morally justifiable take on much greater weight than they typically have in the last five years or so.

Absolutely essential reading. Recommended without reservation.