California Books

I live on the Mojave Desert, Antelope Valley to be precise, and this book portrays the beauty we are now experiencing this spring. We have a beautiful Poppy Preserve on the westside of our valley. Jane Pinheiro was a woman who not only painted pictures of many of our wildflowers , but she was one of the people instrumental in seeing that the Poppy Preserve came into being. A number of her paintings are on display at the Preserve. I have one of her paintings, and with this lovely wildflower book, I was able to ascertain which of the wildflowers is depicted in my painting. If anyone is interested in not only viewing the array of colors during our spring wildflower viewing, but is interested in learning some of the names of said wildflowers, and a bit of background for each of them, this is the book to buy.

Money well spent. We are ready for wildflower season! A lot of color pictures with good information. If you live in or near the Mojave Desert this is a valuable book.

I love these Falcon guides mainly because of the lavish color illustrations. Every flower in the book has its own color picture, along with helpful descriptions. The front matter in this book includes all sorts of background material about the Mojave, along with the usual educational stuff about plant types, leaf distribution, etc. And the book is made to last -- if you take any care of it at all, it will last you forever.

This is probably the easiest to use desert plant book I have (and I have eight that focus on desert plants in all). What it lacks in completeness, it more than makes up for in terms of ease of use. There is a picture for each plant and the plants are grouped according to flower color. So as long as the plant is in bloom, it's not too hard to find out what it is. This book does a great job of covering the plants you are most likely to come across which makes it a great book to thumb through in the field. If you are dealing with similar species within the same genus or rare plants, you'll probably want to get the Jepson guide.

Pam MacKay's 'Mojave Desert Wildflowers' is a wonderfully informative & beautifully photographed guide to the wildflowers of the Mojave. This sturdy plastic-coated field guide contains over 300 gorgeous photos, finely detailed plant descriptions, and is virtually an introductory textbook on Mojave Desert ecology. I highly recommend this book to anyone who appreciates the Mojave Desert. The author lives & teaches in the Mojave and her dedication, attention to detail, and love of the desert are revealed on every page.

Jim Otterstrom

I bought this book based on the opinions of the previous reviewers. They were absolutely right. I spent 2 days at Yosemite and due to the massive size of the park (1,200 square miles) it would have been impossible for me to get a good tour of Yosemite without this guidebook. I found this book quite useful, from reading about the geology/history of the area, lodging to descriptions of the intensity of the hikes. The book also provides some helpful traveling tips as well suggestions for additional reading. It's a very comprehensive guide.

I wish I had had this book when I first went to Yosemite a decade ago. It would have saved a lot of time and gotten me and my wife to more of the true highlights in the area. This book covers everything from the best trails to the best dining options in and near the park. It lists all the campgrounds in and around the park and notes which require reservations and which are available on a first come-first served basis. And of course it includes a lot of natural and human history in the park region. The book also features some nice full color maps.

What I particularly like about this guide is the organization. Each section (recreation, lodging, camping, etc) is subdivided into various park regions: Yosemite Valley, Hetch Hetchy, Wawona, Tioga Pass and the Eastern Sierra. As a result, readers have a clearer picture of all that Yosemite National Park has to offer. After reading this book, I will be exploring more of Hetch Hetchy on my next visit in early April. This guide is simply the most comprehensive look at Yosemite and is a must for planning vacations around.

Moon Travel Books presents a spectacular and thoroughly updated, 256 page, second edition on Yosemite National Park. Beginning with 10 pages of color coded maps of Yosemite and a breathtaking color photo of Yosemite Falls, Yosemite packs a plethora of detailed information into an organized, easily accessible format. The first five chapters cover Yosemite Valley, Wawona and Glacier Point, Tioga Pass and Tuolumne Meadows, Hetch Hetchy, and the Eastern Sierra, including Lee Vining, Mono Lake and North, and June Lake and Mammoth Lake. Each of these chapters is divided into sections on exploring and recreation. The final four chapters are about Lodging, Camping, Dining, and Knowing Yosemite. There is a vast list of suggested reading and several pages of internet resources, in addition to tips for travelers, notes on the history of Yosemite and its place names, and much useful and specific information on the flora and fauna of Yosemite National Park. Specific information bytes or special tips are highlighted and blocked to set them off for the eye of the reader. If your plans include a trip to Yosemite, Yosemite is a "must buy" travel guide. Even if you just want to learn more about Yosemite and indulge in some armchair dreaming of travels in Yosemite, this is a great resource, guidebook and dreamweaver.

This book was one of a few I used to plan and experience Yosemite. Time and time again I pulled this book out over the others as the writeups and descriptions were always correct. The little added extras on each place made the experience even fuller. I love knowing about the history and little fun facts about a hike or a place to eat or stay. I would recommend this to anyone going to Yosemite for the first time or 500 time. Her list of additional references also was handy and I continue to grow my library. I have used her reference guides in the past and was always happy with the information. The waterfalls guide is like a checklist for my weekend activities. The one thing that I did like better in other references was the color maps and highlights, it made it easier to reference things in the book.

Before I visit a national park I go to the library for a pile of books to help me plan my trip. With a visit to Yosemite in mind I did just that and came home with a very nice collection including "100 Hikes...", "The Rough Guide to Yosemite" and Ann Marie Brown's "Yosemite" guide. While all of these books have great content, Ann's was far and away the most approachable and the one I bought to dog ear and write copious notes in without guilt. I'm so glad I did.

The book is well-indexed making it super easy to find what you need, the maps are great and the descriptions of the surrounding area are a bonus. Ann provides readers with well-thought out itineraries geared toward meeting your needs based on how much time you have to visit the park (from a day to a week) and your primary interests (from hiking to bagging waterfall pix). She also supplies solid advice regarding what to do if your on your own or travelling with a family.

Clearly Ann knows what she's writing about. Her first hand experience will help you find the motivation you need to get out of the car (or off of the bus) and on to the trails to drink in the beautiful and wonderful place that is Yosemite.

Lynn Davidman's book provides a sensitive and nuanced account of how mother loss reverberates throughout the course of people's lives in complex ways. As a fellow sociologist, I was touched by and learned from her deep and compassionate empathy for her subjects. She carefully and thoughtfully listened to their stories, and presents her analysis in a strikingly original way that honored the integrity of the narratives. This book helped me think about loss, identity, narrative and the art of sociological writing in new ways. I also know that her work has helped many individuals to make better sense of their own experiences of mother loss, something that few sociology books can claim.

I was impressed with the diversity of people interviewed. A central theme for most of the interviewees was how little disclosure of their mother's illness was given to them before or even after death. I was happy to see that children of the mothers who died in the 1980s and 90's were made more aware of their family situations. This book gives permission for those of us who have lost our mothers to open up the emotional attic and relive the memories that we all too often bury in our day to day lives.

The aspect of this excellent and thoroughly riveting book that was most striking and impressive to me as I read it is this: the author has accomplished a work of scholarship and great depth while, at the same time, sustaining an attitude of seemingly immeasurable respect for her subjects and their varied stories.

Early on, Dr. Davidman lets us in on something: "Ethnographers are emotion workers. In order to do this work with integrity we need to seek actively to create a safe space for our interviewees as well as for ourselves." Evidently she succeeds. The interviews - oral histories, really - are presented and interpreted with care and subtlety by Dr. Davidman. The stories are heartbreaking, each subject has suffered a grievous loss; but this book is never maudlin. In addition, its lessons are useful not just for readers who have lost mothers, but for anyone interested in the why and hows of human caring, hope, and love.

I was deeply affected and inspired to action as a result of experiencing this book. I will say that in my view, "Motherloss" helps to heal the world - not a small thing for academic research and hard work to accomplish.

What is perhaps most impressive about this high-achieving book is the wide audience to which it appeals. On one hand, Davidman is a masterful storyteller, weaving her own story of loss with the poignant and remarkable stories of her respondents. She is sensitive and incisive and expertly is able to represent the broad array of experiences with motherloss that she encountered during her fieldwork.

This book is also a superb example of what sociology can be. Far from crunching numbers or stating hackneyed conclusions, Davidman offers a work of qualitative sociology replete with thick analysis and an understanding of the complexities and contradictions of the lives we live. She offers a fresh perspective on the role of the sociologist that, I hope, will inform sociologists in years to come.

Her writing is lucid and engaging and carries the reader through many painful stories about motherloss and the aftermath of what she terms the loss of caring. Her steady voice and astute analysis demystifies the often silenced and unspoken tragedy of losing a parent at a young, formative age. There are few people--in the academy and outside of it--who I can think of who would not grow and learn from this book.

When I was fifteen, my mother died of cancer. This book is the first one I have found that has helped me make sense of this experience. My mother's cancer was not openly discussed in our family and we did not talk about my mother much after she died. But her death made a huge impact on my family;we were kind of lost without her. And for most of my life I have not talked very much about this. But reading this book and seeing the experiences of the people Davidman interviewed, helped me see how common our family's experiences were. It was helpful to learn about how society and the mother's role in it, and the American taboo on death, shaped our very personal, painful experiences of loss. I recommend this book to anyone who has lost a mother at any age. I'm sure you will find comfort in it.

Freelance writer Liz Sullivan takes on a temp job as media escort for food/lifestyle celebrity Hannah Couch, who, it turns out, is quite the opposite of her friendly, grandmotherly image. And her waspish, vindictive personal assistant, Naomi Matthews, is even worse. After someone downs a fatal Pellegrino with lime, and a couple of abductions at gunpoint ensue, Liz, who is a prime suspect, must find out who doctored the drink. Though two of the major characters are exceedingly unpleasant, there are plenty of more appealing ones, not the least of which is Liz herself, a likable, sympathetic amateur detective. On the whole, this whodunit is funny, sometimes outlandish, and very entertaining. This is the first of Lora Roberts' mysteries I've read, and I now plan on reading the first four books of the series.

This is one of the better books of a good series, funny and exciting with an "edge of your seat" narrative. Lora Roberts does an excellent job portraying the edgier side of life in her Liz Sullivan series, where money isn't always available and sometimes the Thrift Shop is a necessity. Yet, she also manages to lighten this with some wonderful and sly humor and engaging friends. Liz's friends (including her dog) bring her much needed support and enrich the stories though they take a backseat in this book (except for a couple of memorable and surprisingly funny scenes at gunpoint). This particular book in the series was mesmerizing. I couldn't put it down till I found out what happened to Liz and her latest "temp job from h-ll." If you haven't read any of the previous books I would recommend you do so to see how Lora has allowed Liz to grow into herself. Yet, this books stands alone as a wonderful and exciting adventure.

Character Liz Sullivan finds herself in a temp job straight from hell in the newest installment of this wonderful series. She has to serve every whim of the great domestic celebrity, Hannah Couch. Liz finds herself in danger from everything including being slapped, not being able to find fresh produce, being kidnapped, and being a suspect in a homicide. After a little time with Hannah, she also finds herself in danger of wanting to commit what readers would probably call a justifiable homicide. Lora Roberts has some of the funniest lines available in mysteries, reminding me often of Janet Evanovich's books. Liz's romance with the Paul Drake is exciting and endearing, and makes readers wish for more! Her friend Bridget worries more about picking up her kids on time than finding herself held at gunpoint. This cast is fun and could be anyone's neighbors and friends. I hope Lora Roberts will write many more of these clever books!

This book was really incredibly written. Even though I have never read any books in the series except this one, I'm sure that this book was a good one to start with. Murder Follows Money is funny in it's own way, and also provides an amazing mystery which was also fun to solve. I read this book in one entire day, all during breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I just couldn't put it down. It made me sad when I had finally finished the book. It was one of those page-turning mysteries that I absolutely love. I feel that Lora Roberts has created a never-ending series with a very interesting character. Liz Sullivan is the kind of character that you wish that you could get to know in person. Believe me, this is a great book and I recommend it to anybody who loves mystery!

Murder Follows Money is the best yet in a great series. Liz has taken a temporary job with a media escort business. She's hired to do clerical work, but is pressed into service when none of the regulars are willing to escort the famous but difficult lifestyle maven Hannah Couch. Hannah arrives in San Francisco with her entourage - an interesting cast of characters who have their own troubles with Hannah. When one of them turns up dead, Liz is again pressed into service. At gunpoint. She is also the chief suspect. The mystery is entertaining and kept me turning the pages. The solution to the double bind Liz finds herself in is both clever and great fun. I found myself chuckling al the way through. Many characters from the earlier books are here, but it isn't necessary to have read earlier books to enjoy this one. A great summer read. Highly recommended.

A neighbor (in Long Beach, California) loaned her copy to us--my husband was born in Long Beach--and we went out and bought copies as Christmas presents for the native Californians in our extended family. It's a book of nostalgia and confirmation for them--"I remember that! Yes, it was just like that!"--and one of sociological interest for anyone who likes people and wants to be invited into the lives and homes of a broad spectrum of the ingredients in our state melting pot.

I'm not sure I'd call all the authors "great writers" but most of them were comfortable with words.

Jessica Shaver Renshaw,
Author, Compelling Interests,
Gianna: Aborted and Lived to Tell About It

This is an amazing collection of essays and the point of the book is not just to provide eloquent perspectives on the state. Every cent that the publisher receives in revenue goes directly to the California Arts Council,whose budgets were cut by 97%. When you buy a "used" book none of that money goes to CAC. Please think twice about saving the 40ish cents.
This book is a good read and you will feel very good about your deed!

I really liked this book! There are many essays written in it, each one about a different area of California. It's really upbeat and interesting, and the authors are top authors who write beautifully. It's fascinating to read about times and places in California that I didn't know about. All the stories are modern stories, in that they are about growing up in California within the last forty years or so.
This book flows very quickly, and before you know it, you've finished it and wish there were more!

This is the book selected by the City of Long Beach,CA for their 'One book read by all' 2006,or something like that.It's a GREAT choice!.

I loved this book too, as I see others have, and this prompted me to write a review. I have tried to give it as a gift whenever possible and will continue to do so, as I think it is a great idea to benefit CAC. I wish local bookstores would display it more prominently. I grew up in California but this book allowed me a personal look at histories from different corners of the state. Fascinating, well written and truly enjoyable.

I have been visiting the Napa Valley for 10 years now and this excellent book captures the Napa Valley extremely well. The photography is up to the high standard set by National Geographic phtotograpers. Highly recommended from someone who does know the Napa Valley.

This is an excellent book. I recommend it to all wine enthusiasts.

This is a great book. It details the Napa Valley and the families in a great photographic format. I was completely fascinated by the imagery and the passion that they conveyed about wine making. Mr.O'Rear is a skilled photograher teller that weaves a silent story about the lives and art of wine making into one great book.

One of my desires is, after I retire from futures trading, is to own a vineyard. Mr.O'Rear has written a book that has convinced me that is what I should do.

Stunning imagery of the Napa region and the people behind the industry. O'Rear shows the reader the real Napa, and his breathtaking pictures do justice to this terrific region. The centerfold is a four-page foldout of the ornate wooden gates of each winery in the region; both clever and masterful at once. O'Rear shows Napa as only a true insider can. This is the one to buy and will impress anyone who opens it. A must for the true wine lover!

Napa: yep, that's it. The area just breathes the atmosphere of old times as can be found in the south of France.. but now in today's California, just north of San Francisco. And this book captures it all. The only thing *missing* from the book is the actual taste of the wine.

Once you've been there (either by car, or the famous Napa valley wine express) and you have seen and tasted this beautiful area, you will love the book as a souvenir. The quality of the prints is overwhelming - ranging from super-macro closups of cobalt blue grapes till wide, outstretching landscaping views.

And the book puts a face to the labels of your favourite wine. All the labels are listed, together with the matching winery's door, and some of the most famous Napa valley characters. Looking at these beautifully lighted out characteristic faces will give you an impression of the world behind the wine you are drinking.

WARNING: don't read this book if you are out of wine. You'll get too thirsty to resist.

Now let's wait for the video, Chuck! And the poster with the foldable airplane-ready frame.

The book Nothing About Us Without Us: Disability Oppression and Empowerment written by James I Charlton is profound. It really gives an insight to the history, psychosocial history of disabilities all around the world.

It is a profound book (very deep) and at times difficult for sensitive people like me but it is a must read book. I would like for the people in Puerto Rico to read this book to really comprehend the story behind the movement of Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The community of Persons with Disabilities in Puerto Rico need to comprehend deeply the situation that is going on even in Puerto Rico. The system provided in the territory of the United States does not work. On the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico the ADA Law is not enforce. I personally cannot wait until the Ammendment to the ADA Act of 2008 is pass by the Senate and finally signed by the President of the United States.

The "ADA Ammendment Act of 2008" was passed on the US House of Representatives overwhelmingly with 402 votes to 17 NAYS on June 26, 2008.

There are few books that can clarify the civil rights concepts and disability... This is one. I sat in a meeting of a government training program for Fair Housing investigations, and two of the lawyers/instructors as well as the Academy's Director stated that they do not need people with disabilities to be involved with the training or policy decision-making - now I give this book to persons who do not have a disability. What if we plan a celebration of women or Black History Month and only white males were invited?

RedGimp

Even though America may be one of the world's most enlightened
countries when it comes to treating people with disabilities
with respect, we still have a very long way to go.

As proven in "Nothing About Us Without Us", the revealing
expose by James I. Charlton, so does the rest of the globe,
to varying degrees. Listen to the voices of people with
disabilities in different countries that carry the same
messages of fear, shame, discouragement, and even hope:

Maria Paulo Teperino: "There is a cult of the body in Brazil.
We call it 'culto ao corpo'. Machismo is very strong, and
it affects the way many men think of women. Because of its
prevalence, machismo leads many men to believe that a disabled
woman can't satisfy him. Many even believe that disabled women
cannot have children."

Fadila Lagadien: "In South Africa, families don't educate or
support the education of disabled women because of the attitude
that no man will pay a 'bola' (dowry) for a disabled woman."

Joshua Malinga: "I had an inborn attitude not to accept the
attitudes at the institution. These ideas were very bad. For
example, disabled people were told when to eat, when to sleep,
that they couldn't make love, it was banned...By the mid-1970's
I and a few others wanted to reject all these ideas and start our
own organization. By 1965, I began organizing disabled people
because I knew things were not right."

Charlton's book reveals the often-ignored truth that 'things are
not right' for people with disabilities all around the world.
Whether it's being called a 'chirema' for 'useless' in Africa
or being 'ai duan' (looked down upon because of your disability)
in Asia, if you have one, then good luck NOT being treated as a
second-class citizen or worse. Things are looking up, however...

Rachel Hurst: "I decided I had to do something. I quickly realized
that a single person never gets anywhere, so I tried to figure
out how I could do something collectively." --London, England

More and more people with disabilities are joining Rachel in
organizing to stand up and fight for the human rights that other
humans take for granted. After you read "Nothing About Us Without
Us", I sincerely hope you will want to join them in their just cause.

I'd thoroughly recommend this book. It provides a global overview of the disability rights movement, and includes interviews with many activists from different countries. I found it easy to read, and thoroughly interesting.

This is a well written, thoroughly researched work dealing with the treatment of disabled people in various cultures. The book explores the impact of religious institutions, charities, schools and various other institutions on how the disabled are treated. It also does a remarkable job of explaining how consciousness needs to change in order for progress to be made. It is an extremely thought provoking work which raises many issues. I recommend this book to anyone who may some day be disabled - which is any of us.

I have this item at my desk at work, and I find myself constantly pulling this down, and taking a few minutes to read it whenever I feel down. Almost without failure, it brightens my day. I followed this OJ trial to from the beginning to the end, and it was awesome! I bought at least 20 different books on the crime and the trial, over the past 10 years, most within the 2 or 3 years after the crime.

My mother bought me this notepad, and it is without a doubt, the best book I read on this topic.

I highly recommend it, for its humor and its lasting impression.

OJ was a real scumbag, and this notepad is constant reminder of that fact, and of the fact that we can't bring back Ronald Goldman or Nicole Brown Simpson!

MC White said: Check it out!!!

I found a Xeroxed copy of entire book (shame on someone) in a box from an auction. I've held onto it for years because it's so smart, clever, amusing and imaginative. I watched the trial on tv and wondered many times "what the heck is he writing?" Now I know! Beard and Boswell are demented to be sure, but I've always preferred black humor (don't even go there) and only someone with jumbled brain cells could come up with a book like this one. Buy it..it's priceless!

Here it is, four years after I first spent a summer reading and re-reading it with my friends (one of whom must still have it!). I've got to read it again. Maybe e-bay?

without a doubt, the funniest collection of drawings and text on the o.j. situation. a comical view into the demented mind of a lunatic!

OK, if the humor of the title of this review evades you, this is not the "book" for you. If you think the whole situation is funny, then get this book.

Page after page of doodles and notes that blow political correctness out of the water, and made me laugh out loud. This product is fall down funny.

Again, a classic that is out of print. Shame, shame, shame.

This book was more than I expected, well written, beautiful pictures. It is the second book I have gotten by this author. Plus it came to me quickly and in perfect condition. Thanks!

I am not related to the author (like the previous reviewer). Loved this book. Couldn't put it down. I'm a long time organic gardener but I found this California farm story fascinating. As soon as I finished it my 18 year old daughter grabbed it and it doesn't look like I'll get it back soon. Two of her friends are in line to read it. Lovely photographs,too.

Reading Michael Ableman's book was like stumbling upon his personal journal. I could imagine it's dirt-stained, hand-written pages - the miscellaneous seed or wind-blown earthen particles stuck deep in the creases of the binding. This book is filled with earnest, intimate tales - the everyday woes and triumphs of a gentle farmer, side-by-side with the battle stories of a true community activist. It is his journey that I found so fascinating, so inspiring. Ableman's story is compelling because he has been on the good path and done the good work for a long time - more than 17 years. From the early days of setting up the produce stand on weekends at a local farmer's market, to lamenting a killing winter frost, he draws the reader into the drama. Ableman's intensely close relationship with the land is his reward for paying close attention to its needs. His goals were clear - to grow healthy food for local people in a way that respected the land's ability to sustain itself. He learned by doing, followed his intuition, and made tough decisions based on what was right, or what he believed to be right at the moment. This book offers its readers as much "food for thought" about life, as it does about farming!

I live in a desert climate, so farming is something that interests me in this desolate place I live in. I really enjoyed this book because of the success story and the farming aspect of the book. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes farms.

This book was an inspiration to read. It gives me hope that urban sprawl might be contained in some small parts of the world. It's also a good guide to organic farming and living, and getting past the "hippie" stereotype that organics still have. I'd highly recommend this book.

This lady brought me to love a land and people in a manner I never dreamed possible. A must read for the romantic as well as the pedantic.

... this writing is like the geography [of Baja], desert surrounded by water. Rich, yet sparse; full, yet hungry. Like Mexico, full of soul. This book is much more than a regional tale: it is the beginning of a literature of Baja ...

I bought this book and it was so enjoyable that I read it in one sitting! I read constantly, but I can only think of three or four times in my life where I've read a book straight through. It's a wonderful story and I can't wait to pass it on to some friends...

Your beautiful metaphors, poetic style and sense of humor make wonderful reading along with the story...

I have recently read The Other Side - Journeys in Baja California by Judy Goldstein Botello and loved every word of the book so much that I had to write this letter of praise. Not only do I enjoy (meaning passionate about) travel memoir-adventure books and genre, but especially the subject of Mexico and sub-subject of Baja California. The author is extremely talented to articulate and convey her observations in such a charming way. It is a lovely read that possesses many aspects of the humor, color, soul of this fascinating region and its people. There is much more than meets the eye at the surface and the author captures this and a period of time that will never be again.

Sincerely,

Lorraine Holle, Resident of Seattle, WA