Pacific Books

I had never been to Vegas before, and a friend of mine loaned me this exact book. My dread of this vacation soon became one of excitment. I took the book with me, and we did tours (Hoover Dam and two city tours) that we wouldn't have without it. The book was a great, great help! It is easy to read, fun to follow, and I even read parts that didn't apply to me. I enjoyed the trip very much and plan to go back next year. It tells you when to go to save money, what the weather is like, what each hotel is like---it was much better than the tour agency I counted on to book the trip for me. There is plenty to do there besides gamble!!!! I had a strict budget for my companion and myself and we didn't even spend that, we were so busy. Take the recommondations to heart and have fun paging threw this to learn and enjoy before you go. Then write me! I found myself at ease when there and I would be glad to answer any questions you have! I was not a believer before I went, and now I want to make it an anual trip! Get this book and GO!

Las Vegas is one of the most visited cities in America, and this book is a great reference. I got this book right after I went to Las Vegas for the first time and planned all my future trips around it. Admittedly, everything in Las Vegas changes every six months, but there are a lot of websites and references to find more information at the end of this book. The subjects covered in this book include how to get there, where to stay, where to eat and drink, basic gambling, and most importantly, where to shop. They do a lot of categorizing of hotels and entertainment which is good, for example, telling you which activities are good for children and which are fun for wild party people in their 20s. This book also hits on some of the lesser known attractions, and gives you a good idea of what kind of things you'll enjoy seeing (and what things will be a waste of your time). There is also a lot of invaluable advice found in these pages. Despite the "idiot" title, this a smartly written and well put together book that will appeal to a variety of people. Don't leave for Las Vegas without it.

This excellent book not only saved us time and money...it told us about wonderful things to see & do that neither my travel agent or freqent visitors knew about. It's easy reading, funny, and very informative. I've given copies for gifts to people planning a trip to Las Vegas. Our copy has dog ears, many yellow highlighted areas, worn pages which proves it's well worth reading and re-reading. DON'T LEAVE HOME FOR VEGAS WITHOUT IT !

I had been to vegas one time before, but wanted a new experience this time. This book showed me the ins and outs of the city..from cheap food to the best place to sing kareoke. It helped me expand my horizons beyond the slot machines. Making for a more well rounded, and fun trip. Easy to read, and very informative.

I would highly recommend this book for the diverstiy of interests covered. The internet addresses and contact people have changed, so that is a bit annoying, but I realize the book was written a while ago now. I can't wait to connect!

This is not a guide book, rather is is a life-style guide on how to expand your interests and meet new people of similar interests. The authors help give you a way to balance your harried work life and find other things to do (and hopefully meet cool people with similar interests). The research is very thorough (groups and places many San Franciscans have not heard about) -- where can you experience the flying trapeeze?, where do beekeepers meet?, you like model railroads?, whale watching?. I didn't count them, but there seem to be at least 693 entries. Great book -- well worth the price.

For me going out and meeting people can be uncomfortable. I bought CISF and went to several of the organizations listed in the book. I couldn't believe how easy it was for me to fit in and have a great time. I'm going to at least one new place a week now.

Like everyone else I know who has purchased "Connecting in San Francisco," my copy is book marked throughout with "stickies". Sure, as a San Franciscan for six years, I knew of a number of groups and activities. For me, the most fun was learning about the ones I didn't know existed and new groups I wanted to join. I have tried many new pursuits, which have become part of my weekly routine and have vastly enriched my life. Along with recruiting friends to join me in these activities, I have acquired new friends. Most of what I have done required a minimum investment of time and money and the rewards are enormous. It's also interesting to note that this book is of great value to visitors and those who are just in the city on a temporary basis. Many listings are "drop-in" activities like two of my favorites: The San Francisco Art Association's First Thursday Gallery Nights and the free rollerblading lesson and rentals offered by Marina Skate and Snowboard. No matter how obscure you might think your interests are, you will find something in this book. And the joy in trying some new things is in discovering another side of yourself. The authors have done their research. The activities have been great fun and the environments very welcoming!

I bought the book because i need the names of the fishes in the caribbean, where i dive now, and i thinks that it is a very nice book, very usefull and with a low price.

I bought this book since I am a volunteer at the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta, Georgia. This book is a tremendous resouce especially in the Tropical Diver Exhibit which has many species of tropical fish. It is helpful in identification and lists the fish by scientific as well as common names. I would highly recommend this guide for fish identification, and many of the volunteers use this guide as their resource as well.

this one is a real must. if I had to choose a single fish ID book to bring along in a dive trip, this handy book would be the one. it is probably more usefull for indo-pacific fishes but also atlantic/caribbean fishes part is pretty good. i guess it is the most complete book on fish identification i ever bought.

An amazingly well done flied guide useful for even advanced fish enthusiasts and scuba divers. I have used this book on dive trips to the Egyptian red sea, the sea of Cortez in Mexico and to Cuba, as well as while walking trough several aquariums in the US, and I have hardly ever failed to find a tropical fish species I observed in this book. The illustrations are well done and include juveniles, sex differences and regional color variants. In addition to the geographic range of a species, the likely occurrence on the reef (lagoon, outward reef, sand ...), the depth ranges and information about fish behavior are indicated. I have found this additional information extremely useful, especially when trying to identify one of several similar species.

The book is divided into a Indopacific and a Carribean part, and in addition to the species descriptions there is a short general introduction to corral reefs and fish biology.

This is a tremendous book that will certainly dominate my coffee table for years to come. It might be useful when referring to various species (e.g. when buying mail-order) but it does not contain any aquarium care information- a task that is best left in another volume. If you are interested in the subject, however, I highly recommend this book.

This is the greatest coral book ever written! It is a masterpiece and includes some of the best underwater coral photography ever published. It is mostly a pretty version of Dr. Veron's 5 vol scientific journals, and is a little hard to see it's true use in the reef keeping hobby, because it talks about corals strictly out on the wild reef, but if you take the requirements of the animal in the wild and apply it to your home aquarium you can not fail. This book is also the best for identifing all of those mystery stony corals you have in your tank. There is not one stony coral on the reef that this book does not discuss. If you have stony corals or plan to have them in the future then this book is a must have on your list. The price tag is a little high I know, but worth every cent. The great pictures alone make it a great coffee table book and worth the price right there,if you love corals don't pass this book up!

Corals of Australia and Indo-Pacific is the ultimate resource for stony (SPS) Corals I have found to date. I am a reef aquarium hobbiest and I use Verons book almost exclusively to identify species of aquarium coral. The book is also extremely helpful in requard to the taxonomy of the SPS.

Corals of Australia and the Indo-Pacific is by far the best reference for coral reference on the market today. This book is for the serious Reef Aquarium Hobbiest or Marine Biologist. While this book does not give reference to aquarium conditions, it does provide the reader with a comprehensive review of the major SPS corals not given in any other puiblication that I have found. If you are are an SPS reef aquarium hobbiest. You need this book

This book was fun to read and the author is a great story teller.

Robert Dick has given us a gem. His narrative is interesting, thought provoking, sometimes disturbing and very often humorous.
Kind of a gallows humor. Probably appropriate for the times. He explains the technical aspects of the M-3 Stuart and M-4 Sherman in an easy to understand way. I suspect that some readers will not appreciate the frequent humor but we all cope with our ghosts in different ways. Great read.

got book FAST , READ it FAST ... great story of a " NON " Eddie Murphy type , a Regular G.I.doing the job assigned to him .. not EVERY soldier did Heroic stuff on the battlefield everyday ......But he still suffered thru the cruelty of War .......

Robert Dick has given us a great war memoir from the perspective of a tanker, which is all too rare, especially where the Pacific theater is concerned. This is a good, old-fashioned war story, emphasis on the war, but with just enough of the hijinks that veterans are so good at recalling. Dick offers a rare take on what it was really like to drive a tank in battle, the bond established between the tanker and the infantry he supported, and the odds and ends of a tank battalion's activities, such as firing as artillery. He honestly shares his painful experience nearing the "breaking point" after watching ever more of his buddies die in grueling combat. Buy this book!

This is one of the best WWII books that I have read. It protrays the struggles of the individual soldiers and marines in the battle for Saipan

The importance of the capture of Saipan is two-fold. First, to most Japanese military strategists, Saipan represented the outermost reaches of the defenses of the Japanese Empire itself. Thus, its loss meant that it would only be a question of time before Japan itself was invaded and all was lost. Second, to the Allies, Saipan represented air bases from which the new B-29 planes could reach and bomb Japanese cities, including, and especially, Tokyo.

"D-Day in the Pacific" is an extremely well-written account of the actions and politics leading up to the decision to invade Saipan (and Tinian, adjacent to it), including the clash of wills between Admiral King and Gen. MacArthur, the strategies and tactics of the invasions (e.g., the separate landings by the 2nd and 4th Marine divisions), the major personalities involved on both sides, and the battles on the islands, including the well-known suicidal tactics of the Japanese, as seen not only from the perspective of the commanders but the front line troops as well. Numerous photos are also included.

As I researched the death of my Marine uncle on D-day , June 15, on Saipan Island, it became clear that Professor Goldberg's well-written and documented book would be a valuable source of information to go with all the other books I had read, including the excellent 1946 edition of the 4th Marine Division Association's historical account of the battle. In fact, in Dr. Goldberg's book, I learned of accounts from others in my uncle's company that help confirm what my family had long believed about the circumstances of his death, and a contradiction of statements of mortuary graves registration personnel at the time that were recorded in my uncle's official military personnel record I obtained.

At a recent family reunion, I obtained a copy of the unit commander's letter to my grandfather which corroborated Dr. Goldberg's account and the testimony of a member of my uncle's company contained in the book as to how he almost certainly died (despite efforts to contact this veteran from information supplied graciously by the author, I haven't gotten a response and I fear he may be one of the 1,000 WWII veterans who die each day).

Nonetheless, the book's account and the letter of my uncle's commander, written in September of 1944, match the time he went ashore and circumstances of the hostilities at the time. I was able to almost pinpoint the time of his death from the book, but most illuminating, I learned of his unit's activities during the day. His unit was part of a "feint" or diversionary tactic and was not part of the initial landing that faced murderous fire, because his unit was compensated for being part of the first wave in the assault at Namur, a previous battle. (It was traditional for combat troops seeing first combat or bearing the brunt to be made part of a reserve or backup force in the next battle)

During the reunion, I was able to give a factual account of this hero to 50 family members & descendants as we stood at his gravesite to commemorate his sacrifice at age 22.

My one lament regarding the book: I gave it away this week to my first cousin named for my uncle. Now, I have to buy another - which will make the author happy, too.

This book is a great overview on one of the lesser known battles of ww2. there is a lot of background information on the saipan and the events leading up to the invasion. recommended reading for anyone who would like to know more about saipan

We purchased this book after eating at Sansei in Maui and Oahu our first time to Hawaii and love the book. If you have never eaten at Sansei you are really missing out. Chef DK has created an amazing menu. Everything is delicious. If you are heading to Maui or Oahu, make sure you put Sansei down as a "to-do" while you are there. On Sunday and Monday night they open at 5PM and everything on the menu is 50% off for one hour. You have to get their by 4PM or so in order to get in, but it is well worth the wait.

Chef Kodama and Bonnie Friedman share all of Chef Kodama's secrets and do a great job illustrating how to create traditional and contemporary Japanese cuisine. They explain how and why each ingredient is used and translate ingredients throughout the book so you don't have to keep looking up terms when trying a new recipe. The book is simple enough for beginners to follow, yet offers some contemporary (and slightly more complex) dishes for the advanced chef.

If you love sushi and want to start making it at home, by this book.

I've been to his restaurant in Maui and the food was fabulous. So good in fact that I bought this book. While I could use more examples of fish to swap for things only a Hawaiian can get I find the recipes so easy a beginner can use them to make some fantastic food. I highly recommend this book.

For beginners, there's a nice introduction to different basic japanese foods and rolling techniques with pictures. There are recipes for sushi, and small and large entrees. I've been to one of the two Sansei restaurants on Maui and the recipes from this book definately cover some of the best things on their menu. The only minor change I could see to make it better is more information about using pre-made grocery store sauces instead of making everything from scratch.

Loved the ease of instruction in making sushi. Not hard to follow, well done. Also like the homespun family history. It is a great guide to not only sushi but everthing else in his style. A lot of fun.

This is the first book I've read of this type that follows the war experiences of a dive bomber pilot in World War II. I've read other books about bomber pilots (I remember Harry Crosby's "On a Wing and a Prayer" especially fondly) but this is (as far as I know) the first book of this type by a dive bomber pilot from the war. The title should clue you in that this is going to be a good book: the Dauntless was the early war dive bomber of the US Navy, and it was replaced by the Helldiver. It turns out that the author graduated from flight school just prior to Pearl Harbor, and so was on the Yorktown at the Battle of the Coral Sea. He didn't really participate in the battle, only flying one anti-submarine patrol, but he *was* there. He then was assigned to the Saratoga, and arrived with that ship just after the fighting stopped at Midway. He flew patrols in the aftermath of the battle, however, and helped recover downed pilots and look for enemy stragglers, so he qualifies as having participating in that battle. He flew a mission at the start of the Battle of the Eastern Solomons, and when his flight leader decided they wouldn't be able to make it back to the carrier (by now the Enterprise) they wound up on Guadalcanal, and Buell flew from there for a month. He then returned to the carrier and participated briefly in the battle of Santa Cruz. He spent much of 1943 in the states building a new bomber group, then went with it to the new Hornet (the old one had been sunk by a Japanese sub the previous year) and was with that group through a series of raids during the rest of the year and much of 1944, which culminated in the Battle of the Phillipine Sea. In that confrontation, Buell's division of the squadron crippled and almost sank the Japanese carrier Zuikaku. He also led his division as it sank several vessels, including two destroyers, several merchant vessels, and at least one combat transport.

Buell's account of all of this is lively and intelligent. He recounts everything in an interesting fashion, telling of training, combat missions, shipboard politics, and the plane types that they flew. His discussion of the Dauntless and its replacement by the Helldiver is lamented, though he does note that the Helldiver was faster and had a larger cargo capacity. While the Dauntless had numerous nicknames and was a very popular plane, the pilots referred to the Helldiver as "the Beast".

I enjoyed this book a great deal and would recommend it to anyone interested in World War II.

This is a first class narrative by a Naval Aviator who through flying skill and a good bit of luck lived throught 16 major battles in the Pacific during World War 2. Having gone through the Naval Cadet Program and receiving my wings much later than Hal I would love to have this book on my book shelf.

If you know anything about U.S. naval aviation during World War II, the title alone will grab you. "Dauntless Helldivers" is an outstanding tale, superbly written by someone who was there and did it all. It's a "you-can't-put-it-down" book, which is rare for a work of nonfiction. If you've read some of the other great naval air volumes by Walter Lord, Gordon Prange and others, you'll definitely want this one alongside them on your bookshelf.

Hal Buell was one of the most experienced--and most effective--dive bomber pilots in the US Navy during WW II. He also owns a PhD in history; a unique combination which comes together in this engaging memoir. Flying SBDs in the 1942 carrier battles, and later SB2Cs in 1944, Buell had a great story to tell at the outset. His observations on human beings under lethal stress, as well as the challenge of combat flying, are well worth the effort. We can only regret that more dive bomber pilots (and crewmen) haven't committed their experiences to paper. Like the bumper sticker says: fighter pilots make movies; attack pilots make history!

The native population on Rongelap were in close proximity and downwind of a 15-megaton H-bomb test. Jane Dibblin provides an investigative reporter's account of the devestating impact on the islanders.

I read this book several years ago. Excellent, but extremely thought provoking. Be warned, it is very upfront and to the point, in regards to what the U.S. government did to the people in the Marshall Islands.

I read this book several years ago. Excellent, but extremely thought provoking. Be warned, it is very upfront and to the point, in regards to what the U.S. government did to the people in the Marshall Islands.

This book is an interesting look at the nuclear testing the U.S. did in the Pacific Islands. It is a great book when you must write a paper on the subject, because of its understandability. I would recommend that anybody who wants to know about the horrors that the Islanders went through during the testing and the aftermath of testing should take a look at this book.

This is indeed a book full of history and tidbits that add to our current historical knowledge. I think that for the non-historian, it is difficult to read all of the notes at the end of each letter (usually longer notes than the letters themselves). I would love to see this book with many of the obscure notes removed and just the very important historical facts included to help explain what is being written about. I am loving learning about Lewis and Clark, but this book was more difficult than most.

James Holmberg has done an excellent job of providing new insight into the Clark family, in particular the relationship between William and his eldest brother by twenty years, Jonathan. ALthough the basis of the book is a set of letters that were uncovered just a few years ago, the information is a fresh look at the Clark we normally view as being part of the word "LewisandClark".
The Journals of Lewis and Clark can tell you a lot about how he acts when he is in a business or military setting, but these intimate letters that he wrote to his brother show that William was a much deeper man that just an explorer. He truly looked up to his brother, and because they lived 200 years ago, that relationship is often lost, especially in since published Clark or Expeditionemorbelia. This is a wonderful book, and if you are trying to get a better persepective of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, this book is a must read to better understand the man that became famous.

Mr. Holmberg's new forthcoming edition of letters discovered
in an old Louisville, Kentucky estate some two decades ago
will shed new light on many long unanswered questions regarding the life of William Clark, of Lewis and Clark Expedition fame.
Aside from being an archivist at Kentucky's prestigious Filson
Club which holds its own substantial William Clark collection,
Holmberg is himself an expert Lewis and Clark enthusiast who brings passion, intelligence, clarity and understanding to interpretation of these significant letters. I have been privileged to hear the lectures of Mr. Holmberg at U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Lewis and Clark Training Academies, and without a doubt this book and its letters give valuable
insight into the life of York, William Clark's slave and
fellow expedition member, the winter at Fort Mandan, William Clark's relationship with his wife, Julia, and his ongoing honest and open, although often grossly misspelled, literary discourse with his brother Jonathan. Readers of Ambrose's UNDAUNTED COURAGE will revel in this book as it gives further insight into the character of William Clark, who often gets
far less press coverage than the colorful figure of
Meriwether Lewis. Every Lewis and Clark enthusiast should
be sitting on the front porch swing awaiting the VERY MOMENT when the mailman delivers this upcoming Amazon offering. The fact that these unknown letters survived AT ALL is amazing. The added scholarship and editing added to the project by
one so respected in the field as Jim Holmberg makes the prospect of this literary work almost too grand to imagine.

Discovery of the letters of William Clark is as significant
as finding an undiscovered portrait of Lincoln. We knew the
man before the discovery, but now we will know him better!

This is the kind of book cherished by all lovers of frontier history--historical researchers and genealogists, as well as those who simply love to read about it. Not just a book of letters, but a lusciously annotated treasure chest of biographical information, and not just on the Clarks, but on the frame of frontier history which surrounded them.

The insights on William Clark and York are indeed interesting, but biographical sketches in the notes reveal arcane facts on Daniel Boone, General James Wilkinson, Meriwether Lewis, Thomas Jefferson, and many others less known but equally interesting. Mr. Holmberg sometimes indulges in speculation and tentative assertions, but the demarcation between fact and inference is always clear.

The work is handsomely constructed, the font easy to read, the notes easy to follow. A complete bibliography is provided along with a complete index. All and all, a pleasure to peruse, a delight to own.