Arizona Books

From back cover:

"How many times have you seen tracks ahead of you on a beach, muddy forest trail or across a blanket of snow, and wondered what creature made them? This handy, pocket-sized guide helps you name the track maker, with life-size drawings of the animal's or bird's characteristic footprints. Just check for size with the ruler (left), then hold the book beside the mystery imprint and fine the drawing that looks most like it, for a quick identification. Includes 40 to 50 different animals and many birds most common the Rocky Mountains, with information on size, sounds, habitat, diet and patterns of movement."

[Includes Glacier, Yellowstone, Grand Teton and Rocky Mountain National Parks]

After getting most of my history of anthro. from Marvin Harris and Adam Kuper, I've found Vincent's book fascinating for its attention to political context and marginalized figures within the discipline. It's a book I wish I had read in grad. school -- it's certainly not just about political anthropology, but (in part) an account of the ways the political concerns that came to the fore in the discipline from the late 1960s onward were suppressed and ignored (though they were raised by figures on the margins) because of the discipline's earlier theoretical and methodological programs. Not a book for the general reader, obviously -- it definitely helps to have read many of the authors whom Vincent is discussing.

When missionaries came to colonize California, it was to Baja California "Antigua California" that they came. This is the story of the Jesuits who persevered in a barren, waterless, resource poor place. But the really great thing about the book is that it is the whole story of the pioneer mission period: it is also the story of the aboriginal peoples who were the targets of the Jesuits, and of the people (mostly Mexican) whom the Jesuits hired and brought along to handle and create daily life-soldiers, sailors, artisans, laborers. For once, a comprehensive history truly is. Using original eighteenth century materials (church records, diaries, letters, reports) the author has tracked down the movement of individuals, their genealogies, their careers, their contributions. More than most, it is a book of portraits of real people, pieced together sympathetically from scattered and scanty records. For a scholar, the book is eminently useful: full of maps, chronological tables of people and places, explanations of systems and bureaucracies. For the history buff, it is a dream of readability and detail. Highly recommended.

Anyone who lives here in the shadows of Superstition Mountain knows of the historic Apache Trail. We have all driven the hair pin turns of Fish Creek Hill and seen the magnificent Roosevelt Dam come into view around that next bend with a catch in our chest. Kollenborns book is a wonderful trip back in time to show us the beginnings of the trail as well as points of interest along the route. If you plan on traveling the Apache Trail, read this book first!

A valuable reference (at least, I hope so) for anybody interested in the prehistoric archaeology of southern Arizona. For all others, a guaranteed cure for insomnia. Also makes a handy coaster, and can be used to prop up a table with one leg shorter than the other.

The Author
8/26/07

The book Arizona by Scott Thybony and Fred Hirschman is excellent in both its reading and photograhy. Both participants of this book have really captured the true essence of Arizona. My students were unfamiliar with all of the wonderful places and attractions our state had to offer them. Arizona history has in fact become a wonderful learning experience for my students, and this book has been a helpful tool in showing them how beautiful our state truly is.

Fodor's has done it again. Vacation after vacation, I purchase Fodor's books to aid in my travel planning. Hotel recommendations were right on the money. Fodor's excellent comments and tips made my family's trip to Phoenix, The Grand Canyon and Sodona perfect. A must buy for any Arizona vacationer!

This book was excellent. I ordered it for my daughter who was doing a report on the state of Arizona. She was not only able to use the information in it, but took it to school and passed the book around her class as a visual aid.

This publication is a hard-bound stitched book and is currently for sale by the publisher The Arizona Genealogical Advisory Board.

It uses the alphabet to teach children about the history, wildlife, and amazing sights in Arizona. Children learn about kachinas, saguaro cacti, Nogales, and the Casa Grande plus much more. The art work is done in graphic design using rich, Southwest colors.