I first encountered this cookbook at my in-laws' house in Florida. They had dined at El Charro on a recent trip to Tucson, and were so enamored with the restaurant and the food, they bought the book. Unfortunately for them, they can't get many of the authentic spices and foodstuffs in Florida. Fortunately for me in Colorado, I can (excepting the preparation of the carne seca, which is one of the few drawbacks of this book). Gracias, El Charro e Senora Flores.

Many of us collect cookbooks for their unique and/or useful recipes. Rarely does a recipe-book come along that is one you want to curl up with on the couch and read and enjoy for its own sake.

Carlotta Flores' El Charro Cafeis one. It is a joyful tribute to past and future by the author and is full of the color of Mexican flavor in the Southwest U.S. Fisher Books did an outstanding job on the full-color photography on nearly every page, not only of platters of food but of kichey artifacts and symbols of the rich culture as it is lived on both sides of our long border and especially at El Charro.

Throughout the pages are amusing and touching family anecdotes from the time Carlotta's great-aunt Monica began serving cowboys and their familias frijoles and tamales in the dusty, wild Tucson of 1922,to the third and fourth generation's tasteful updates that have made El Charro an international destination-restaurant.

I can think of dozens of friends and relatives who would love to find this prize under the Christmas tree. It would not need wrapping!

BEING FROM THE WEST COAST, I THOUGHT I KNEW EVERYTHING ABOUT MEXICAN FOOD, AND BEING FROM TUCSON AND KNOWING THE EL CHARRO QUALITY MADE ME THINK I KNEW IT ALL. I WAS WRONG!!! THIS BOOK IS GREAT, IT TELLS A GREAT STORY OF THE TRADITION AND HISTORY OF THE CULTURE BEHIND THE FOOD. THE RECIPES WERE CLEAR AND CONCISE AND FUN TO MAKE. MY FAMILY WAS AMAZED HOW GOOD A COOK THIS BOOK MADE ME. I WAS MORE INTRIGUED WITH MAKING FOOD FROM A BOOK THAT I FELT A CONNECTION TO THE CULTURE THAT MADE THE RECIPES POSSIBLE. I HAVE NOT BEEN TO THE RESTAURANTS FOR SOME TIME NOW AND I FEAR IT MAY BE LONGER AS I AM ENJOYING COOKING AT HOME SO MUCH! BUY THIS BOOK!

After having read almost all of Leonard's crime novels, I finally got to this, his best known western. Written in 1961, it was made into the 1967 Paul Newman movie. I was surprised at the differences here compared to recent Leonard novels. The anti-hero, John Russell, is a young white man raised by Apaches in 19th century Arizona. He inherits some property which requires taking a trip away from the reservation. On this trip a stage coach robbery goes wrong and Russell fights the robbers to the death. Like all other Leonard protagonists, Russell is a man of action and of few words. Unlike other Leonard heroes, he inexplicably sacrifices himself at the end of the book to save a women that neither he nor the others really care about. Chili Palmer, Frank Ryan, or Ernest Stickley would have never done a thing like that. Leonard employs an unusual device of having one of the minor characters narrate the story. Later books have either an omniscient narrator of the protaganist's inner dialogue serving as narrator. Very good but not as much fun as more recent hits.

No writer chronicles the battles of misfits, underdogs, and renegades like Leonard. In Hombre, Leonard captures a land where the rich, the poor, and the wandering come together as equals __ and where honor is earned by courage and by blood.

John Russell was not welcome to ride in the coach with the other passengers but they all want him after they are robbed and left to walk. Th story tells of their trying to get away and the outlws trying to catch them. Enough action to keep you interested. If everyone had been like Hombre the book would have ended differently. Russell was a great character. I liked his Indian ways and his quite silent wat if getting things done. The book is a fairly quick read and will hold you attention. As Henry Mendez says in the book, "Take a good look at Russell. You will never see another one like him as long as you live."

This is a great book, full of information about 42 locations in Arizona that feature horseback riding trails. We've explored a few of the trails and found the descriptions very thorough and accurate. But Arizona is a big state and only a handful of the locations can be reached within a few hours by car/horse trailer. There are MANY other locations that aren't as widely known that could have been included. For example, there are at least four good trail riding areas right here in Wickenburg, yet none of them are covered. I'd love to see the author expand the book to cover more of the less-known trails. I'm sure he could find plenty of local horseback riding clubs that could fill him in on the "secret" trails in their areas. Otherwise, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND the book to anyone looking for someplace new to ride.

My riding partner and I have used Jan Hancock's guide to explore many of the trails around the Phoenix area with our horses. The book is usually right on the money in terms of descriptions of the trails, amenities, level of difficulty, etc. I highly recommed the book for those looking for horseback adventures. My wish is that Ms. Hancock would do a third edition updating information on newer trail systems such as the Arizona Trail, as well as bed and breakfast and horse camping facilities for equestrians around the state.

This is a great way to discover and ride new trails. The author has complete maps and levels of difficulty for all the rides. It's a good book to stick in your saddle bag and carry with you. We have ridden many of the trails and find the discriptions in the book to be accurate.

On the Rim is a fascinating study of the power of the Grand Canyon in American Culture. The author's breadth of knowlege is impressive, pulling together elements of anthropology, history, philosophy, sociology and literary/artistic criticism. His scholarship is impeccable, but the strength of the book is his personal stories of the people he has met and his own encounters with the Canyon.

This book is as grand in scope as the canyon itself, taking in ethnography, history, biography, and criticism. The thoroughness of Neumann's research, the sensitivity of his observations and the insight and wit of his language are reminiscent of the work of new journalist masters such as Gay Talese and Jane Kramer. Neumann brilliantly documents how "spectator culture" goes far back into U.S. history, into the receding zone of nostalgia that we look to for our origins. Also fascinating are his accounts of how the canyon has been framed by science and religion, and how the canyon's developers staged it in the manner of a theater or museum. I especially appreciated Neumann's sensitive and thoughtful use of tourists' stories. It would have been easy to make fun of the canyon's tourists and to present them as the ultimate mass culture nightmare. Instead, Neumann prompts the reader to think about the popular logics and traditions that lie behind tourists' practices. Neumann concludes with a meditation on why people keep coming to the canyon through "the depths of time"--what they come looking for, what they think they can create or recover. It is a moving finale for this fine book.

Having traveled to the Grand Canyon many times during my life I am always taken in by its true greatness and wonder. This book goes beyond the countless picture books that have been published on the canyon by giving the reader some real insight. The author gives several different perspectives on the canyon that you are not likely to learn by just touring the canyon for a few hours. This book lets true Grand Canyon lovers experiance the canyon in depth and make the reader eager to return and see it from a deeper perspective.

The book's title is a bit grandiose. This is casual storytelling based on old newspaper articles rather than a comprehensive history, though it is supplemented at times with historical documents Sikorsky has examined. It is, in any event, good storytelling and there is no particular reason to doubt the basic accuracy of the newspaper articles. It provides a entertaining look at the main versions of the legend and the personalities surrounding it.

Whether you will be convinced that there is nothing to the legend, as another reviewer has suggested, is a different question. I am not sure that the book even wants to give that impression. One could equally well conclude that there might have been something up there once -- perhaps before the Dutchman even claimed to find his "mine" -- but that it is almost surely long gone, leaving behind a fantasy fit for con men, crooks, and fools -- and (this is my own excuse) those for whom the fantasy makes it a bit more fun to hike in the Supersitions.

Like another reviewer, I read this book when it was entitled Fools Gold. The book gives a detailed, factual account of the Lost Dutchman's Mine Legend. The author describes his personal experiences working with those that have searched for the mine. He also includes quite a bit of original historical research on the history of the legend and on Jacob Waltz (the Dutchman). He intersperses these perspectives throughout the book. It is a very interesting book to read even if you are marginally interested in this topic.

The author does a good job of debunking the legend. If you have any doubts about whether the mine exists you probably won't after reading this book. The evidence clearly indicates that the Dutchman's Mine is fiction, not fact.

I read this book when it was published under the title "Fool's Gold" (published 1983). I found his narrative gripping. I felt like I was there. I grew up in the Phoenix area, so It was even more of a intense feeling because I have been in the Supersititon mountains and can say that he is right. Those mountains are rugged, harsh, and you get a sense of it being a little creepy. The book is well written and well researched. I reccomend it strongly to anyone who is interested in the legends and tales of the West.

This guide provides an interesting overview to the Grand Canyon. Parents will find this guide useful in sharing this awesome wonder with their children. However, this guide falls short as a vacation planner.

The way the books of this series work is that they took a guide for new rangers in Yosemite with the 100 or so most frequently asked questions, and wrote their own answers for each park. So in each book the questions are very similar but the answers might be very different.

It's a great format because it makes for easy reading beforehand, but it's also quick as a reference when you're there because they're arranged in an intelligent order. There's also a huge reference section at the end with lists, copies of permit forms, and so forth. So the thing to do is read the FAQ before you leave but bring the book and refer to it once you're there.

Before I went I really wasn't sure how long we'd want to stay or even if there was really anything to do other than look at the canyon. As it turns out there's a ton of things to do - ruins, great hiking, sunsets, stargazing, and we spent a lot more time there than I would have thought. Without this book either I wouldn't have realized this stuff existed (the park service doesn't exactly promote the nearby native ruins, but they're cool) or I would have scheduled way too little time.

We searched far & wide for info. about the G.C. while planning our trip. There's a lot of info. online, to be sure. But if you want the insider's perspective - skip Fodor's, Frommer's, Let's Go, and the rest of the "mainstream" travel guides. Those "other guides" will only give you the most basic information (which is also readily available on the web).

The Grand Canyon Handbook: an Insider's Guide to the Park will give you just about everything you need to know to make the most of your trip to the G.C.! From, directions, camping, lodging & dining info., tours, a history of the canyon and the park to the best times (& places) to view surise & sunsets, the best time of year to go, and plenty of info. on the flora & fauna, too! As well as many different ways you can see the Grand Canyon: shuttlebus, hiking along the rim, your car/RV, hiking into the canyon, rafting through the canyon, by helicopter or plane, etc. It's written by some REAL insiders - people who know the Park inside & out. We'd definitely reccomend this book to anyone who wants to learn about one of our Nation's greatest natural treasures!

The only things it left out were: how amazing the drive around the canyon from the South to North Rims is, and other area attractions (like The Grand Canyon: West with the Hualapai Indians and Grand Canyon Caverns). But, maybe those will make it into the 2nd edition.

If you're planning a trip to the Grand Canyon (even if you're only stopping by for one day) YOU NEED THIS BOOK!

I think that I was not as good as the first one but pritty good in my opinion she should not have told her sister but the ending had a good twist to it and made me laugh and cry so I will just have to keep on reading the series and find out more I really hope that Janni Simmer will make more, Because I really liked the first and the second one was pritty good and I cant wait to read the third

This book is so cool! I love the way the author writes. I just can't seem to put any of her books down. I loved the plot of this exraordinary book.

The Haunted Trail is a good book for young readers with an expanding mind for fantasy/ fiction books. I liked this book because I haven't read many fantasy books and this one was right at my level. It made me enjoy reading this type of book even when I'm not a regular to it. If you like horses or mild adventure stories, I recommend this book.

I searched all over for a book on Tucson, and this was the best one my bookstore had to offer. I am excited to see all that the city has to offer, but I wish that this book or any book on Tucson at all, had more about people who are moving to the area and have no idea what to make of the different neighborhoods. They offer brief descriptions, but I would have liked to know more.

I enjoyed The Insiders Guide to Tucson since I will be moving with my family very soon to the area. I've been in Tucson a number of times so can be a little objective about the reporting and I must admit that it is a bit partisan, but then it wouldn't be an insiders guide if it wasn't. It demonstrates the wide variety of services available in Tucson and even without fancy colour photos makes the city sound attractive. I must admit that the comparisons on the restaurants are fairly exaggerated and it would be difficult to name any as remotely world class, but apart from that I thought the book was a super reference.

I was moving to Tucson and I had never even been there. I looked through the book to get a feel for the city. After visiting and making the decision to move, I tried many of the activities and resturants in the book. I found all the reviews were accurate. When I asked 'locals' about different things about Tucson, they quite often said just what the book said. I even carry this book in my vehicle as I refer to it quite a bit. If you planning to move to Tucson, this is a must have. The small price of the book goes a long way in learning about all that Tucson has to offer.

I grew up with Rick(only for the year he was at the military academy) and went to Lake Havasu in 1969 to go to some of those "cultesac parties" he wrote about in the book.He and I planned to go to a "concert" back east together that we wound up not making it to, something called Woodstock.I remember him all these years later as just the guy in the book, a crazy guy who told great stories about Havasu.We pulled some good stuff at the military school too, shaving creme fights, playing "bringing in the sheves" instead of the prescribed marches much to the consternation of the bandmaster.Great book Rick!

I am a little older than the author and grew up in a small town in California; (coincidentally, I was also in the first graduating class of our new high school, and we were also dubbed the "Knights"). Other than having those things in common, I have never been to Lake Havasau--and, from the photos provided, can't even picture where the London Bridge might be. But the author's humor and delightful memories made this an enjoyable book! I guess because of the "therapeutic" times we live in, most memoirs involve abuse and anger and other negative issues. But this author focuses mainly on the fun part of growing up, which is the way I remember my teen years. Teen angst, sure, but fun. If this book were edited for it's many grammatical errors (which is the only reason I am giving it 4 stars, rather than 5), I would hope to find it on a bookshelf anywhere in the western United States. We need more nostalgia of this sort! Thanks for writing it, Rick, and thanks to Amazon.com for making it available.

A personal look at the birth of Lake Havasu City, "Living At the End Of Old '95" covers the time period from near the very start of the town to the re-construction of the London Bridge through the eyes of a young boy, who reaches his own maturity along with the city. As a person who lived there during the same time period, I can't judge how much interest this book would have for persons unfamiliar with the region and period; however, for past and current residents, and students of Arizona history, I think this non-traditional account of late-60's rural Arizona will be quite interesting. For those of us who lived the time and place, "Old '95" is a nostalgic blast from the past - you'll run across familiar names and events as you tag along with Mr. Kingsbury through his adolescence. Sprinkled with good humor, photos and newspaper clippings, "Old 95" is a pleasant reminder of a more innocent time of childhood shenanigans, hard work, independent spirit and the frontier attitude that carved a thriving city out of raw desert. Highly recommended for those already familiar, in some fasion, with the subject.

I acquired this book to help our gang of 4 couples decide where to hike and where not to hike. It was the most useful of several books that we had available. All the information was up to date and useful to us and helped us avoid crowds, get to where we wanted to be at the right time with the correct amount of gear. The group had a very wide range of abilities from very good to where is the elevator? It permitted people to pick and choose which hike to take and when to "take a hike"

My wife and I spent about 10 days dayhiking in the Sedona vicinity. We found this guide much more satisfactory than any of the pamphlets or maps obtained in tourist information sites. The guide gives good directions to trail heads and lists them in catagories from easy to challenging, and from scenic to most interesting. An accurate discription of the hike and what you will see is also found in the guide. If you're not a hiker, there is also a guide to sightseeing spots accessible from roads. A short history of Sedona is included, and even a list of old Western movies that were shot in the area. I would recommend this guide to anyone who would be visiting the Sedona area.

62 trails and sightseeing hot spots covered in this book. 16 of the spots are roadside or treks under a quarter mile. Each entry includes a superb historical review and a short trail description. Trails are grouped into eight areas. Each area contains an overview map. Tables also categorize trails from easiest to most challenging. Other useful tables list trails by vortex, ruins, vistas and more. Page fourteen maps out the labyrinth of rock formations. To date I have hiked over half the trails listed. As an avid hiker and Webmaster of HikeArizona.COM I can truly recommend this book.