I usually avoid Westerns because its hard to find any that don't follow the Louis L'Amour/Zane Grey formula tripe.

This one is an exception. It is truly original and captivating from start to finish. You won't go wrong with this one.

This book is probably the best Western novel that I have ever read. Its only competitor in my experience is the "Ox-Bow Incident." However, Bergon's novel, which is based upon a real event, is still better.

The action, which is set around the Nevada town of Winnemucca in the year 1911, revolves around the pursuit of a Shoshone Indian family from Idaho accused of killing some white men. Told from the perspective of several major characters, including the Winnemucca Sheriff, a Basque immigrant, and the Shoshone Indians, this novel really shows the ugly underside of the West that never appears on the movie screen or in Louis L'amour's novels.

This is novel is not a celebration of the old West, but it is a page-turner and well worth adding to your library.

The Sierra Nevada attract visitors from around the U.S. and from all over the world. They come to see the Giant Sequoias. They hike the John Muir, Pacific Crest and countless other trails. They fish, camp, hunt, ski, sightsee and just plain relax. My wife introducted me to the Sierra eight years ago. We usually returned to Eastern Sierra and particularly Lake Sabina. Recently, another camper told me about an Internet site called SierraGatewayMap.com. I checked it out and I am thrilled with it! It gives excellent descriptions, pictures and maps of 11 counties of the Sierra Nevada. I can immediately contact resort owners or pack station guides and other merchants directly through the Internet right from this web site. My wife and I used it to plan a trip to the Western Sierra area of Mammoth Pools. I have never been to this side of the mountains. We printed some maps of the area from the web site. Then I discovered there was a travel companion book, The Sierra Gateway Map Guide. This book is based on the web site, yet I can carry it with me as I travel the area. Sometimes the local folks of the area you are visiting don't want to tell you about the surrounding places you can see because they want you to stay and spend all their money with them! This book shows you what is nearby. You can stay in one spot and take daily side trips to many other closeby places. I am obviously pleased with this book and highly recommend it. It is not only good for using yourself, but it is a great gift item as well. My thanks to the authors for both the web site and the excellent travel guide!

Having visited the Sierra Nevada since the 1950s, I am pleased to have found this wonderful booklet that is filled with color pictures and detailed maps. My family and I can show others where we have visited and we can decide what other areas we will like to visit in the future. I particularly like the author's use of web site addresses and phone numbers. In today's world, it is so easy to contact a facility via the web and much less expensive too! The descriptions of the places you can visit and the things you can see and do is very good. The pictures give you a taste of the beauty you will experience. The maps give you a detailed method of traveling from one area of the Sierra to another without having to hit the "main roads". My thanks to the authors and I surely suggest this is a great book for anyone that has or is planning to visit California's Sierra Nevada.

I glanced through this book while waiting for service in a local bank. I was so impressed with the pictures and drawings that I am ordering it for my husband's birthday. By that time I'll have found my glasses and will be able to enjoy the words too. Great detail about Nevada.

It was simply unbelievable. I was amazed at the sheer horse sense that it showed. The illustrations were breathtaking and I thank my lucky stars that I read it. I love Ron Oden who is so beautiful. His use of color was breathtaking. If there is a god it is Ron Oden.

The author, a professor and coordinator of the Gaming Studies Research Center at the University of Nevada at Las Vegas, really hits the jackpot with this, his first publication. Although I am a financial analyst, specializing in the gaming industry, I was intrigued by Dr. Schwartz's historical analysis of the development of legalized gaming in Las Vegas and throughout the United States. The book is extremely well-researched and, while clearly written by a scholar, it has a friendly, accessible style. Suburban Xanadu has something for those interested in business, American history, popular culture, gaming, "the Rat Pack," sociology, etc. I have recommended this book to my colleagues and I look forward to reading future works from this unique young author.

This book tells a real story of how casinos got popular. I'm a UNLV student and I hear that the author teaches a class in casino history. Reading this book, it's obvious that he knows what he is talking about. This was very informative and I would highly recommend it for anyone who wants to learn more about casinos and Las Vegas.

I bought this book a couple of weeks ago. It really is a fun and interesting twist on entertainment. I was hoping to gain information on the community, and I did. But I also was blown away by how many tours are in this book and how much fun we had. I really enjoyed the golf ball tour and I really liked the vitamin tour. These were unknowns at the time. If I had a grip with the book, it would be that the author put free days of musuems and galleries plus free festival in the back of the book and I don't have enough time to do all the stuff listed in the book. It is a good book though and will get to as much as possible with my schedule, promise!!!

This book is a great reference if you are thinking about going to Southern California on a limited budget. There are plenty of places the author highlights that are not found in other books (trust me I have purchased plenty of CA books). The tours are appropriate for the kids as well. Plus you have over 100 to choose from, meaning you could tour for weeks on end and still have places to go. If you are vacationing in California, consider getting the book. It is a great find for the limited budget.

I have had the pleasure of walking many of the same trails that Sharon writes about in this book. The maps and directions are most excellent--if a description says 3/10 of a mile, then that's what it is. There is nothing quite so frustrating as having a wonderful day of walking planned only to be thwarted by crappy directions to the trail head. The historical focus is like icing on the cake-each of these walks are very enjoyable by themselves but when you have a greater knowledge of place and time, the whole experience is greatly enhanced.
So, even if you've tried other hiking books and been disappointed, don't pass this one by. There is something for everyone here. Highly Recommended and a great read even if you don't get out much!

Sharon has had agoraphobia for 20 or more years, and yet she has conquered her fears by hiking around 10,000 miles on foot with a friend or two intoe for companionship. She has shared her research and emotions along with the visual descriptions of each of these hikes in her first book. It is a book that will inform and delight every reader, even if you never take that first step upon the worn trail.
She includes facinating tidbits that have been well researched, and provides pictures long buried in private and government archives. Sharon has also tried to inform the reader about the ecological issues surrounding the hikers' intrusion into the delicate terrain of the Sierras. Each chapter is complete, and will leave the reader enthralled and excited for the next "trip"--even without leaving the comforts of one's armchair.
Whether one follows the maps on where to begin one's personal experience by hiking the trail or just reading to enjoy the trip vicariously, this book will be a wellcomed addition to everyone's bookcase who is interested in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Bon Voyage!

I am seriously addicted to these Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology books. They lead you by milepost on such wonderful tours. You'll want to grab your camera, rock hammer and pocket protector, and hit the road with this one.

There are a lot of excellent maps in this spiral-bound book. The Great Basin offers many surprises to those who leave the Interstate. Enjoy.

I have a confession to make. When I live in a place that has ice and snow on the ground for twenty-something days; the temperature hovers around the cold mark (anything below 50 degrees Fahrenheit;)and my home heating bills are larger than my mortage payment, I frequently contract cabin fever. Symptoms include, but are not limited to, looking at maps, howling at the moon (when available), chasing parked cars, and reading travel books. I know, I know, it's only the beginning of winter and readers are typically not standing in line to get tickets for their summer vacations. However, to my surprise I find that a number of libraries have very popular travel programs that start in January. Could it be that others are afflicted with this seemingly incurable malaise? Thus, you can imagine my delight in finding a copy of this wonderful travel book. My wife and I traveled U.S. Highway 50, christened "The Loneliest Road in America" by Time magazine, across Nevada a couple of years ago. Unfortunately, while we had a number of obligatory travel books of this region, this one was not available. I can't believe how much we missed! Since it was published by the Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology, it is a specialized travel book. But don't let that fool you. While it is chock full of information on the geology, flora, and fauna of the region it is so much more. In addition to being highly readable it has 70 color photos, 170 black & white photos and an abundance of illustrations, maps, and sketches. The book takes the traveler along this historic Lincoln Highway from Carson City to Baker and introduces you to a unique Nevada adventure complete with national forests, deserts, and a National Park, Great Basin, that many travelers don't even know exists. About the only thing you will miss is the diesel fume spewing monsters pulling full grown homes and bumper-to-bumper traffic at every milepost. During our visit to Great Basin National Park we encountered perhaps a dozen cars. The book has a helpful road log keyed to highway markers. The trip will take you from ghost towns to Pony Express stations and so many side trips into areas of pristine beauty that you will be hard pressed to believe you are in Nevada, which is, after all just a lot of desert, right? You might even visit a lake that produces some of the best trout fishing in the State and stop for a picnic lunch under aspens that will take your breath away. How about stopping in Fallon and visiting the Naval Air Station and Strike and Air Warfare Center, the Navy's Top Gun training center. Riding the "Ghost Train" from Ely is a trip you won't forget. We discovered the works of Nevada poet Kirk Robertson in a small bookshop in Eureka, which has a beaufifully restored historic courthouse. Kind of a special two for one deal. If you are looking for the fastest way to traverse Nevada complete with four lanes of pavement, interchanges, and fast food stops, Highway 50 is not for you. On the other hand, if you have just a touch of adventure in your soul and don't mind beautiful scenery, historic ambiance, and lots of space, this is worth your time. I would not make this the only travel guide to take on such a trip but I would not leave home without it. Take heart fellow sufferers, spring and summer is coming and this book will remind you why the wait is worth it.

Never in a million years would I expect to find a book about Mormon settlers in the Utah desert interesting. Yet this book was extremely interesting and informative. But, this should be no surprise because that has always been Dr. Bowen's gift. I had the pleasure of taking 3 Geography courses with him at Mary Washington College and he was as interesting in person as he is on print. Dr. Bowen could turn the most dry Geography course into the most interesting class on campus. In a country where most people do not know a thing about Geography, just watch Jay Leno, we need people like Dr. Bowen who can teach and entertain at the same time. He is the Patch Adams of Geography! Read this book and even better...go to MWC and take his class.

Marshall Bowen, a distinguished professor of geography at Mary Washington college, describes in great detail the farming settlement occuring around Wells, NV in the early 20th century. He describes factors that caused people to come to this marginal land, what led to their eventual failure and the aftermath. In particular, the author looks at people from Utah who settled here. If you have any interest in frontier settlement or the Utah/Nevada region, this book is an excellent read

I've read other Alan Hess books- Googie come to mind. I really enjoyed Hess's style for this book. Alan Hess writes an occasional column for the San Jose Mercury News concerning architecture. He did not leave me disappointed with this book. It was evident that Alan Hess enjoyed this place as much as I did on my last visit to Sin City!

This book came out in 1993. If you're looking for information on the newer hotels that have sprung up, the ones that came and left during then and now, you won't find it here. You will find details about the ones that were imploded during the 90's, which was a nice resource for those of us that were curious about the Sands, Dunes, Hacienda and the Aladdin. It's also an indication of just how much the strip has evolved from the timeline of the publishing of this book and what is the strip looks today, year 2001. An excellent study of the architecture changes of Vegas and its reflections on the rest of the U.S.

If you buy one book about the colorful history and architecture of the Golden Age of Las Vegas to the present, THIS IS IT!!! This wonderful book is expertly researched with many many old drawings, postcards, photos, and more!

I read this short chapter book while passing some time in an elementary library and was delighted with the genuine humor and the breezy writing of this original tale. Adults who read this story aloud to their children will enjoy the humor as much as their kids, and readers who have graduated to chapter books will find this one funny and entertaining.

I'm always impressed when I come across a fresh storyline in a children's book, and this tale of the mysterious (yet strangely familiar!) visitors to the Lonesome Cafe is definitely an original idea.

This hilarious little volume is a perfect gift for that child who sees things just a little bit off center. Herein, we meet old friends--who are up to some surprising new activities. Ever wonder what Santa does in the off season? The quirky, charming illustrations add another dimension. I laughed out loud at the portrait of Bigfoot as a short order cook. Adults and children will enjoy the subtle satire of an insatiable media unable to locate any real story--even when it's right under their noses.