What would Americans do without California? The state was the birthplace of the Frisbee, Barbie Dolls, and canned tuna, among others. California Firsts: The Famous, Infamous, and Quirky of the Golden State charts the odd and fun innovations and innovators of the state, blending black and white vintage photos with a lively coverage of the state's achievements. A fine leisure choice.

This is a technical book for keying out plants growing in the wild in California -- both native and naturalized species. This includes detailed botanical descriptions from plant kingdom Divisions down to species and sub-species and everything in between. Each species is described in detail and where it is found is described.

However, no information on garden culture or ornamental uses is provided. Therefore is is not the book to buy if you want information on gardening with native plants.

This book presents an excellent foundation for fly fishing California's waters. The patterns will enable anyone to be productive anywhere in the state. Ken's books on bass and saltwater flyfishing should also be included on a flyfisher's bookshelf. From what I understand his "Fly Fishing Afoot in the Surf Zone" is a hot topic in Europe!

Going to a place for the first time like California, we felt innundated by choices of where to go and what to do. This guide provided everything we needed...from tips on getting around to the best places to stay and eat. It didn't dumb down and really sent us to the perfect places.

This book serves as a helpful and approachable guide to anyone wishing to become more familiar with the flora and fauna of California. The state's different biomes are represented in separate chapters, each of which includes detailed descriptions of common vegetation and animals, rare sights of the area, and spotting tips.

Every recipe in this book is a winner. I have given it away to 2 great friends already. I highly recommend it!

It's almost always by my side. As a landscape designer, sometimes I draw a blank when looking for a specific plant for a specific, sometimes tricky, situation. This book has about 100 different lists to work with (maybe more?, maybe less, but it seems like 100 or more!) A few examples: Vines that climb by tendrils versus by twining versus by clinging; trees that have problem root systems, drop messy fruit or leaves, or that have beautiful bark and/or trunk structure; shrubs for oceanside sites, for erosion control, for shady areas. There are the same types of lists (plus many more) for ground covers, perennials, annuals, etc; The lists only give the common and botanical name for the plants in each catagory, it does not give any details about the plant, so you have to know your plants. But for anyone in the profession, or an amature who knows their plants, this book is a must. The only drawback: it doesn't have a cross reference/ index for each of the lists, so you have to go through each chapter (broken down by perennials, trees, shrubs, roses, vines, ferns, ground covers and annuals.) I still recommend it 100%.

Deborah Hardin's textbook on California geology is superior to all previous texts inasmuch as she is the first to utilize the theory of plate tectonics to provide a unified framework for her overall exposition. Instead of being bombarded with an encyclopedic but chaotic assemblage of rock types and unconnected microprocesses, the reader is treated to a consistent and comprehensive picture of how California came to be that hangs together remarkably well.

Harden utilized the recent research of countless other geologists to put together this book, and her hard work has paid off. She includes several chapters that provide a conceptual overview of geologic principles, then goes on in successive sections to describe how various forces and processes related ultimately to plate tectonics have been responsible for the evolution of various distinctive landforms and geomorphic regions of California. She also includes a final chapter that is a stand-alone summary version of the "geological history of California." Throughout the book, she makes clear again and again how a clear understanding of the various ways that tectonic plates can interact is absolutely fundamental to understanding how California has come into existence over the past several hundred million years. It's a fascinating story, and Harden's text will help anyone willing to read carefully and study a bit to learn the basics of California geology.

As an added bonus, Harden has included several sections that are linked to present-day environmental hazards, most notably those related to the constant threat of earthquakes in the Golden State. Such information is, of course linked directly to the geology of the state that she has described and explained so well.

The illustrations and diagrams re not terribly elaborate, but they are helpful and reasonably plentiful. Also included are some small-sized versions of the standard California geology and fault maps.

The main drawback to this publication is its astronomical price. This is hardly Harden's fault, however, as high prices seem to be the unfortunate standard for college textbooks these days.

"California Girl" is one of the "Sweet Dreams" teen romance series, popular in the late 1970s/early 1980s. There are a handful of these books (and books in the "First Love from Silhouette" series) that really stood out, and this is one of them. Jennie, an aspiring Olympic swimmer, moves with her family from California to Texas to follow her swim coach. Not only does she have to adjust to the football-obsessed Texans, her swimming is not going well and her mother is becoming increasingly obsessed with Jennie's swimming career. Jennie is also falling for Mark, a former high school football star who suffered a career-ending injury. But she's unsure whether Mark would be interested in her if he could still play football.

The reason this book stands out is that it's not just about dating and boys and clothes. Jennie has a real interest, and the author knows enough about competitive swimming to make the details authentic and interesting to the reader. You'll definitely find yourself cheering for the very likeable Jennie!

I've read so many boring, all facts books on the California Gold Rush that I almost didn't read this one. I'm glad I did. Because "The California Gold Rush" by May McNeer is different. Although the text is accurate, it's also lively and filled with details on the lives of the ordinary yet fascinating people that took place in this great historical event, and colorful tales of mining camps and more. This is by far the best book on the California Gold Rush. Once you've started May McNeer's "The California Gold Rush," I guarantee you won't be able to put it down!