I really like the way this book is organized. There are sections such as "Desserts" and "Canyons". When I went to Arizona the last time, I wanted to visit desserts, and I wanted to hike some Canyons, so I could simply read these sections and learn pretty much everything I wanted to know, rather than piece this information together as other travel books make you do (since they are usually organized by area). The organization also allows you to skip information such as "Art" and "History". Of course in the end I ended up being interested in these sections after all, so I read them in the care while I was there. And once again, I could focus on these sections rather than finding this information organized by area.

Long story short: I really like reading about an area by topic of interest, rather than by location. It makes travel planning much easier. Of course, your need may be different (you may be in a certain town and want to figure out what to do for instance...). In that case, this book still is useful (it DOES have short sections on individual locations), but there are other books I use for that type of research.

Overall, I can highly recommend this book. In fact, I will order some of the other books from this series for different states.

Compass Guides are the best series I have ever read. They are literate and beautifully illustrated, laid out well and very logical to use. Of the Compass Guides I've read, Cheek's Arizona is the best (followed closely by his Santa Fe Guide).

He writes with wit and style. He's not afraid to share his opinion, but never takes for granted that his is the only viewpoint. He also adds a human element that few other guides offer. Frequently you'll find sidebar articles that introduce you to a person whose story particularly illustrates the idea or place in question.

I lived in Arizona for 4 1/2 years. This is the guide that I used to learn the state. I would recommend it to anyone. When my wife and I married in Sedona, Arizona we sent copies of this book to our relatives to acquaint them with the wonderful place they'd be visiting. All who read it were delighted. You'll be, too.

This book is incredible. It gives all kinds of details ranging from local interest and lore to general information about the state. It reads like a novel and yet is very informative. Even if you have no intention of ever visiting Arizona, this is still a wonderful book to read and the photographs are breath-taking.

A very helpful guide for driving up or down my favorite coast in the world! Doerper takes you almost mile by mile - was particularly helpful as I drove from Sebastopol up to Menocino, heretofore undiscovered country for me. Galen Rowell's photographs have always been a treat. His death was a real loss, but at least you can tour the CA coast through his eyes in this book.

I liked this book enough to buy Doerper's corollary for the Pacific Northwest to use this year:)!

I bought this book before traveling from San Francisco down Big Sur (about halfway), and it has great coverage of the Big Sur coast, the Santa Cruz area, and San Francisco.

Costal California is more than just a guide book to the California coast. A first glance, Galen Rowell's spectacular photography, 25 full-color maps, wine labels, and historical photographs tell you that there can't be a better illustrated guide for this local. When you start to read this book, you find that it is more than just travel data. John Doerper writes, "The California coast is as much a state of mind as it is a place. Its people, and the stories and myths they have woven around this magic coast, are as captivating as the spectacular scenery." He obviously kept this thought in mind as he wrote this inspirational , entertaining, and expert guide.

How good is this book? Another guidebook recomedns reading it! This book gives great insight into the history of Las Vegas as well as the individual hotels. While it is a little short on specific information, this guide more than makes up for it with specacular color photography and well written articles. A must read for those who want to know more than what the Chamer of Commerce or the Convention and Visitors Bureau will admit.

This is not your typical tour book. The author acutally suceeds in being entertaining as well as informative. Las Vegas is made tangible and not just rated in terms of good or bad.

The typical tour book stuff is here including hotel rates and restaurant reviews. However, if you want to know more, it's there. It provides the description of a hotel as well as detailing its history. In Vegas, even the hotels have personality. Every subject is handled in a like manner. This has the added bonus of making the book feel more like a narative.

There are small excerpts from popular authors for even more perspective. Perhaps, perspective is the right word for this book. The reader is treated to a point of view and not just a vague recollection of facts and figures. This is the first tour book I ever read cover to cover.

Though it has some slow parts, over all it is a great quick history / guide of Las Vegas. Even if you've been there, you'll find amusement in some of the tales or info included. I did.

I work in tourism, so I'm required to know all I can about Vegas. Castleman's Las Vegas is more than another guide. It can be read like an exciting novel that you don't want to put down. Or it's index makes it a quick reference tool. It's all here. History, the characters, the gaming, the hotels, weddings, maps, side trips, bargains - everything in a good size to carry and read on the plane.

By the time you land, you will feel like a Vegas veteran and save time and money.

Besides a great read, this book is worth the price simply for the fantastic photography.

Honestly? I can say, without any hesitation: this is the most extraordinary work of literature I have ever read. The prose is breathtaking, the characters are like relatives to me now, and the experiences within the book will be familliar to any Native person who reads it.

How this woman missed out on the Nobel Prize (or the Booker, at *least*) is an utter mystery to me.

If you are an Indigenous person of any stripe, do yourself a favor and buy this book. Patricia Grace is a literary kaumaatua, and I thank her for her words.

Although I read this book some time ago, I will try to make a review for some other readers passing by this page. It is about the different lifes and happenings of the members of a Maori family, mainly three women of the family, and the story spins around in time, in past and present. This is the second book I have read written by Patricia Grace and I'm lokking forward to reading some more of her work. I like her style so much, the way she can express so many feelings; you get into the story and the main caracters as you read the book, and you wish it didn't come to an end.

this is a great book to rea

This is a great insider's look into San Francisco. Whether you live in the city, or are just there for the weekend it is a must have. The shops/restaurants are all broken down by area, and there are maps that will get you anywhere. There are so many unique places in San Francisco, and this guide has scouted them out for you. It would make a great stocking stuffer.

Get ready for this visual journey. There is no other guide book like it. I love the pictures, I love the descriptions, I love learning about the people behind their businesses. If you're looking for a new way to look at an old city - this is your book.

The Crown Guide takes a very different spin on a City Guide. It gives insight into various types of truly unique businesses in the City that are not the standard trendy places so often frequented by the SF crowds. From delectible new bars restaurants, to unique shoe and clothing boutiques, to creative home stores, the Crown Guide has selected excellent places to check out. Adorned with great color photos of these unique establishments and their owners, you get a great sense of what each one offers. As a San Francisco native who likes to try out all the interesting places in town, I've found several cool new places I was unaware of and have been pleasantly surprised with those I've visited so far. For those daring tourists who want to get to know SF beyond Fisherman's Warf and the Cable Cars, a definite must!

I finally found a copy of this book and I am pleased to say that I was not disappointed at all. This book gets right to the roots of the rock and roll explosion out of the Pacific Northwest in the 50's and 60's. Don did a good job selecting the bands to be represented. I know he could not cover them all in the space of a single volume. This book needs a volume II and a volume III or more to tell the full story. Still, this single book is the best published on the subject so far. It needs to get back into print... NOW!

It is driving me absolutely nuts that I can't find a copy of this book that I can keep for my own. This is another good work about the music scene in the Pacific Northwest. It covers the bands and venues in and around Portland and Seattle quite well, but as with so many works, Tacoma (which had a large, vibrant and lively music scene) was largely ignored. That is too bad. There were so many great bands in Tacoma, and great musicians that went on to have successful careers with other groups. Other than that, this is an excellent reference and research tool... and a good read for those who just want to read the story. If anyone ever wants to part with a copy, please let me know. SamCarlson@TheRegents.net

If you are into the Pacific Northwest Sound of the '60s, this is the most complete book on the market anywhere!! It doesn't leave ANYBODY out! The Viceroys, Wailers, Kingsmen, Ventures, Sonics, Beachcombers, Bards, Counts, Don & The Goodtimes, Paul Revere & The Raiders, Jim Valley, Dave Lewis, Doug Robertson, and many more!!! Even "Jerden" and "Bolo Seafair Records" companies are listed!!! This book is from A to Z, all inclusive! All played by "KJR Seattle - Channel 95" No Disappointment!!

They say write about what you know...LeMonds knows the soul of the past and modern logger and writes with as unpretentious style as I've seen in a long time. He uses the language (always loggers...never lumberjacks) and shares with the reader the language and techniques of everything from falling, bucking, setting chokers, to trucking the logs. Furthermore, he does it based upon the real-life experiences of his family. You learn how they used to rig a spar tree and what went through the climbers mind as he accomplished this task 150-200 feet in the air. LeMonds also shares the future of forestry (hand-seeding, herbicides, fertilizer & thinning) to move the life span of high-productive crops like Douglas Firs from hundreds of years to perhaps as little as 35 years as well as what the modern equipment does now and probably into the future.. Perhaps you might find the short chronology of the work history of each of his family members in the logging business too detailed but it's more than worth the wonderful stories and perspectives that go with them. LeMonds acknowledges the scars on the landscape of the past but also the enduring scars on these tremendous men who contributed so much to this Country's development of the 20th century. I don't think one could ask for a more balanced view of this industry and have it written with such class. This is the best book I ever expect to read about this subject, which is so dear to my heart having been raised in a nearly identical community in Southern Oregon. Today I ordered a second copy to send to a dear friend still working in the woods.

James Lemonds peels away the Bunyonesque macho image that has been falsely hung on the loggers of the Northwest and shown them as they are; broken down, disabled and discarded by the industry that exacted a terrible toll on both the workers and the forests.
Anyone wanting to research the human cost the industry extracted should start with this book. Death and disabilty rates beyond the range of nightmares were considered standard and acceptable, simply because the carnage took place outside the public view.
The hard work, honest efforts and caring that the workers brought to the job were repaid with lack of respect and now, lowering wages, no job security and disdain from the general public.
As bad as it is in Lemonds description, the list at the end of the book does not include all the co-workers of any current or former loggers that I have talked to who have read this book, nor co-workers of mine, who were killed on the job. The toll suffered by the workforce was at least equal to that suffered by the forests.
Lemonds tells the story in an even-handed, personal way through his extended family and community. This is a must-read book by any student of Northwest culture of the past century.

Logging in America's Northwest, an industry and occupation which arouses strong passions and polarizing viewpoints.

Jim LeMonds, though not neglecting the emotional and substantive areas of contention, focuses primarily on the human contribution and in some cases sacrifices of the loggers themselves.

This book should be read by anyone with even the vaguest interest in forest management and environmental issues. Although he is from a logging family, I feel that the author has been exceedingly fair in his description of todays industry and what the future holds for this industry and more importantly for logging communities.

To me the efforts and accomplishments of the people featured in this book, and the many thousands like them, are what has made our country great. It is ironic that their contibutions and in some cases sacrifices have not received the recognition that they are rightfully due.

Buy this book, regardless of your political viewpoint on the logging industry, and celebrate the spirit that has enabled all of us to enjoy the many privledges of being Americans.

This well written book is a "must have" for those who enjoy exploring the desert. The authors personable writing style, trip routes, and historical information make this a good book. But, the authors illustrated love of the desert and it's solitude and beauty make this a fantastic book. Those who love exploring the desert will treasure this book. I have a hundred or so books about the deserts, and this one is in the top three. When I need to relax from the days work load, I open this book; I'm taken from my office into the desert; My office chair becomes the front seat of my jeep, desert breeze in my face, while ghosts of yesterday's jackass miners abound.

Guidebooks are a particular fascination of mine. Where to go, what to see, and how to get there, all form the basis of many a road trip. Desert Dancing, a new book devoted to the California desert country, goes beyond being a simple A to B guidebook. Len Wilcox has put together a volume of information that takes you along as he explores the region. In a friendly, and enjoyable manner Len writes of his personal adventures off-roading in the rugged reaches of the Mojave and Colorado Deserts, as well as Death Valley. It is obvious Len is one of the new generation of Rainbow Chasers - those who ventured West in search of gold. However, it is not the gold of the 49'ers Len is seeking, it is the gold that lies in the history of the people and places of the Desert lands. Subtitled, Exploring the Land, the People, the Legends of the California Deserts, Desert Dancing introduces not just the wonders of the desert, but some of the people who make the small towns and wide spots more interesting than any city in the world. Desert Dancing reads like the journal of a friend, who, in a highly readable style, shares with you a wonderful trip. Excellent research, combined with an in-person familiarity of the subject at hand, makes this a necessary volume for anyone considering a trip into the desert, or for the armchair explorer who wants to gain a sense of what the desert is all about.

Wow! This book places you right there, there in the desert. You can feel the heat, see the the old west as it was and what it has become. Wilcox seems to take you on a trip without you ever leaving your seat. This books makes you want to pack up your vehicle and head to the desert. But don't leave home without the book, you'll get lost in that vast sea of sand without it. Read this book and you'll enjoy what the California desert really has to offer. Water, water,water, please!

A tale of simple believing and self forgiveness. By letting go of the anger, including the ego and pride, Eagle Boy coupled the powerful believing in friendships and trusting in the inner spirit within all true hearts, a transformation of healing can take place in our inner mind and body, within our families, whithin our communities, within the nation and around the world. Imagine and conceive the resulting peace that cannot be robbed from us, no matter the events of the world. Great retelling of this legend, that combines the best in many cultures and beliefs. Perfect for these very times.

"Eagle Boy: A Pacific Northwest Native Tale" is retold by Richard Lee Vaughan with illustrations by Lee Christiansen. Together they tell the story of a Native American boy called Eagle Boy by the people of his village. Eagle Boy is scolded by the villagers because he shares his food with the eagles. But when his village faces a food shortage, Eagle Boy's kinship with the winged predators becomes important for everybody.

"Eagle Boy" is a story of ostracism, love, magical transformation, and a mystical human-animal connection. Eagle Boy is a memorable hero. The illustrations are truly marvelous: they are rich with warm colors, and make dramatic use of light and shadow. The book opens with a stunning picture of eagles fishing by the seashore, and contains many other great images. Recommended.

Sharing, kindness and friendship are the main themes in this wonderful Native American folktale. Readers will become aware of the true bonds that can develop between humans and animals. That is an invaluable lesson that will help deepen appreciation for nature.

Want to get outdoors and be active in the Boston area? Start by buying this book. Lee Sinai describes, in wonderful detail, many of the rides and hikes one can take within a thirty-five-mile radius of Boston. The author has organized the forty trips around geographical areas, north, south or west of Boston, so selecting one is easy. Maps of each destination are included. Each trip description includes what's important to an outdoor enthusiast.... availability of restrooms, closest access to food, degree of difficulty, directions for getting there, and a historical background of the area.
Using this book, I discovered Dogtown, a mountain biking haven in Gloucester. I also experienced Cameron's, home to the best lobster roll in Massachusetts. The author led me to Great Brook Farm in Carlisle for cycling and then to Kimball's for a memorable ice cream treat.
As a guidebook, I give Exploring In and Around Boston on Bike and Foot the highest rating.

Lee Sinai has taken a group of varied and unusual hikes and trails around Boston and compiled them into an informative and accessible guide. We refer to her book often when looking for interesting, new places to explore, and have found it invaluable in "rediscovering" Boston.

Right from the get go I found this hiking and biking guide to be a miracle of organization and indispensable information. This book not only groups locations by geographical location, but also with respect to hiking, road biking and mountain biking. I found the handy reference guide towards the beginning of the book extremely useful while including not only difficulty ratings, but also mileage for each trip, something not always available in one specific location in a guide book. The maps accompanying each site are extremely easy to follow and the descriptions really do fit the terrain perfectly, whether or not you chose to take the book along on your journeys. I found the directions to each location to be extremely useful and especially appreciated the public transportation options that help those city dwellers who lack automobiles. Other handy features include locations and descriptions of local restaurants, attractions and even restrooms. This book included an very helpful mix of locations both in the greater Boston area, as well as highlighting several gems in the neighboring suburbs. I especially appreciated the handy reference map showing the location of all the spots, as well as the ever present tips to find geater enjoyment in your outdoor adventures!