Since this is a Fodor's guide, you get decent coverage of lodging and dining at the end of the book. What makes the book worthwhile, though, is the photographs. They are plentiful and great. Most are current color photos, but some of the vintage black-and-white (some from Ansel Adams) are excellent. Many of the wineries are shown as well as different aspects of the wine-making business. Even street signs and other everyday activities are included, making it a down-to-earth tour guide and photo book. Very appealing to the eye.

This is a great book on the wine country. Full of some of the most informative prose regarding where to go, how to get there and what to expect. Doerper sets out mini "tours" of the area. My wife and I mapped out our trip by the book and had a wonderful time. The book was right on. Highly recommended!

I would highly recommend this book to anyone visiting Napa and/or Sonoma Valleys. We were able to trust the information in this book and it did cover a lot of information, from: restaurants, vineyards, antique shops and farmer's markets (plus much more). To the author John Doerper, thank you for making our holiday very enjoyable by writing candid and factual information for this guide book.

My husband and I enjoyed a lovely weekend in a cabin that was recommended in this book. We will certainly use it again!

What I especially liked about this book was the author's recommendations for best cabins and cottages for: hiking, fishing, horseback riding, boating, winter sports, families, most unusal, best in desert,best value, most luxurious, best for beach activities, and most seclued. With these recommendations and cabin descriptions we've planned a family vacation, a romantic getaway, a girlfriends retreat, and a star-gazing party with friends. This book is a hit in our household.

Ann Marie Brown's book is beautifully written. It not only gives reviews of quaint out of the way cabins, but is sprinkled with a lot of charming personal observations. Her book is just out, and her review of the one place we stayed at was 'dead on". I would have never found this place without her book!

I've found the only and best way to travel ever!! I wanted a book that I could use easy fast and dependable, I found it at last! This book has a number of different ways to make travel easy. Everything is organized by category starting with Amusement Parks, Arts and Crafts, Beaches etc. After you find your category look for the city your in then just find the places and read the review. I've talked with the author and she said that her and her three boys and they've been to every place so they could write from personal perspective. In the back four more way to find an awesome place. Every review has hours admission and directions and much more. It's a travel Bible for so. CA. a must have for travelers!!

I have a 10 month old and an 8 year old stepdaughter who visits a few times a year. With this book, I can easily find places they'll both enjoy. The indexes are fantastic too; there's one alphabetical and one by cost and location.

if you are looking for a guidebook of places to take your kids, this is the only one you'll need. it is thorough, gently opinionated, and most importantly, lists absolutely everything of interest from san diego to santa barbara. one really gets the sense that the author has actually checked out every listing - an amazing feat. if you are just visiting the area, this book will probably overwhelm. in fact, its length and breadth make it dense reading and not easily flipped through in the car. it is not organized by location which makes it somewhat hard to use, especially on the fly, but thats my only criticism. a great buy.

This is the a prototype for all other historical railroad books combining a fairly comprehensive selection of high quality photographs and well written informative text. Certainly a must for anyone interested in the Great Northern Railway.

This book by Charles Wood is the authoritative history of the Great Northern Railway. As a long time GN fan and director of the GNRY Historical Society, I can tell you no other book on this subject comes close. You will enjoy the format of many photograghs, informative captions and accurate text. It is the "bible" for GN fans.

Fred W. Black, Mill Creek, WA. USA

A comprehensive history of the Great Northern Railroad. A "loving" tribute to a truly great railroad which never fell into receivership like many of the other large roads (such as the Pennsylvania and New York Central). Included are hundreds of photos and memorabilia. If you're a fan of the Great Northern, or even railroads in general, you'll love this book...if you can find it! It is currently out-of-print

With these words, Professor Linn introduced his American Military History class to his book Guardians of Empire. Even though we were not required to read all of the chapters, I found myself wanting to finish the book due to its captivating nature.

While perhaps lacking the dry humor and probing questions of his lectures, the book manages to provide a striking look at the interwar Army, challenging common assertions of Army doctrine and planning. In the final chapter, Dr. Linn notes that in the search for what happened in 1941, people rarely go back past 1940. This book is an attempt to do exactly that. It probes the decisions, dogma and lifestyle of the American Army in the interwar period.

Wonderfully written and solidly researched, Guardians provides the best treatment of the American interwar establishment to date.

This book is extremely well done and spells out the history of American involvement in the Pacific after 1898 much better than anything else on the market. Although Miller's WAR PLAN ORANGE is also an interesting book, but from the navy's point of view, I feel this one is much better done. Highly recommend this work to anyone wanting background on the Pacific War.

Previous books on the "Orange Plan" of 20's and 30's have usually described it from a Navy point of view. Linn's book takes the various Army points of view, and shows how MacArthur's arguement to defend the Phillippines was not the majority opinion. From a strictly military point of view, the Phillippines was not worth sacrificing the Fleet and and additional troops. Hawaii, because of it's proximity to the US west coast and logistics capability (drydock and fuel tank farm)was worth defending. An interesting appendix shows that the Army consistantly stationed more troops in Hawaii than the Phillippines. With the United States making a stand against Japanese aggression in China, however, the political retoric had to be backed up with military resolve. So thousands of Army troops were sent to their doom to reinforce the Phillippine garrison in 1940-1941. This book, along with Edward S. Miller's WAR PLAN ORANGE: The U.S. Strategy to Defeat Japan, 1897-1945, gives the reader an excellent overview of US military planning and thinking vs the Japanese during the period between World War 1 and 2.

If you like to paddle on the Calif coast, this is the book for you. My wife and I have paddled (we thought) most of the coast, this book brought us to places that we could only dream of. They way its laid out, you can plan for a part/full or overnight trip. Tips on where to go, what you might see, camping, lodging, ect are great. If you paddle the Calif coast, you will be happy to have this book.

Outstanding, useful guide to the coastal areas - greatly appreciate the tips on local conditions and access.

Roger and Jan's book gives seakayakers invaluable information regarding some of the most beautiful paddling areas on the west coast. The maps included with the easily understood text allow the reader to easily visualize the targeted area. This guidebook will be of interest to paddlers of all skill levels since most of the featured paddles also include intermediate and advanced level alternative routes. The sidebars scattered throughout the book impart interesting information about the area. This book is a must have for those interested in exploring the coast of California.

Hiking Washington's Geology is a well-written, informative book that describes the geologic evolution of a wide and varied landscape. I especially appreciate the detailed directions on how to get to the trailheads and equally detailed descriptions of things to look for while hiking. This book is a must-have for anyone interested in the geologic natural history of Washington....

This is an excellent read! The book highlighted some outstanding hikes and I learned lots about the interesting geology of the PNW. This book is a must for any hiker in Washington!!

This is a great book outlining interesting geology in Washington State, and offers suggestions of which hikes should be done.

I make commercial crab traps for a living and this book has it all. When I mention this book to commercial crabbers most already know, they own the book! This book even talks about a ropes 'scope' when you put a trap in the water. A rookie commercial crabber I knew didn't clue into this fact and 'deadheaded' a string of thirty traps! Why a trap should be round is explained. Why a traps entrances should be lined up to the current is explained. It took my father ten years of commercial crabbing before he figured those things out! What bait gets the big males dungeness is covered, and it's absolutely correct. I can tell Charlie spent a lot of time talking to commercial crabbers to write this book. A great deal!

If you want an easy and simple guide to catching crab, this is it. After reading it, I immediately started catching good sized crab. It is easy to understand and covers all the basics.

This the basic "how to" book on crab catching, but it also makes a great JOKE GIFT!! I Love the book's title, and I have given it to a ton of my friends as a joke gift. It is a good book too!

This is such a helpful book, I'm almost sorry it was written! This is *the* definitive guide to renting public cabins in southcentral Alaska. As an Alaskan who appreciates the availability of inexpensive cabins -- especially when B&Bs and hotels are $... nightly -- I must say I hope too many travelers don't catch on. Excellent and informative.

Andromeda Romano-Lax's How To Rent A Public Cabin In Southcentral Alaska is recommended for the rugged wilderness traveler: it tells hikers, kayakers, anglers and more how to locate and rent such cabins for very little money. While often bare-bones and lacking amenities, these cabins provide shelter and portals to the wilderness.

Few people who live outside of Alaska know about Alaska's wonderful public use cabins available for rent. This book explains how to enjoy some of the best Alaska has to offer (very inexpensively, by the way). A great resource for vacationing in Alaska.

Huntington beach has changed and former residents and visitors can easly miss once popular landmarks. This book combines a pictorial history along with a collection of then and now photos. A nice book to have.

Having lived in and near Huntington Beach for the last 5 years, I found this book fascinating. Historically, you get a great perspective of what the city once was...and how it developed throughout the late 1900's. But what I found MOST interesting...was the before and after transformation. Walking the same streets the author had. Lining up the same shots at the same historical locations. Standing in the exact same spot that the pictures had been taken almost a century before. And seeing how this sleepy surfside town blossomed into the famous city we now know. I definitely recommend this book for anyone that lives in Huntington Beach. It's great reading...and great for exploring the sidewalks of HB.

Excellent pictorial history of "Surf City." We've lived here for years and never knew all that had gone on here. Incredible selection of rare historic photos, which we've always been on the lookout for. Well worth the price of admission.