Reviews (13)

Good but I'd like an update and correction
Unlike some reviewers who would like to see Brandt describe and bless novel spoking patterns, I concur with his recommendation of traditional spoking. The traditional tangent tension-spoked wheel is one of the most elegant and efficient structures ever devised. A wheelbuilder may choose a rim, hub and spokes at will and so, construct wheels of many kinds that are not available commercially. With skill and care, an amateur may build wheels of professional quality. The traditional wheel may be built to the desired degree of ruggedness vs. weight, and if damaged, can often be made usable with an emergency repair or adjustment.
The Bible
Jobst Brandt may be an extremely cranky on-line persona, but this book is the best guide to how bicycle wheels work. The section on theory is clear and easy to read. I was able to lace, true and ride a wheel based on the instructions found here.

The wheel building bible
Without a doubt, this is the accepted resource for wheel builders.I think the book is a well-written information source for the new and experienced builder.If you want to know how wheels work, this book is for you.The engineering explanations are useful and detailed.Some feel the author is a little old fashioned in his view point on new products and wheel design.That viewpoint is implied in a few places in the book, but I don't feel it is over emphasized. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Travel    2. Automotive technology    3. Cycling    4. Bicycles   

Subjects:  1. General    2. Special Interest - Adventure    3. Sports    4. Sports & Recreation    5. Travel - United States    6. United States - Pacific - California    7. Stationery items    8. Travel / General   

Reviews (6)

Great overall climbing guide
If you don't know where in JTree you would like to climb or if you plan on doing a little bit of all kinds of climbing, this is the book to have.It provides an overview for the whole area with great maps and photographs to easily locate all rocks (and there is a lot of them so the book is thick).Some of the maps and info are out of date and need to be replaced (the Hidden Valley campground/Intersection Rock map and information about showers).I also found myself constantly writing on the map page references for the different rocks.It may also be nice to include a guide on all major toprope, bouldering, and sport climbing sections, although these exist on the web.Overall, I had an amazing trip and knew where to go every day, I just wish I had more than 5 days to climb there.Ooooh, also the book doesn't tell you that you will have no finger tips left or that the ratings are really hard and you shouldn't use them :-)A 5.10c in JTree is apparently not a 5.10c anywhere else, but this is a one of a kind place!

This is the book.
There are others out there, but Vogel's Rock Climbing Joshua Tree is the definitive overall guide that both new and experienced climbers rely upon. However, for more detailed information on routes in specific areas of Joshua Tree (Lost Horse, Indian Cove, Hidden Valley, etc.), don't leave home without Alan Bartlett's excellent guides.
Missing details, but great guide
This is a very comprehensive guide to Joshua Tree for climbers. It is the book that we always take with us as the defintive reference. Generally, the information is accurate and the maps detailing which rock is which in various formations is quite good.Read more

Subjects:  1. California    2. Guidebooks    3. Joshua Tree National Park    4. Joshua Tree National Park (Cal    5. Joshua Tree National Park (Calif.)    6. Mountaineering    7. Parks & Campgrounds    8. Rock climbing    9. Sports    10. Sports & Recreation    11. Travel - United States    12. United States - Pacific - California    13. Sports & Recreation / Mountaineering   

Reviews (6)

Excellent Book, Beautiful Photos
This book should be on everyone's coffee table and in every school library. The many beautiful full-color photos will inspire even the most reclusive to pack that suitcase and go! Very inspiring photographs.

1001 Natural Wonders : You must see before you die
We found the facinating, with places we never knew existed. An atlas of we you would love to go. Presentaion and place descriptions are first class.

The coffee table book for armchair travellers
I love to travel and thus peruse lots of books to explore and plan my future trips. I liked "1000 places to see before you die" as it did decent job in describing places worth visiting in all countries and continents. This book is a very weak copycat.
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Subjects:  1. Landforms    2. Natural monuments    3. Physical geography    4. Pictorials    5. Special Interest - Ecotourism    6. Travel    7. Travel - General    8. Travel / Pictorials   

Reviews (18)

Required reading
'Awol on the Appalachian Trail' is, quite simply, a wonderful book from start to finish.I have to say that it is one of the most enjoyable, honest, and inspiring accounts that I have read in a long time.This is the best book on the AT that I have yet found.
Spot On
I thru-hiked the AT myself in '02 and can tell you this book does a great job of relaying what the experience is all about. David does a great job of balancing his account without getting too whimsical or too grounded. If your looking for an honest account of the rewards and hardships that one gets when they drop out of society for months and hike over 2000 miles, then you've found your book.

A great account of a thru hike
I found Miller's account of his thru hikegave me a taste of both the agony and ecstasy involved. I felt it was an objective account of this true life adventure. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Hiking    2. Mountains    3. Outdoor Skills    4. Sports    5. Sports & Recreation   

Reviews (2)

POCKET SIZE FUN
68 Fun Things to Do-- from Jones Beach to NBC Studio Tour, with the usual destinations as well. New York is so extraordinary that a lot of guidebooks try to be all too thorough. But really a short and sweet book can do the trick. If your young visitors are age seven and up, give them Melanie in Manhattan too, a novel about a New York girl. (Warning Melanie and her brother Matt the Brat have a favorite museum game called Point Out the Naked People. Their art teacher mom has no idea....)
Written with humor and fun, this book made our trip the best!
Thanks to this book, we were able to figure out just the right bites of the big apple to take. We also were prepared for when we'd have to wait in line, and we saved big bucks through the author's tips on Broadway on a Budget. We used the author's fun facts to impress our kids. For example, if you were to look at every piece of art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, it would take more than four years to see it all! We used several guidebooks. This one was by far the best! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Special Interest - Family    2. Travel    3. Travel - United States    4. Travel Guides - U.S.    5. United States - Mid Atlantic - New York City    6. United States - Northeast - Middle Atlantic (General)    7. New York    8. Travel & holiday guides    9. Travel / United States / Northeast / Middle Atlantic (NJ, NY, PA)   

Subjects:  1. Charleston    2. Charleston (S.C.)    3. Guidebooks    4. Historic buildings    5. History    6. History - General History    7. History - U.S.    8. History: American    9. Pictorial works    10. South Carolina    11. Tours    12. United States - General    13. United States - State & Local - General    14. United States - State & Local - South    15. Walking    16. History / United States / General   

Reviews (30)

Take it with you on your next flight
I've been flying ever since I can remember but never understood why the cabin crew ask you to open window blinds prior to landing.
A must-read for anybody who likes to travel
Kudos to Patrick for writing a very accessible, funny, and eye-opening account of what happens at 30,000 feet, and all the steps along the way. His stories about the old days of flying will entice anybody who still gets excited about airplanes and airports (in a good way). It's refreshing to hear such an articulate and empathic voice come from inside the airline industry. No doubt he's going to be attacked by the many things he says, as he's written one of the most impressive and clear-headed accounts of post-9/11 security hysteria and what it has done to the industry and our country as a whole. This book should be given to all air travelers in lieu of pretzels and headsets. It would do a ton of good.

Answers From The Pilot
Upset stomach, sweaty palms, nervous knots.What was that?!?That noise, what was that?!Oh my God, we are going to crash!That clunking noise had to be something bad.That isn't a normal sound.Sound like you?On alert the entire flight listening to all sounds, thinking that the next one is going to bring upon a horrible death.I can relate.That was me times six.I had created my own answers to the "what was that?" questions.They were consistently that a part must have been malfunctioning or had fallen off (for such a substantial noise to have occured, it had to be a MAJOR part too).This part was essential to my living or dying.
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Subjects:  1. Aeronautics, Commercial    2. Air travel    3. Aviation - Commercial    4. Aviation - General    5. General    6. Reference - Guides (General)    7. Travel    8. Travel - General    9. Travel / General   

Reviews (117)

adventures with attitude
While I agree that the adventures that Michael Crichton has written about in this book are sometimes pretty interesting, I found by the end of the book that I was disgusted with him and really ended up not liking him at all. It is impossible to write about personal travels without your true personality coming through in your writing- and his came across as arrogant and self righteous. He seemed to think that people should treat him a certain way because of who he was (or what he had-which obviously was plenty of money and free time). I pictured him as some sort of grown-up, spoiled rich kid who has not an ounce of humble in him. He's obviously a successful writer- but for travel adventure reading--stick with Paul Cahill, Bill Bryson and David Quammen--all guys who go to wild places, have cool experiences, get along with the locals and are funny. Those three seem like really good guys that you could actually have a great time travelling with.

Interesting...yes.Troubling... yes.
There are adventures throughout the world.If you can write well, you can share those adventures with others.
Renaissance Man
"Travels" is a collection of essays forming an autobiography of this amazing man's adult life. Michael Crichton is a modern renaissance man--a disillusioned doctor, a fantastically successful writer, a world traveler, an amateur practitioner of paranormal phenomena. Everyone knows his books, but you don't have to be a fan (I'm not particularly) to enjoy "Travels."
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Subjects:  1. 1942-    2. 20th century    3. American novelists    4. Biography    5. Biography & Autobiography    6. Biography / Autobiography    7. Biography/Autobiography    8. Crichton, Michael,    9. Literary    10. Novelists, American    11. Special Interest - Adventure    12. Travel    13. Travelers    14. Voyages and travels    15. Biography & Autobiography / General   

Reviews (1)

Fabulous photo essay of Paris then and now--finally in English!
Leonard Pitt's book "Walks Through Lost Paris" is amazing. In it he chronicles changes made to Paris in the interest of modernization during the Haussmann era (mid 19th century) and later. The changes are documented with abundant before and after photos, allowing you to literally see for yourself how Paris has evolved over the past 150 years.
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Subjects:  1. City planning    2. Europe - France    3. France    4. Guidebooks    5. History    6. Paris    7. Public, Commercial, or Industrial Buildings    8. Travel    9. Travel - Foreign    10. Travel Guides    11. Walking    12. Travel & holiday guides    13. Travel / Europe / France   

Reviews (11)

Great book about great hiking in a beautiful location
This is an excellent resource for anyone planning a trip to Sedona.After 2 short visits to the red rock area, we went for a week this time.We had heard about the many hiking trails there, and we wondered how we would pick the ones we wanted regarding difficulty, length, and things to see.We spent hours reading the book before we went, while we drove, and while we were there.This book really does have valuable information for the hike about 130 area trails.Included are directions to the trailhead, map of the trail, and picture of the trail.Also are the length, difficulty, and time needed for each trail.This is a must read if you are going to Sedona to hike, and it makes a great remembrance of a wonderful trip.

Great Summary
I haven't tested any of the hikes yet, as my trip is a ways off. But, the desciptions appear honest and detailed. I like the thorough directions about how to find a trailhead.The idex is very well organized.

Sedona hiking
I looked at reviews of this book before purchasing it and bought it on that basis.The book is very well "organized" and if you have only one book to buy, this is it.Directions, difficulty, length of hikes, and interesting features to see are all here. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Hiking    2. Sports    3. Sports & Recreation   

Reviews (25)

Best travel book I've read
The author has written an engaging, entertaining, beautifully discriptive book of Yemen.I visited Sana'a about 15 years ago and his book really hits the mark.I particularly enjoy how Mr. Hansen captures the culture and attitudes of the Yemen.He knows that that that culture is 180 degrees from Western culture and he treats Yemeni religion, customs and attitudes with respect and openness - yet does not patronize as do many other travel books.
Yemen, Beneath the Veil
I second the views of several reviewers that this is one of the best travel books they've ever read.Hansen takes us through Yemen as if we were riding (or sailing) with him.I never gave much thought to or knew much about Yemen but, thanks to Hansen, I have a new and positive view of it.His willingness to get out and experience many facets of this country enriches his descriptions.His good humor and sensitivity to its people are gratifying. But this is more than just a travelogue.Hansen's quest for his buried notebooks is a compelling story in itself.That plot and this venue combine to make this an irresistible and meritorious book. I look forward to reading more from this intrepid and gifted writer.

Perhaps, one of the best travel books I have ever read.
Having read literally hundreds of travelogues, I must say this is simply one of the finest I have ever run into. Eric's experiences are unusually wonderful, and his writing is magical. His focus on the Yemeni people and their lives and experiences make this book far more engaging than travelogues that focus on personal experiences, interpretations or places visited and described.
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Subjects:  1. (Eric K.)    2. Asia - China    3. Biography/Autobiography    4. Description    5. Description and travel    6. Essays & Travelogues    7. Hansen, Eric    8. Special Interest - Adventure    9. Travel    10. Travel - General    11. Yemen    12. Journeys    13. Red Sea    14. Travel / Adventure    15. Travel writing   

Reviews (21)

I like Walker III better
It seems that Colin Fletcher has relinquished too much in this edition to his coauthor. Understandably he is no longer a gearhead and lets Chip Rawlins review equipment. Rawlins has at least as much text in these pages as Fletcher so be prepared for a different read.
Plain and Simple...THE BACKPACKING BIBLE!!
Not only is this book a treasure trove of information, it is an absolute joy to read. I have grown up with this book and I have had every edition of it since it's inception. There are other very good backpacking books out there but this is still the best. Mr. Fletcher also did a great job of selecting Chip Rawlins to co write the book and inevitably carry the torch for future generations of backpackers. I am already looking forward to the next edition.

A classic of the first order. Buy It!
`The New Complete Walker' is one of those books which as probably never been outdone and probably never will be. It is easily in the same class, in my mind, as Julia Child's `Mastering the Art of French Cooking', Donald Knuth's `The Art of Programming', and Snedecor and Cochrane's `Statistical Methods'. When this book was first published, it's author was a fairly notable celebrity, interesting enough to appear as a subject on `To Tell the Truth', but not quite recognizable enough to be unfamiliar to the contestant on that show. I still recall the book's being touted on several outlets.
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Subjects:  1. Backpacking    2. Hiking    3. Sports    4. Sports & Recreation    5. Walking    6. Sports & Recreation / Hiking   

Subjects:  1. Children's 4-8 - Travel - General    2. General    3. Parks & Campgrounds    4. Special Interest - Family    5. Travel    6. Travel - General    7. Travel Guides - U.S.    8. United States - General    9. Juvenile Nonfiction / Travel    10. Travel & holiday guides    11. USA   

Reviews (32)

No substance
It was like reading a Disney brochure- no real info. There were tidbits about each park, but nothing that would help us out. The Unofficial Guide to Disney World was much, much, much better.

Not for everyone
If you are going to Walt Disney World Resort for the first time and want to keep some mystery until you actually ride the attractions, then this book may not be for you.Some of the descriptions for the various attractions go step-by-step through them, including plot points in 3D movies and so on. The book also leaves a lot out in other areas, such as dining (little coverage), getting around Walt Disney World, and off-site hotels and dining.
Good Primer On Disney World
My husband, son, and I just got back from Disney World a few weeks ago. We planned the trip in just a month's time, and WDW guides were very helpful!
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Subjects:  1. Children's Books/All Ages    2. General    3. Reference - General    4. Special Interest - Family    5. Travel    6. Travel - United States    7. United States - South Atlantic - Florida    8. Juvenile Fiction / General    9. Travel & holiday guides   

Reviews (21)

Horrible, horrible book.
As someone very interested in urban exploration (especially in the subways) I wanted to check this book out upon hearing of it. After reading many of these Amazon reviews though, I opted out of a purchase, and took it out of my Bronx library instead. Thank goodness as I only wasted valuable time, and not any money.
disappointing
If the writing and adventures could match the inflated perceptions that the authors have of themselves, this would be a great read. Unfortunately, the writing is downright pedestrian and the urban adventures are either lackluster and/or poorly described. Also, the flow of each chapter is interruptedwith uninteresting asides and juvenile commentaries on a scattershot laundry list of topics.
Well, there's four hours of my life I'll never get back.
This book was a tremendous disappointment.Many of the "missions" are laughably boring and/or carried out in a stunningly inept fashion, much of the writing is markedly narcissistic in its tone and yet inconsistent in content, and perhaps most disappointing the descriptions of the places where the authors go are remarkably poor.
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Subjects:  1. Description and travel    2. Essays & Travelogues    3. Historic sites    4. New York    5. New York (N.Y.)    6. New York (State)    7. Outdoor recreation    8. Special Interest - Adventure    9. Travel    10. Travel - General    11. Tunnels    12. United States - Mid Atlantic - New York City    13. United States - State & Local - Middle Atlantic    14. Travel & holiday guides    15. Travel / Adventure   

Reviews (25)

Binding Fell Apart
I noticed the review that said this book was worthy of "permanent display on your coffee table."Well, I don't think that will be possible with my book, as the binding fell apart after 6 months.The book has gotten a fair amount of use, but nothing out of the ordinary.I've since seen a similar problem with a couple of the display copies at bookstores (which is why they've been demoted to display copies).So I don't think this is an isolated problem.It seems like the book is so big that they didn't make a strong enough binding for it.So just a warning for this thinking of buying this book.The good news is that, on the advice of one of the reviews, I bought Colorado: Yesterday & Today to replace my copy of Colorado: 1870-2000.I agree that it is the better book and now it will be on permanent display on my coffe-table.

Worthy of permanent display on a coffee table
This book is excellent in look, feel, and quality.It is intriguing to see how much landscape has changed in 130 years.Many times for the better and many times for the worse.In every case it is very interesting to see two pictures side by side and compare 1870 with 2000.The photographer was very meticulous to capture every shot as closely as possible to the original perspective and frame, which really enhances the "then and now" feel of the book.

Clearing Up the Confusion and Getting the Photo Details
There appears to be some confusion as all of the reviews of the original "Colorado 1870-2000" big book are credited to this, the paperback "Colorado 1870-2000 Revisited: The History Behind the Images".This book is a companion book to the original.It takes each photo set from the big book and goes into detail about the location, changes, and how Fielder acquired each photo. These are the things that, being left out of the original, made several people give the big book negative reviews.While it would have been nice (and certainly less expensive) to have everything in one volume, we now have the information for which those disappointed with the big book were looking.While the big book is a piece of coffee table art, the Revisited book fits neatly on your bookshelf, ready to be taken down to answer those questions posed by your friends perusing the big book.I take a bit of offense at having to have paid for two different books, but they belong together and I feel were money well spent; the big book for the beautiful photos and the revisited book for its entertaining and educational material. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Colorado    2. Environmental conditions    3. General    4. History    5. History: American    6. Landscape photography    7. Photoessays & Documentaries    8. Photography    9. Pictorial works    10. Subjects & Themes - Plants & Animals    11. Subjects & Themes - Travel - U.S./West    12. Wilderness areas   

Reviews (9)

LOVED IT
This book is amazing!!! The photos are spectacular, and the author is very descriptive -- he makes you feel like you are actually there. Recommend highly.

what it is like to work and wonder way way down under
This is a clearly written, funny, moving and fascinating account of what it was like for the author to work in Antarctica over a number of years.While he has told it like a one-year trip, in fact it is a distillation of 14 years experience.
First Person Text And Beautiful Photographs
The author, Jim Mastro, got to spend one year at the bottom of the world and he wrote first person text and included beautiful photographs in his presentation. Some of the photographs capture the incredible beauty of Antartica and of the beauty of the wildlife. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 1953-    2. Antarctica    3. Description and travel    4. General    5. Mastro, Jim,    6. Nature    7. Nature/Ecology    8. Photography    9. Polar Regions    10. Subjects & Themes - Plants & Animals    11. Subjects & Themes - Travel - World/General    12. Travel    13. Geographical discovery & exploration    14. NATURAL HISTORY, COUNTRY LIFE & PETS    15. Nature / General    16. Photography & Photographs    17. Travel writing   

Reviews (12)

Great writing!
This book was a good choice to read after recently finishing "Crazy in the Cockpit." I confess I skipped/skimmed through the more technical aviation-related sections, concentrating on the travel narrative aspect. Makes for good bedside reading.

What a way to go!
I loved William Least Heat Moon's "Blue Highways" describing his travels on the back roads of America.Now Mariana Gosnell has done an aerial version of it and has done it equally well.I had two childhood dreams.I'll never be a cowboy but, even at my advanced age, I can be a pilot.Until then, please take me with you on your next odyssey Mariana

wonderful yarn about flying across the United States
The Luscombe isn't my favorite lightplane, but it is Gosnell's, and she writes about it with such affection that I'd like to fly one. The trip evidently takes place in the late 1970s, because Jimmy Carter is president. (She visits Plains GA and the largest peanut-butter factory in the world.) Gosnell is a journalist, so she goes out of her way to visit unlikely places and meet interesting people. (Among them is the crew of the man-powered Gossamer Condor, whose record-breaking flight she is on hand to document.) I feel sorry for the lad who quit reading on page 10. He missed a wonderful yarn, and one that deserves a place on the bookshelf of any lightplane pilot. -- Dan Ford ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Air travel    2. Aviation - General    3. Description and travel    4. Essays & Travelogues    5. Gosnell, Mariana    6. Travel    7. Travel - General    8. United States    9. United States - General    10. Voyages and travels    11. Women air pilots    12. Journeys    13. Transportation-Aviation - General    14. Travel & holiday guides    15. Travel / Essays & Travelogues    16. Travel / General    17. Travel-United States - General    18. USA   

Reviews (5)

Vastly overrated
I recenty returned from a month long trip through Central America, during which I visited all 7 Central American countries, in this order: Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama.I brought two guidebooks with me on my trip: this one and the Rough Guide to Central America.I soon found myself using the Rough Guide almost exclusively and this Lonely Planet Guide hardly at all. This was a surprise and a disappointment, because for the last 17 years I have consistently found the Lonely Planet guides to be the ones most consistently most useful for adventurous travelers.But not this one.Here are some of the problems I had with this guide:
Maps are useless - as are much of the comments
This has rotten country maps - then try to find the "Highlights" to the countries - like Tikal in Guat. is a highlight - but try and find it on these terrible country maps - that have no ABC-123 coordinates - you spend hours scanning miserable maps trying to figure out where the "Highlights" are - and highlighting them yourself - and yes - they're in the same small font as the rest of the map. And if you're gonna rent a cheap car and drive yourself - there's nothing. Acres of bus crap - no road info.

You can't do better
You can't really do better than this book if you're traveling in multiple countries in C.A.Overall, it was an invaluable resource.My complaints are that it almost provides TOO much detail, the kind of things people should find out on their own while they travel.Also, so many people use this book that you'll run into gringos every time you follow their 1st recommendation. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Central America    2. Guidebooks    3. Travel    4. Travel - Foreign    5. Travel & holiday guides