Monday, October 31, 2011

Secret Journeys of a Lifetime: 500 of the World's Best Hidden Travel Gems (National Geographic)

Secret Journeys of a Lifetime
Secret Journeys of a Lifetime: 500 of the World's Best Hidden Travel Gems (National Geographic)
by National Geographic
Release Date: November 1, 2011

Buy new: $40.00 $26.40

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Review & Description

The latest in the highly successful Journeys of a Lifetime series and the sequel to the original bestseller, Secret Journeys of a Lifetime offers in-depth site descriptions; dozens of fun, themed top ten lists; locator maps; illuminating sidebars; and oversized, lavish full-color images that bring to life 500 novel destinations that have managed to fly under the radar.
 
Divided into themed chapters, the book features the "World at Your Feet", "Last Wildernesses", "Island Getaways", "The Road Less Traveled", "Secret History", "Spiritual Havens", "Hidden Treasures", "Undiscovered Villages", and "City Secrets". This book will also feature numerous short sidebars by National Geographic contributors entitled "My Secret Journey" that will eloquently describe and personalize travel experiences for readers and will also provide insight on bonus excursions near the featured destinations.
 
Additional eclectic sidebars will highlight intriguing ancillary information, including entertaining snippets on the local culture or history as well as other sights to see while in the area.
 
As with other books in the series, each chapter contains two to five lists of "Top Tens," shorter features describing experiences in a wide variety of categories, from quirky museums and quiet city garden oases to atmospheric ghost towns and the best spots for amazing ocean views. Read more


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Sunday, October 30, 2011

1,000 Places to See Before You Die, the second edition: Completely Revised and Updated with Over 200 New Entries

1,000 Places to See Before You Die, the second edition
1,000 Places to See Before You Die, the second edition: Completely Revised and Updated with Over 200 New Entries
by Patricia Schultz
5.0 out of 5 stars(5)
Publication Date: November 15, 2011

Buy new: $19.95 $12.24
16 used & new from $9.95

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Review & Description

The world’s bestselling travel book is back in a more informative, more experiential, more budget-friendly full-color edition. A #1 New York Times bestseller, 1,000 Places reinvented the idea of travel book as both wish list and practical guide. As Newsweek wrote, it “tells you what’s beautiful, what’s fun, and what’s just unforgettable— everywhere on earth.” And now the best is better. There are more than 500 full-color photographs. Over 200 entirely new entries, including visits to 28 countries like Lebanon, Croatia, Estonia, and Nicaragua, that were not in the original edition. There is an emphasis on experiences: an entry covers not just Positano and Ravello, but the full 30-mile stretch along the Amalfi Coast; Chichen Itza and Tulum are now treated as one, La Ruta Maya.

Every entry from the original edition has been readdressed and made fuller, with more suggestions for places to stay, restaurants to visit, festivals to check out. And throughout, the book is more budget-conscious, recommending not only the Ritz, but also moderately priced gems that don’t compromise on atmosphere or charm.

Following the romance, comes the nuts and bolts: web addresses, phone numbers, costs, best times to visit. Of special interest are subject-specific indexes, making the 1,000-plus pages entirely user-friendly, no matter if you’re dreaming or going.

The world is calling. Time to answer. Read more


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American Casino Guide 2012 Edition

American Casino
American Casino Guide 2012 Edition
by Steve Bourie
Publication Date: November 15, 2011

Buy new: $18.95 $11.79

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Review & Description

The American Casino Guide taps into the huge casino-goers market by providing the money-saving, detailed information that is sought by the seasoned casino veteran as well as the first-time visitor. The guide is jam-packed with detailed information on every casino/resort, riverboat and Indian casino in the U.S. Included are informative stories on all casino games including blackjack, craps, roulette, baccarat, slots and video poker machines. Detailed reports on which casinos offer the best games in every major gaming jurisdiction in the U.S. are also included.The guide comes with more than $1,000 in casino coupons and plenty of tips on how to get the most for your money when visiting a casino by taking advantage of casino promotions and slot clubs. It even discloses the actual slot machine payback percentages for every state's casinos! A must for anyone planning a visit to a casino!For RV'ers the Guide notes which casinos have RV parks and the cost, also, denotes whether or not the casino will allow an RV to park overnight for free in the parking. Read more


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Friday, October 28, 2011

Atlas of the World 18th Edition

Atlas of
Atlas of the World 18th Edition
by Oxford University Press
Publication Date: October 1, 2011

Buy new: $89.95 $54.75
28 used & new from $54.72

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Review & Description

The only world atlas updated annually, guaranteeing that users will find the most current geographic information, Oxford's Atlas of the World is the most authoritative resource on the market. The Eighteenth Edition remains the finest international reference source of its kind available. Including new census information, dozens of city maps, gorgeous satellite images of Earth, and a geographical glossary, this atlas offers exceptional value at a reasonable price.

Full of crisp, clear cartography of urban areas and virtually uninhabited landscapes around the globe, the Atlas has maps of cities and regions at carefully selected scales that give a striking view of the Earth's surface. Opening with world statistics and a colorful, instructive 48-page Introduction to World Geography--beautifully illustrated with tables and graphs--this acclaimed resource provides details on such topics as climate, the greenhouse effect, employment and industry, standards of living, agriculture, population and migration, and global conflicts.

As in years past, this edition includes the latest geographic information. The popular satellite image section has been refreshed with stunning new images of different regions and urban areas around the world. A completely updated Gazetteer of Nations provides an invaluable A-Z reference source of concise country profiles, including important historical events and statistics on economies and politics. Recent events in Africa and the Middle East--and their profound consequences--are incorporated into various country profiles.

Providing the finest global coverage available, the Atlas of the World is not only the best-selling volume of its size and price, but also the benchmark by which all other atlases are measured.

Take a Look Inside the Atlas of the World [Click on Images to Enlarge]

The Atlas of the World
Iceland: This winter image, captured in January, shows Iceland cloaked in snow, covering its four permanent ice caps. Due to its position on a fault line, Iceland also experiences high levels of volcanic activity, with much of the land covered in lava flows.
The Atlas of the World
The River Thames: A satellite view of the river as it snakes from Chelsea Bridge in the west to Tower Bridge in the east. Despite a population of more than 8 million, London boasts many parks and open spaces around its city center, visible in this image.
The Atlas of the World
The Congo River: An image of the river where it splits to form Malebo Pool on its journey to the Atlantic Ocean. The Congo River is the second longest in Africa, after the Nile, and is the world’s deepest river with recorded depths of over 750 feet.
The Atlas of the World
Lima, Peru: Peru’s largest city and its capital, Lima was founded in the 16th century by the Spanish. Some believe its population of just under 9 million could grow to 10 million by 2015.
The Atlas of the World
London City Map [PDF]: City maps, like this one of London, make it easy to identify key destinations--like the site of Prince William and Kate Middleton’s wedding, Westminster Abbey.
The Atlas of the World
South Sudan: South Sudan officially became an independent state on July 9, 2011. On July 14, it became a member state of the United Nations and joined the African Union two weeks later.
Read more


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Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Michelin Red Guide San Francisco 2012

Michelin Red
Michelin Red Guide San Francisco 2012
by Michelin Travel & Lifestyle
Release Date: October 26, 2011

Buy new: $18.99 $12.65

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Review & Description

MICHELIN Guide San Francisco 2012 helps both locals and travelers find great places to eat and stay, with rigorously researched recommendations to almost 600 recommended restaurants and hotels. This guide, updated annually, appeals to all tastes and budgets and is easy to use with multiple, user-friendly listings. Local, anonymous, professional inspectors carefully select restaurants, using the celebrated Michelin food star-rating system. Only the best make the Guide, so readers can feel confident in their choices. Read more


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Daughter of Time: A Time Travel Romance (The After Cilmeri Series)

Daughter of Time
Daughter of Time: A Time Travel Romance (The After Cilmeri Series)
Sarah Woodbury (Author)
Ranking has gone up in the past 24 hours 203 days in the top 100
3.9 out of 5 stars(15)

Download: $0.99
196 used & new from $0.99

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Review & Description

Daughter of Time tells the story of a young widow, Meg, healing from the pain of a brief, unhappy marriage, who falls through time into the Middle Ages--and into the arms of Llywelyn ap Gruffydd, the last Prince of Wales. He saves her, and she in turn saves him, thanks to her knowledge of future events. Although powerful forces seek to divide them, by working together, Meg and Llywelyn have a chance to navigate the dangerous and shifting alliances that constantly undermine his rule and threaten the very existence of Wales--and to create a future in which Llywelyn's death does not come too soon.

Daughter of Time is a stand-alone novel within the world of the After Cilmeri Series. Other books in the series include Footsteps in Time and Prince of Time.Daughter of Time tells the story of a young widow, Meg, healing from the pain of a brief, unhappy marriage, who falls through time into the Middle Ages--and into the arms of Llywelyn ap Gruffydd, the last Prince of Wales. He saves her, and she in turn saves him, thanks to her knowledge of future events. Although powerful forces seek to divide them, by working together, Meg and Llywelyn have a chance to navigate the dangerous and shifting alliances that constantly undermine his rule and threaten the very existence of Wales--and to create a future in which Llywelyn's death does not come too soon.

Daughter of Time is a stand-alone novel within the world of the After Cilmeri Series. Other books in the series include Footsteps in Time and Prince of Time. Read more


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The Geography of Bliss: One Grump's Search for the Happiest Places in the World

The Geography of Bliss
The Geography of Bliss: One Grump's Search for the Happiest Places in the World
by Eric Weiner
4.4 out of 5 stars(190)

Buy new: $13.99 $5.60
42 used & new from $2.79

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Review & Description

Part foreign affairs discourse, part humor, and part twisted self-help guide, The Geography of Bliss takes the reader from America to Iceland to India in search of happiness, or, in the crabby author's case, moments of "un-unhappiness." The book uses a beguiling mixture of travel, psychology, science and humor to investigate not what happiness is, but where it is. Are people in Switzerland happier because it is the most democratic country in the world? Do citizens of Qatar, awash in petrodollars, find joy in all that cash? Is the King of Bhutan a visionary for his initiative to calculate Gross National Happiness? Why is Asheville, North Carolina so damn happy? With engaging wit and surprising insights, Eric Weiner answers those questions and many others, offering travelers of all moods some interesting new ideas for sunnier destinations and dispositions. (2007) Read more


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Monday, October 24, 2011

The Table Comes First: Family, France, and the Meaning of Food

The Table Comes First
The Table Comes First: Family, France, and the Meaning of Food
by Adam Gopnik
Release Date: October 25, 2011

Buy new: $25.95 $16.09

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Review & Description

Never before have we cared so much about food. It preoccupies our popular culture, our fantasies, and even our moralizing—“You still eat meat?” With our top chefs as deities and finest restaurants as places of pilgrimage, we have made food the stuff of secular seeking and transcendence, finding heaven in a mouthful. But have we come any closer to discovering the true meaning of food in our lives?
 
With inimitable charm and learning, Adam Gopnik takes us on a beguiling journey in search of that meaning as he charts America’s recent and rapid evolution from commendably aware eaters to manic, compulsive gastronomes. It is a journey that begins in eighteenth-century France—the birthplace of our modern tastes (and, by no coincidence, of the restaurant)—and carries us to the kitchens of the White House, the molecular meccas of Barcelona, and beyond. To understand why so many of us apparently live to eat, Gopnik delves into the most burning questions of our time, including: Should a Manhattanite bother to find chicken killed in the Bronx? Is a great vintage really any better than a good bottle of wine? And: Why does dessert matter so much?
 
Throughout, he reminds us of a time-honored truth often lost amid our newfound gastronomic pieties and certitudes: What goes on the table has never mattered as much to our lives as what goes on around the table—the scene of families, friends, lovers coming together, or breaking apart; conversation across the simplest or grandest board. This, ultimately, is who we are.
 
Following in the footsteps of Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, Adam Gopnik gently satirizes the entire human comedy of the comestible as he surveys the wide world of taste that we have lately made our home. The Table Comes First is the delightful beginning of a new conversation about the way we eat now. Read more


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Amexica: War Along the Borderline

Amexica
Amexica: War Along the Borderline
by Ed Vulliamy
3.2 out of 5 stars(10)
Release Date: September 27, 2011

Buy new: $20.00 $13.71
47 used & new from $2.33

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Review & Description

With a New Afterword

In 2009, Ed Vulliamy traveled two thousand miles along the frontier from the Pacific coast to the Gulf of Mexico, and from Tijuana to Matamoros, a journey through a kaleidoscopic landscape of corruption and all-out civil war. He describes in revelatory detail the dreaded narco gangs; the smuggling of people, weapons, and illegal drugs; and the interrelated economies of drugs and the ruthless, systematic murder of young women in Ciudad Juarez. Amexica takes us far beyond today’s headlines. It is a street-level portrait, by turns horrific and sublime, of a place and people in a time of war as much as of the war itself, “an impressively rendered, nightmare-inducing account” (Kirkus Reviews, Top 25 Books of 2010).

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Sunday, October 23, 2011

The Total Outdoorsman Manual (Field & Stream)

The Total
The Total Outdoorsman Manual (Field & Stream)
by T. Edward Nickens, Field & Stream
4.5 out of 5 stars(19)

Buy new: $25.00 $15.85
34 used & new from $15.49

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Review & Description

With practical information for both the beginner and advanced outdoorsman, the book is an authoritative, comprehensive, and entertaining guide that will enable anyone to master the outdoors and hunt, fish, and camp like an expert.

HUNT BETTER How to track a buck, make the toughest shots, master bowhunting and knife skills, and haul, butcher, and cook wild game.

FISH SMARTER Advice on the best techniques for flyfishing, baitcasting, and spinning, as well as surefire ways to get the most out of your motorboat, canoe, or kayak.

SURVIVE ANYTHING Whether you fall through thick ice, are swept away by a raging river, or have a stare down with an angry bear, these skills means the difference between life and death.

CAMP ANYWHERE Tested and proven expert tips to help you stay warm, eat well, and build a fire in any situation in record time.

Field & Stream For more than 100 years, Field & Stream magazine has provided expert advice on every aspect of the outdoor life, including hunting, fishing, conservation, and wilderness survival. The magazine's annual Total Outdoorsman issue is one of its most popular, read by over nine million sporting enthusiasts.

The Total Outdoorsman Challenge brings together avid hunters and anglers from around the country to demonstrate their skills and compete for big bucks and bigger glory. Winners are all-around hunters, fishermen, and survivors with a flair for problem-solving and the skills to prevail. Read more


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Saturday, October 22, 2011

The Truth About Cruise Ships - A Cruise Ship Officer Survives the Work, Adventure, Alcohol, and Sex of Ship Life

The Truth
The Truth About Cruise Ships - A Cruise Ship Officer Survives the Work, Adventure, Alcohol, and Sex of Ship Life
Jay Herring (Author)
Ranking has gone up in the past 24 hours 187 days in the top 100
4.0 out of 5 stars(23)

Download: $3.99
197 used & new from $3.98

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Review & Description

Author’s hurricane video aired on national television by ABC’s Nightline to 3.9 million people.

Chapter 1

How Easy Is Romance on a Cruise Ship?

I had been onboard my first ship for five days when I went to the crew bar and met a woman from Trinidad and Tobago. She was a black woman and she was overweight, maybe even a little flabby, but such a sweetheart. I saw her the next night in the crew bar and she looked upset so I went over and sat down.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“I just had an argument with the chief purser,” she said with her Caribbean accent.

“That’s too bad.”

“Yes, I do not get along with the pursers on this ship very well,” she said, starting to tear up a little. “I do not have many friends onboard.”

Although I liked her, I could understand why others might shy away. She had slow, almost voodoo-like mannerisms that bordered on creepy. But she was so easy to talk to and, like me, perfectly content to sit and talk one on one.

“So do you have a girlfriend?” she asked, changing the subject.

“No.”

“Have you been with anyone on the ship yet?”

“Nope. It’s actually been twelve years since I slept with someone.”

“Come on now.”

“It’s true.” I said, and then told her why (more on that later).

“Hmm. That’s fascinating. You know, I used to sleep with a skinny white guy from England on my last ship. You remind me of him.”

“Oh, yeah?”

“He and I had lots of fun, and I never left him unsatisfied. I may not look it, but I’m actually a really good lover.”

“You don’t say.”

“I’ve been with lots of men in my day. I’m forty-one, after all. And in my years, I’ve learned exactly what men like and how to please them. And now”—she took a sip of her drink—“and now all the men I sleep with are extremely satisfied.”

I had always imagined athletic girls—especially flexible athletic girls—to be the best lovers. But this lady from Trinidad had me rethinking that assumption. Maybe it was just another one of the after effects of abstinence, but those voodoo mannerisms were now bordering on sensual.

“Would you like to have sex with me?” she asked, taking another sip of her drink. “We could go to my cabin right now.”

Woodrow.

I couldn’t believe how quickly the opportunity had presented itself. “I might be interested in that.”

“Might?”

“Yeah.”

“But not right now?”

“Yeah, not just yet.”

“Okay, well, you think about it and I’ll call you later this week.” She got up and left me at the table, alone with my thoughts.

My cabin phone rang at 8:00 p.m. two days later.

“Hi, it’s me,” she said. “How are you?”

“I’m good. How are you?” I responded.

“Good, good. Are you ready to do what we talked about the other night?” she asked, wasting no time on idle chit-chat...

.
.


A finalist in the Global eBook Awards, this is a behind-the-scenes look at cruise ships in a way that's never been done before. Some of the stories are shocking, some are enlightening, but most are just laugh-out-loud entertaining. This tour behind those "Crew Only" doors will reveal:

- How romance on a cruise ship is unlike anywhere else
- The insane things passengers do
- Why alcohol is mandatory at sea
- How nude cruises compare to Christian cruises
- A first hand account of getting caught in a hurricane and the ship's damage

Jay Herring was an American senior officer and one of the few who had physical access to the entire ship. He worked with every department and every senior officer, including the captain. His wife worked in the casino, and combined they worked for Carnival Cruise Lines for 10 years and sailed on over 503 cruises.

If you've ever wondered what happens below deck on a cruise ship, then get ready to laugh through an experience unlike any other!Author’s hurricane video aired on national television by ABC’s Nightline to 3.9 million people.

Chapter 1

How Easy Is Romance on a Cruise Ship?

I had been onboard my first ship for five days when I went to the crew bar and met a woman from Trinidad and Tobago. She was a black woman and she was overweight, maybe even a little flabby, but such a sweetheart. I saw her the next night in the crew bar and she looked upset so I went over and sat down.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“I just had an argument with the chief purser,” she said with her Caribbean accent.

“That’s too bad.”

“Yes, I do not get along with the pursers on this ship very well,” she said, starting to tear up a little. “I do not have many friends onboard.”

Although I liked her, I could understand why others might shy away. She had slow, almost voodoo-like mannerisms that bordered on creepy. But she was so easy to talk to and, like me, perfectly content to sit and talk one on one.

“So do you have a girlfriend?” she asked, changing the subject.

“No.”

“Have you been with anyone on the ship yet?”

“Nope. It’s actually been twelve years since I slept with someone.”

“Come on now.”

“It’s true.” I said, and then told her why (more on that later).

“Hmm. That’s fascinating. You know, I used to sleep with a skinny white guy from England on my last ship. You remind me of him.”

“Oh, yeah?”

“He and I had lots of fun, and I never left him unsatisfied. I may not look it, but I’m actually a really good lover.”

“You don’t say.”

“I’ve been with lots of men in my day. I’m forty-one, after all. And in my years, I’ve learned exactly what men like and how to please them. And now”—she took a sip of her drink—“and now all the men I sleep with are extremely satisfied.”

I had always imagined athletic girls—especially flexible athletic girls—to be the best lovers. But this lady from Trinidad had me rethinking that assumption. Maybe it was just another one of the after effects of abstinence, but those voodoo mannerisms were now bordering on sensual.

“Would you like to have sex with me?” she asked, taking another sip of her drink. “We could go to my cabin right now.”

Woodrow.

I couldn’t believe how quickly the opportunity had presented itself. “I might be interested in that.”

“Might?”

“Yeah.”

“But not right now?”

“Yeah, not just yet.”

“Okay, well, you think about it and I’ll call you later this week.” She got up and left me at the table, alone with my thoughts.

My cabin phone rang at 8:00 p.m. two days later.

“Hi, it’s me,” she said. “How are you?”

“I’m good. How are you?” I responded.

“Good, good. Are you ready to do what we talked about the other night?” she asked, wasting no time on idle chit-chat...

.
.


A finalist in the Global eBook Awards, this is a behind-the-scenes look at cruise ships in a way that's never been done before. Some of the stories are shocking, some are enlightening, but most are just laugh-out-loud entertaining. This tour behind those "Crew Only" doors will reveal:

- How romance on a cruise ship is unlike anywhere else
- The insane things passengers do
- Why alcohol is mandatory at sea
- How nude cruises compare to Christian cruises
- A first hand account of getting caught in a hurricane and the ship's damage

Jay Herring was an American senior officer and one of the few who had physical access to the entire ship. He worked with every department and every senior officer, including the captain. His wife worked in the casino, and combined they worked for Carnival Cruise Lines for 10 years and sailed on over 503 cruises.

If you've ever wondered what happens below deck on a cruise ship, then get ready to laugh through an experience unlike any other! Read more


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Thursday, October 20, 2011

Voyager

Voyager
Voyager
by Diana Gabaldon (Author), Davina Porter (Narrator)
Ranking has gone up in the past 24 hours 212 days in the top 100
4.4 out of 5 stars(268)

Buy new: $69.97 $36.95
192 used & new from $36.95

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Wednesday, October 19, 2011

The Lost Photographs of Captain Scott: Unseen Images from the Legendary Antarctic Expedition

The Lost Photographs of Captain Scott
The Lost Photographs of Captain Scott: Unseen Images from the Legendary Antarctic Expedition
by David M. Wilson
Publication Date: October 18, 2011

Buy new: $35.00 $22.63
21 used & new from $22.59

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Review & Description

The myth of Scott of the Antarctic, Captain Robert Falcon Scott, icon of fortitude and courage who perished with his fellow explorers on their return from the South Pole on March 29th, 1912, is an enduring one, elevated, dismantled and restored during the turbulence of the succeeding century.

Until now, the legend of the doomed Terra Nova expedition has been constructed out of Scott's own diaries and those of his companions, the sketches of 'Uncle Bill' Wilson and the celebrated photographs of Herbert Ponting. Yet for the final, fateful months of their journey, the systematic imaging of this extraordinary scientific endeavor was left to Scott himself, trained by Ponting. In the face of extreme climactic conditions and technical challenges at the dawn of photography, Scott achieved an iconic series of images; breathtaking polar panoramas, geographical and geological formations, and action photographs of the explorers and their animals, remarkable for their technical mastery as well as for their poignancy. Lost, fought over, neglected and finally resurrected, Scott's final photographs are here collected, accurately attributed and catalogued for the first time: a new dimension to the last great expedition of the Heroic Age and a humbling testament to the men whose graves still lie unmarked in the vastness of the Great Alone.

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Friday, October 14, 2011

The Last Place on Earth (Modern Library Exploration)

The Last
The Last Place on Earth (Modern Library Exploration)
by Roland Huntford, Paul Theroux
4.4 out of 5 stars(83)

Buy new: $15.95 $10.85
67 used & new from $3.13

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Review & Description

At the beginning of the twentieth century, the South Pole was the most coveted prize in the fiercely nationalistic modern age of exploration. In the brilliant dual biography, the award-winning writer Roland Huntford re-examines every detail of the great race to the South Pole between Britain's Robert Scott and Norway's Roald Amundsen. Scott, who dies along with four of his men only eleven miles from his next cache of supplies, became Britain's beloved failure, while Amundsen, who not only beat Scott to the Pole but returned alive, was largely forgotten. This account of their race is a gripping, highly readable history that captures the driving ambitions of the era and the complex, often deeply flawed men who were charged with carrying them out. THE LAST PLACE ON EARTH is the first of Huntford's masterly trilogy of polar biographies. It is also the only work on the subject in the English language based on the original Norwegian sources, to which Huntford returned to revise and update this edition.On December 14, 1911, the classical age of polar exploration ended when Norway's Roald Amundsen conquered the South Pole. His competitor for the prize, Britain's Robert Scott, arrived one month later--but died on the return with four of his men only 11 miles from their next cache of supplies. But it was Scott, ironically, who became the legend, Britain's heroic failure, "a monument to sheer ambition and bull-headed persistence. His achievement was to perpetuate the romantic myth of the explorer as martyr, and ... to glorify suffering and self-sacrifice as ends in themselves." The world promptly forgot about Amundsen.

Biographer Ronald Huntford's attempt to restore Amundsen to glory, first published in 1979 under the title Scott and Amundsen, has been thawed as part of the Modern Library Exploration series, captained by Jon Krakauer (of Into Thin Air fame). The Last Place on Earth is a complex and fascinating account of the race for this last great terrestrial goal, and it's pointedly geared toward demythologizing Scott. Though this was the age of the amateur explorer, Amundsen was a professional: he left little to chance, apprenticed with Eskimos, and obsessed over every detail. While Scott clung fast to the British rule of "No skis, no dogs," Amundsen understood that both were vital to survival, and they clearly won him the Pole.

Amundsen in Huntford's view is the "last great Viking" and Scott his bungling opposite: "stupid ... recklessly incompetent," and irresponsible in the extreme--failings that cost him and his teammates their lives. Yet for all of Scott's real or exaggerated faults, he understood far better than Amundsen the power of a well-crafted sentence. Scott's diaries were recovered and widely published, and if the world insisted on lionizing Scott, it was partly because he told a better story. Huntford's bias aside, it's clear that both Scott and Amundsen were valiant and deeply flawed. "Scott ... had set out to be an heroic example. Amundsen merely wanted to be first at the pole. Both had their prayers answered." --Svenja Soldovieri Read more


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Thursday, October 13, 2011

Utah

Utah
Utah
by Fred Hirschmann
5.0 out of 5 stars(2)

Buy new: $50.00 $31.50
41 used & new from $2.10

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Review & Description

This coffeetable book is the work of professional photographer Fred Hirschmann who began his love affair with Utah as a part time park employee at Bryce Canyon National Park. Hirschmann's images feature breathtaking views of the state's most beloved trademarks, such as Arches, Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks. Hirschman traveled to every corner of the state to capture Utah's terrain with all its variety and extremes. Emphasis is placed on the "spectacular" and images that will appeal to the great numbers of visitors who are drawn to Utah for its world-renowned ski resorts, hiking opportunities, and natural beauty as well as Salt Lake City and towns across the Beehive state. The quality of the photography and the printing make this book stand apart from any others.

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Tuesday, October 11, 2011

High Line: The Inside Story of New York City's Park in the Sky

High Line
High Line: The Inside Story of New York City's Park in the Sky
by Joshua David, Robert Hammond
Release Date: October 11, 2011

Buy new: $29.95 $19.37
20 used & new from $15.99

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Review & Description

How two New Yorkers led the transformation of a derelict elevated railway into a grand—and beloved—open space

The High Line, a new park atop an ele-vated rail structure on Manhattan’s West Side, is among the most innovative urban reclamation projects in memory. The story of how it came to be is a remarkable one: two young citizens with no prior experience in planning and development collaborated with their neighbors, elected officials, artists, local business owners, and leaders of burgeoning movements in horticulture and landscape architecture to create a park celebrated worldwide as a model for creatively designed, socially vibrant, ecologically sound public space.

Joshua David and Robert Hammond met in 1999 at a community board meeting to consider the fate of the High Line. Built in the 1930s, it carried freight trains to the West Side when the area was defined by factories and warehouses. But when trains were replaced by truck transport, the High Line became obsolete. By century’s end it was a rusty, forbidding ruin. Plants grew between the tracks, giving it a wild and striking beauty.

David and Hammond loved the ruin and saw in it an opportunity to create a new way to experience their city. Over ten years, they did so. In this candid and inspiring book— lavishly illustrated—they tell how they relied on skill, luck, and good timing: a crucial court ruling, an inspiring design contest, the enthusiasm of Mayor Bloomberg, the concern for urban planning issues following 9/11. Now the High Line—a half-mile expanse of plants, paths, staircases, and framed vistas—runs through a transformed West Side and reminds us that extraordinary things are possible when creative people work together for the common good.

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