This happens every so often here in the cubicle: The desktop, file cabinet and even the floor are covered with ever-growing stacks of books. If we don’t clear this away right now, there won’t be anywhere to sit next week. So, to clean house, and in the interest of working free from the danger of a book avalanche, we haven’t examined the following titles as thoroughly as we do in regular installments of Resourceful Traveler. Take the following descriptions as neither picks nor pans, but as a sketch of what’s on the market.
ROAD BOOKS
“The World-Famous Alaska Highway”
(Fulcrum; $21.95)
Road choices are few in Alaska. Often, there is only one route between one place and another. So the art of the Alaska drive comes in the how, rather than the which. Some of the advice has to do with subjects you wouldn’t ordinarily associate with a drive guide: How to fend off mosquito swarms if you are dumb enough to forget the bug spray, for instance. Or when to rewind your film so it won’t get ruined by static electricity. Mostly, the decisions to be made are in picking which routes to drive to get there from the Lower 48, and the book, subtitled “A Guide to the Alcan & Other Wilderness Roads of the North,” addresses those. Drive and destination descriptions are followed by suggested dining and lodging options. Two pages are set aside for the Alaska Marine Highway System and the BC Ferries. But this doesn’t seem like a guide whose content is all work and no play. There’s a glossary for Alaskan and Canadian expressions and recommendations on activities from fishing to dog mushing. (ISBN 1-55591-446-2)
“Signpost Guides: England and Wales”
(Thomas Cook/Globe Pequot; $22.95)
Subtitled “Your Guide to Great Drives,” this 286-page book contains descriptions of more than 20 driving routes accompanied by a map that outlines each drive, a map in color that identifies regional attractions and plenty of color photos that show what you’ll see along the way. It gives total distance in miles and kilometers for each itinerary, as well as estimated drive times. A rating system shows the degree to which each route offers such things as beaches, castles, pubs and restaurants, wildlife sightings, outdoor activities, and whether it’s a good bet for families with small children. Also gives operating seasons and hours for attractions. (ISBN0-7627-0694-5)
FLORIDA ALL OVER
“Irresistible Overnights: A Guide to the Most Delightfully Different Places to Stay in Florida”
(Rutledge Hill Press; $12.99)
This book’s title is so long–why is that such a trend these days?–they haven’t left us room for any description other than to say that these 270-some pages have a few black-and-white photos. (ISBN 1-55853-818-6)
“Vegetarian Walt Disney World and Greater Orlando Including Universal Orlando”
(Vegetarian World Guides; $14.95)
Here’s another mouthful of a title. And if that weren’t enough, it has a sub-title as well: “The Essential Guide for the Diet-Conscious Traveler.” Not counting the index, this book fits 252 pages behind a foreword from Paul McCartney. (ISBN 0-9679280-0-1)
“Insider’s Guide: The Florida Keys and Key West”
(Falcon; $17.95)
With more than 450 pages, this book has plenty of room to expand on things you want to know–like restaurant descriptions and where to board the African Queen boat that starred in the movie by the same name–and things you’d rather not–like where to buy patio furniture. (ISBN 1-57380-176-3)
FOREVER FRANCE
“French Fried”
(Thomas Dunn Books/St. Martin’s Press; $23.95 hardcover)
Try to relate to the following statement from author Harriet Welty Rochefort: “Let me say that I was disappointed not to be welcomed with open arms by the cheese people because I adore and champion French cheese. I eat every single kind of French cheese I can find. Whenever I am in the States, French cheese is what I end up missing most.” Subtitled “The Culinary Capers of an American in Paris,” the book includes recipes, with enough calorie counts and fat-gram assessments to leave true Frenchmen aghast. Should you be fortunate enough in your own travels to be invited to a French home for dinner, the author gives advice on how to behave yourself–as if the world’s Francophiles would have to be told. (ISBN 0-312-26149-7)
“Hotels of Character and Charm in Paris”
(Hunter Publishing, $16.95)
This looks a lot like the catalog-style listings of Relais & Chateaux. Its 283 listings are organized by arrondissement, each hotel is granted one page for a color photo (usually an interior shot of a room, but of the lobby in some cases), followed by contact information, amenities list and a narrative description that could cover anything from the surrounding neighborhood to the color of the sofas in the lobby. This third edition begins with an easy-to-read street map in color. But if you are sensitive to chemical odors, know that this volume smells strongly of ink. Also out from this publisher is the fourth edition of “Hotels and Country Inns of Character and Charm in Italy.” (ISBN 1-55650-901-4)
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You may contact Resourceful Traveler in care of Toni Stroud at tstroud@tribune.com.
