3 comments about Belize : Land of the Free by the Carib Sea.

1. A few months ago I visited Belize with my mom and we had a super great time. It is the most beautiful rainforest and the ocean reef is one of the biggest in the world. The book Belize shows all the natural beauty of the country as well as the many cultural groups including Mayan Indians, Creole, and Garifuna people which is a new culture formed of the mixture of African and American Indian people. The book Belize is full of beautiful color photographs and really gives you a good idea of what the country is like.



2. BELIZE: LAND OF THE FREE BY THE CARIB SEA by Thor Janson is without question one of the most beautiful photographic books I own. I have not visited Belize yet but as I look at the stunning images in Janson's book It has me dreaming of a mid-winter get away to this little country flanked by the Caribbean Sea. The book includes an excellent introductory text which takes the reader all the way from pre-historic times up to the present day and describes in detail all the different cultural groups which make up the rich fabric of contemporary Belezian society. The bulk of the book is comprised of photo layouts including extraordinary shots of wild animals such as jaguars and manatees, ancient Mayan ruins, cultural events (such as the wild Belize City carnaval), peaceful rural scenes, beautiful children, rainforests, savannahs, and pine forests, and plenty of charming, happy, smiling faces giving the impression that Belize must be a very warm, inviting place to visit, indeed. A picture is worth a thousand words, they say, and this excellent book by Thor Janson contains more than 150 extraordinary photos which combined give the reader a real "feel" of what life is like in the diminutive, peaceful nation of Belize.



3. I bought it for my boyfriend who is from Belize and he loved it. Beautiful pictures.

3 comments about CUBA: The Special Period.

1. When I ordered this book, I expected a photography book of photographs taken throughout Cuba in the nineties. I did not expect a heavy-handed, one-sided anti-Castro dissertation. The photographs are heavily documented with this sort of commentary. The last chapter in the book does not contain photographs at all - it is a collection of essays, all from members of the Cuba exile community. The photographs themselves are of professional quality (they are certainly better than mine), but the subject matter is extremely limited. The vast majority are of buildings, transportation, and street scenes in Havana and Santiago de Cuba. I expected more variety and a bit more imagination in the choice of subject matter. If you do not want to support the political agenda put forth by this extremely prejudicial account, I do not recommend this book. There are lots of more interesting and truly informative books about Cuba.



2. I have read Marcia Friedman's beautiful book titled "CUBA: The Special Period" from cover to cover and was totally captivated. As an artist, art dealer and art appraiser for over 30 years, I have seen many wonderful books and Marcia Friedman's publication stands out in my mind among the best. The quality of the photography, text and printing make it outstanding.



3. I read Marcia's book and thought that the pictures were great and the essays from Exiles were extremely interesting and enlightening. As an American, never being in Cuba, I felt I was personally taken on an amazing journey. I highly recommend this book to everyone. I especially loved the poetic way in which each picture was linked. It was very well done.

1 comments about Trinidad And Tobago (Macmillan Caribbean Dive Guides).

1. This book is up to date on diving in the most Southerly isles of the West Indies. The GPS co-ordinates make finding the dive sites a snap, so there is no need to waste time or air, swimming to the site. The top side discussion and photos are very interesting
   and entices the reader to find out more about the islands. The underwater pictures are colourful and are true to form. I strongly
   recommend it to visitors to the islands. I look forward to his other books!

1 comments about Santa Catalina Island: The Story Behind the Scenery.

1. This book gives a nice introduction to the natural history of Santa Catalina Island, just a mere 23 miles off the Southern California coast. It includes lots of great photos and also information on the geology and biology of the island, with a few historical tidbits to boot. If you're curious about Catalina, this will whet your appetite!

No comments about Once Upon a Time There Was Colombia.

No comments about CONDE' NAST JOHANSENS RECOMMENDED HOTELS, INNS AND RESORTS - THE AMERICAS, ATLANTIC, CARIBBEAN, PACIFIC 2009 (Johansens Recommended Hotels Inns and Resorts: North America, Bermuda, Caribbean Pacific).

1 comments about The Rough Guide to Cuba 3 (Rough Guide Travel Guides).

1. This guide needs serious updating. US$$ are not the preferred foreign currency in Cuba now, and hadn't been for a couple of years already when this edition was published. Not impressed with the detail work either. The Moon publication for Cuba is better than either this, or the Lonely Planet books.

1 comments about Eastern Caribbean in Focus: A Guide to the People, Politics and Culture (In Focus Guides).

1. This slim book is a helpful and fact-filled introduction to the history and socio-economic trends in the Caribbean basin. Its focus is on the gentle arc of islands stretching from Anguilla to Trinidad. Sugar, bananas, and oil are among the commodities that have and continue to play a role in the economic life of the region. The author gives us a brief history of the Caribbean's past reliance on the slave trade to support its agricultural economy and the sometimes bloody uprisings prior to its eventual abolition in the nineteenth century. It is the kind of information you will not find in Fodor's or most travel brochures (I write this note standing at a Curacao resort photographing an idealized mural of healthy black servants - the second I have seen today). Of greater interest to the curious North American may be the history of colonial involvement which has left its ethnic mark on the islands' culture along British, French, and Dutch lines. Anglo-Canadians will almost certainly be amused to recall that it was in the Treaty of 1763 that Britain opted to retain Canada - dismissed by Voltaire as a "few acres of snow". In exchange, the delighted French retained a dotted cluster of islands that for all its imagined similarity to paradise is extraordinarily difficult to locate on any map - Guadeloupe. The impact of tourism is tremendous in the Caribbean today and it seems only destined to grow with cheap airfares and travel 'channels' of information breathlessly promoting the regions' splendid climate and recreational amenities. While some voice reservations about the cultural or ecological impact of this recent 'invasion', others might argue that the material benefits imparted to the island economies are real, needed, benign, and re-occurring. Each island's cultural identity is a dynamic asset that can be protected but not totally controlled from change with civic planning and an eye toward promoting the preservation of local traditions. In this way tourism and local identity can evolve together. The cultural impact of tourism, the development of off-shore banking enterprises, an ever-present awareness of the United States (the CNN Effect) get little attention and are generally beyond the scope of this book. The sinister threat of the drug trade moving through the islands is noted (A vacationing Amsterdam physician tells me to read SNEEUW OVER CURACAO, J.van den Heuvel [untranslated]). These are topics that warrant serious attention. Reading Ferguson's introduction is a reasonable place to prepare for that more serious study.

No comments about Portrait of Cuba.

5 comments about Scuba Dic.: An Underwater Adventure Dictionary, Vol. 1: Caribbean Sea.

1. I was skeptical at first when I saw this, but I was getting bored just knowing the names of the fish I came across. I thought this would turn out like Fish Flips(eg only names of fish listed for each pic), but it has a LOT more to offer. There are written descriptions for each pic, that don't just list facts, but also explain how to find & approach sea life (eg. Size, time of day, hiding spots/location, animals behavior, etc.), I found this really useful, because after tooling around with my camera, I was getting tired of only getting snapshots of fishtails. The book held up great UW; the pages just got sticky bc I didn't rinse it off initially, but I left it overnight in fresh water and there was no problem after that. Since i started taking along scuba dic for dives, it's been abused more times than tina turner, & its still in good shape....thus far. I do think it's better to get familiar with it on your surface interval vs trying to learn underwater. But all in all, it's a really good idea.



2. Waterproof materials, GREAT photos, extremely useful information. I would recommend this clever reference guide to any diver. I can't wait for more scuba dic volumes! Retractable device a must, too.... places marine species identification literally at your fingertips.



3. Just in the first five minutes I learned to much about the world under the sea.Great book.



4. I like its physical size since its large enough to easily utilize while checking out interesting animals, yet not overly big and clumsy so as to interfere with your equipment. With the animal's photo on one side of the page and its environmental aspects discussed on the opposite side, e.g., size, hiding areas, and behavior, it helps enlarge one's knowledge and appreciation for subject. And I first tested its `waterproof' capability in my marine aquarium, where it was left for 30 minutes, then removed and cleaned in freshwater. Still looks like new, and I'll test it somewhat further when I go to the Caymans in the near future. I'm already looking forward to Vol. 2. Bob Goemans



5. I'm a recreational diver at the moment and I love this reference guide to some of the amazing stuff you can encounter while diving! Although it's just a small sample of what you'll run into underwater, it's a very informative and helpful guide to browse through before and after your dives to give your dive a fun scavenger hunt! It comes with a retractable clip that prevents it from getting lost or misplaced. A great gift for those considering becoming a scuba diver and veterans alike. Even if you don't go diving it will take you into the amazing underwater world through the wonderful pictures along with a description of the marine life shown.