No comments about Only in Los Angeles.

2 comments about STREETWISE® Compact Los Angeles (Streetwise (Streetwise Maps)).

1. Although accurate, this compact version of the Los Angeles map's print was so small that even with glasses I still couldn't read it clearly so I wouldn't advise using it unless your eyesight is very good.



2. This map was compact, but hard to read and not very helpful with either the downtown Los Angeles area or surrounding communities. I suggest the local auto club map would be a much better, low or no cost alternative. My wife and I buy many travel aides and do travel frequently, but this map, unfortunately was a waste of money.

3 comments about The War Between the State: Northern California vs. Southern California.

1. As an historian and author of SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA MISCELLANY... I found this book to be a witty commentary echoing the journalistic tradition of Ambrose Bierce. It is a must-read for Californians! The pages of this book lay down the unspoken laws, that, which residents have always known...The South was never defeated, not in Southern California!



2. I read this book, page for page and found it useless. Not really sure you can call it a book, a collection of fun, but not really true trivial facts about California. Once done it went into the trash. I didn't have the nerve to show it or suggest anyone else waste time with in. Other then balancing that uneven table you may have



3. This isn't so much a "book" as it is a 155-page collection of quotes. But you know what? They're quality quotes -- funny, insightful, revealing one-liners about NorCal and SoCal that are, more often than not, true.
   
   Examples:
   - "There is always something so delightfully real about what is phony in Los Angeles. And something so phony about what is real. A sort of disreputable senility."
   - "No man could find a better spot on Earth, if only he had some intelligent person to talk to. Los Angeles is a waxworks museum. Everything looks real, then you notice it's a fairly good replica, which, however, never fools you."
   - "LA is like Vegas -- but the losers stay in town."
   - "Take an opium eater's dream to Los Angeles, and they will realize it for you: the more it costs, the more they will believe in it."
   - "Los Angeles is one of the most secret cities I've ever been to. It seems all sunny and open and candid, but it's not. Try to find a friend. Try to find a scene. Try to get comfortable if you're from out of town. Everything happens in living rooms or cars."
   - "Hollywood: A place where you spend more than you make, on things you don't need, to impress people you don't like."
   
   - "San Francisco is the only city that goes down on itself."
   - "In San Francisco, a mixed marriage is a man and a woman."
   - "San Francisco is the center of the known universe; just ask any of us who live here."
   - "The moral penal colony of the world."
   - "Here, Halloween is redundant."
   - "Berkeley: a town in which half the people are seeking to overthrow the federal government while the other half are seeking the perfect croissant."
   - "San Franciscians like to have fun, and the natives are sexier. And less mummified. Less Botox, collagen, implants and fewer tsunamis of tucks than you find in LA. Also, the girls have shapelier legs from walking up and down those hills."
   
   LA, SF, the East Bay, Hollywood, the Valley, and even New York all get their own chapters, but basically, the morals of the story are:
   1. NorCal is a place for narcissistic liberal weirdos with a one-way hatred towards SoCal.
   2. SoCal is a smog-infested metropolitan mess populated by fake, uninteresting morons who exhaust their mental and financial resources pursuing image, appearances, and youth.
   
   Nothing you didn't know before, right? Sure, but it's fun to hear the truth delivered in short, sharp jabs, and it still makes for a good hour or two of educational entertainment. And give the author credit for being first to tackle the subject matter.
   
   I might have given it 5 stars if the price were more proportional to the effort. $17's kinda steep for a big cut-and-paste job.
   
   PS - NorCal rules.

1 comments about Los Angeles to San Diego & Vicinity: Laminated.

1. Are you looking to do something different for the weekend? For the latest info about special events, attractions, recreation and activities in this area try to Google 'MainTour San Diego'.

No comments about Zagat Survey 2006/07 Los Angeles Nightlife (Zagat Los Angeles Nightlife) (Zagat Los Angeles Nightlife).

No comments about Orange County & Los Angeles County Popout Map: Orange Count, Los Angeles County, Anaheim, Newport Beach, California.

2 comments about Hidden Southern California: Including Los Angeles, Hollywood, San Diego, Santa Barbara, and Palm Springs (Hidden Travel).

1. I checked out several tour books before we left for our southern California vacation, but chose the Ray Riegert book for it's unique suggestions for food, lodging, and tourist site recommendations. The book is well organized. We followed the chapters from San Diego through the beach towns all the way to Los Angeles. We were delighted with all of the "hidden" restaurants that we tried. It helped that all of the information was current too. Riegert's suggestions for interesting routes and parks led us through some of the most beautiful country imaginable - places we would never have seen if it were not for this book. Hidden Southern California is a great resource that we will use again and again.



2. While the guide may review restaurants, hotels or museums that are not typically covered in other guides, its failure to address local activities was disappointing. Information on bike rental shops, scuba shops, fun tours or other things are absent. If you want a guide to more than hotels, restaurants and museums you might want to reconsider this purchase.

5 comments about Rio L. A.: Tales from the Los Angeles River.

1. Admittedly, there aren't many books devoted to the LA river so we have to make do with what's available. Unfortunately, if you're looking for an in-depth historical biography, this certainly isn't it. Entertaining, maybe -- a big maybe. The text is so lightweight and airy, I half expected it to drift away. The Blake Gumprecht book is more thoroughly researched and thought out, and a much better choice.



2. That other review must be from a disgruntled author. Patt Morrison's book is filled with historical information about the Los Angeles River, plus wonderful anecdotes and a very readable style--I bought it because I saw it on the LA Times BESTSELLER list for six weeks and decided to see what I was missing. The people who put it on the list by buying it know what's great--I love this book. A book doesn't have to be long like Gumprecht's to be fulfilling. Plus this book has compelling photographs that tell their own incredible story. Hooray for Patt Morrison and Mark Lamonica!



3. I'm a big fan of "urban archaeology" but except for a few cool bridges (if you've ever been to the movies you've seen them) there's not much goin' on these days along the LA river. Its interesting as a story but photographicly its pretty dull, even as an industrial landscape.

   Its like books on Rt. 66. 99% of what made it interesting isn't there anymore.




4. Than this poorly written, haphazard history. The photos aren't even coffee book table quality and are often so cropped as to delete important features that the author may have actually described. This is not for a serious historical reader or for a photo composition review. It fails on all counts.



5. This book is done in a table top format and should be within reach at all times- at least for all Angelinos and natural flowing river advocates. It is not a scholarly treatment and not meant to be, rather, it is an anecdotal effort to bring awareness of the *existence* of the river and bring people up to speed via a quick overview of the history and current affairs of the river. This is accomplished with good text and photos by Patt Morrison (Los Angeles Times columnist, extraordinaire) and Mark Lamonica (a great photographer).
   
   It is ironic that the first Europeans settled and founded Los Angeles *because* of the river, never mind the Indians that were here first and had revered the river for centuries for it's life providing qualities, yet in so many years and due to huge population growth, demands for ever increasing water volume caused people to start looking elsewhere, ie., wells, lake diversions, catch-basins, etc. The river became a nuisance from it's pesky habit of changing it's course through periodic floods and then ran dry for much of the year. Eventually, the river was channeled and turned into a huge concrete drainage ditch- not a pretty site. Access to the river was fenced-off, so it pretty much became ignored. Well, not quite.
   
   Very dedicated people (including Patt Morrison) have been drawing attention to the river and calling for it's revitalization as a river complete with native flora/fauna. "Friends of the L.A. River" is one such group and there are many more. There are significant stretches of the river that have been rehabilitated to a more natural and original condition and many would love to see this happen over the entire 51 mile run it makes from the headwaters in the San Fernando Valley all the way to Long Beach where it meets the Pacific Ocean- and this is doable! The river just needs more attention drawn to it and that is the essence of this book.
   
   If anyone wants a more scientific (hydrology, meterology, etc.), scholarly and historically fact filled book about the river, check out what most people refer to as the definitive science and history of the river: "The Los Angeles River: It's Life, Death, and Possible Rebirth" by Blake Gumprecht (Patt Morrison references it in her book). In combination, these 2 books give a compelling voice of hope to the continuing revitalization and respect for Rio L.A.

4 comments about City of Angels.

1. Elisa Kleven consistantly ups the ante, no one working in publishing today has her eye for detail. Her colorful and inviting spreads paired with Jaskol and Lewis' informative and fun text make this book a winner. Only Kleven and company could make L.A. so appealing and inviting!



2. This book is one of those rare children's books that teaches the adult as well as the child. I can only hope that the authors and the illustrator work on capturing the magic of other cities, just like they did with Los Angeles!



3. As residents of Los Angeles we are thrilled to have a book which highlights our city, its diversity and its vivacity. Each page is a jeweled mosaic. We will enjoy introducing our grandchildren to their city in picture and word.



4. This book shows Angelenos and the world that there is much diversity to celebrate and enjoy in Los Angeles and it does it in a fun, colorful way. The illustrations are delightful and the text informative. Even long-time residents will learn something new. Fun for adults as well as kids. We bought them as gifts for everyone on our holiday list.

No comments about Frommer's Los Angeles 2002.