1 comments about Spectacular Washington (Spectacular).

1. This book has some great photos of DC. I loved looking at the photos of the places I love visiting.

No comments about City of Washington: An Illustrated History.

5 comments about The Dog Lover's Companion to Washington, DC-Baltimore.

1. I highly recommend this book to dog owners who love to take their little four-legged friend(s) everywhere. It is well organized and the writing style used is perfect for dog lovers.

   It covers almost all the parks in the Washington D.C., Virginia and Baltimore. Have you ever looked up a park on a map and it looked huge and perfect for your dog, and when you got there, you and your dog were very disappointing with the park? Well, the review for each park is quite accurate. With this book on hand, you can look up a park and find out if it is suitable for your dog before driving there. It covers important information that a dog owner needs to know about the park/area - such as the poop scoop law and the leash law.

   It also contains information (ie. hotel, restaurant, pet stores, etc...) that is very useful for dog owners who like to take their pooches on vacation with them.

   Embedded into the book, you will find dog adoption information. The book encourages suggestions from readers. I've already written to the publisher suggesting to include information on various rescue organizations and local animal shelters - a way to help promote pet rescue/adoption.




2. I bought this book when it first came out for a friend of mine who was moving to Baltimore with her dog. Two years later, I borrowed it from her when I discovered I was moving to D.C. I found it enormously usefull for choosing a dog-friendly neighborhood with good access to parks. The authors understand the basic qualities of a good dog park: safety, space, a group of 'regular' neighborhood go-ers, and access to a good espresso bar for weekend dog walking. Overall, the writers do an excelent job.

   I have only a few complaints. One - due to the impossibility of visiting every park in this populous region more than once, I've found that the park's ratings can heavily reflect the day and time of the visit -- not necessarily what the park is like on a typical weekday at 6pm. Also, some park ratings reflect a nice place to go with a small dog on a leash, you won't necessarily have the same experience with your massive Great Dane tugging at every new smell. The writers also disapprove of dogs being off-leash, and rate more lowly some parks that are true jems for those of us with larger dogs that require more exercise.

   Overall, a great guide, and certainly unique. A must for all dog owners in this area, particularly if you moving to this region.




3. This is one of my favorite books ever. Really. I moved to the D.C. area with my lab three years ago, and while we were used to having dozens of places to go for various reasons or times, I didn't know where to begin to find good places to take her around our new home. This book was a godsend for finding fun places to go, especially because I found the reviews to give a me a very accurate idea of what sort of place we were going, including what sort of "feel" it might have for dog-friendliness. Some of the features of the book I have found extremely helpful are:

   * Birds-eye maps showing where the reviewed locations are in the counties covered (perfect for finding a park near odd places that I might run errands)
   * How strict the leash law is followed (this is a biggie for me -- while the authors point out excellent reasons to use the leash, they very helpfully suggest where we can get away without it)
   * Rough idea how crowded the area in question might be, and how easy or difficult to get to (varies of course by time of day and season)
   * Whether there's a place for doggie swimming

   In my area (Sterling/Ashburn, VA) I've found the book to be amazingly comprehensive for my local and outlying areas, and find that the park descriptions have always given me a pretty accurate idea what to expect. The book covers a wide enough range (including some pseudo-local vacation destinations) that I've used it on countless occasions to find nice stopover while on short trips outside my "home turf". Highly recommended for anyone who enjoys finding varied places to visit with their pups.




4. I bought this based on the great reviews, so perhaps it was a let-down because I had high expectations. This is a guide book with a slight dog orientation, but honeselty, I didn't feel like this really gave me much valuable information about living and traveling in the DC area with a dog- other than telling me where parks are (info available on many web sites). The actual dog-friendliness of the parks, and rating system seemed totally off with how I would have rated parks. Seems like they are rated more for person-appeal than dog-appeal.
   
   But maybe I'm just biased as I have a hound and value FENCED off-leash parks above all :)



5. I had traveled to Reston, VA with my dogs to go to the Pet Fiesta while there I picked this book up and used it to travel all over the Washington D.C. area with my dogs. I am so glad that I did because I was not sure what I was going to do after the Pet Fiesta was over and this book opened up lots of options and lots of ideas for future trips.
   
   I advise taking a pen with you so you can write in additional things that you find that may not be listed in the book. While at Old Town Alexandria today we ate at an Irish restaurant that had a doggie menu that was not listed in the book but was a must go to if you travel there.
   
   I loved this book and only wish that there was one for my area.

2 comments about Quest fo the Holy Grill: 50 Crummy But Good Restaurants Within Rambling Range of Washington, D.C. (Capital Hometown Guides).

1. Written by a restaurant expert, "Quest for the Holy Grill" is one of the funniest, most well-written travel guide/ restaurant review books I've read in a long time.

   If you live in Maryland, Washington DC, or Virginia, you will find this book to be an invaluable tool to find great restaurants you may have overlooked in the past.




2. After having visited one of the establishments reviewed, I thought it would be interesting to read of all such eateries listed in the book. Crummy can also serve up wonderful meals. I enjoyed Donovan Kelly's writing style and humor along with the pertinent information.

No comments about The Shopper's Guide to Washington, DC: Where to Find the Best of Everything (Hometown Guides).

2 comments about eat.shop.washington dc: The Indispensible Guide to Stylishly Unique, Locally Owned Eating and Shopping (eat.shop guides series).

1. I was in DC for business for several weeks and I took this book with me everywhere! It's a must for people who are not interested in all of the tourist hot spots and really want to see what DC has to offer. This is my second eat.shop book and I have never been disapointed by any of the shops or eateries. It will be the best travel guide you'll ever buy.



2. This 'book' is more like a pretty pamphlet listing small restaurants, boutiques, shops, etc. The 'book' is about 4" by 4" big and it has one page with a variety of photos and on the facing page a list of a few items that denote what the author thinks is special about this shop, restaurant. Pretty catalog - not an informational book.

3 comments about A City of Gardens: Glorious Public Gardens In and Around the Nations Capital (Washington Weekends) (Washington Weekends).

1. I left D.C. over five years ago for Southwest Louisiana. Ms. Seeber's wonderful book "A City Of Garden's" allows me the priveldge to re-visit some of the most wonderful public gardens in D.C., such as Dumbarton Oaks and The Bishop's Garden at The National Cathedral, via a book. And, introduced me to a garden I have missed: "The Old Stone House," which Ms. Seeber astutley points out, "you could walk by and miss." For anyone interested in discovering the real splendors of the D.C. (and vicinity), the public gardens, there is only one source: "A City Of Gardens." Kudos, Ms, Seeber. This is a walk through my past, and a treasure of the utmost to anyone seeking the original and finest destinations in the Washington, D.C. metro area.: the glorious public gardens in and around our Nation's Capital, as the cover rightfully conveys.



2. Judy Karpinski's photos and Karen Thompson's illustrations enhance Barbara Seeber's A City Of Gardens, an impressively informative surveying of public gardens in and around Washington D.C. Any who live on the East Coast will find City Of Gardens to be an excellent destination-oriented guide which invites gardeners and tourists to enjoy the city's garden wonders. Notes on rare plants, old trees, and more pinpoint what makes each destination special.



3. Ever wish you had a book that had certain qualities, and then find one that just meets your needs?
   
   If you are interested in gardens around Washington DC, this is the guide book!
   I have quite a bit of free time this spring and wanted to plan several garden visits, but couldn't find anything other than detailed histories of some of the major gardens in the area. In a stroke of luck, I checked out from the library and liked it so much I had to buy a copy.
   
   It's a wonderfully detailed, yet readable description of each of the gardens with lots of nice historical detail without getting bogged down. I am very familiar with oneof the gardens and found the description to be very good.
   It is aimed at the gardener, with descriptions of plants.
   
   A real joy for the gardener looking to explore the gardens of Washington, DC.

No comments about The Dog Owner's Guide to Washington Dc.

No comments about Stages to Saturn: a Technological History of the Apollo/Saturn Launch Vehicles (NASA History Series).

1 comments about ADC the Map People Metro Washington, DC. Pocket Atlas (Laminated Folding Maps).

1. I was very disappointed after purchasing this street map book. Apparently majority of Montgomery County isn't considered Metro Washington, DC. Don't expect to see any streets north of Bethesda - Whiteflint, Rockville, etc. are all missing. This definitely isn't a map street finder for someone living in the MD suburbs